In eastern Afghanistan, 1st Lt. Andrew Bundermann leads a patrol into the mountains surrounding Saw village. Bundermann was the senior officer at Combat Outpost Keating in October 2009 when several hundred Taliban launched an attack on the base, killing eight U.S. soldiers.
Greg Jaffe-The Washington Post
First Lt. Andrew Bundermann, left, and Sgt. Bradley Larson watch over U.S. troops moving into Saw village in the valley below them.
Greg Jaffe-The Washington Post
Sgt. Bradley Larson, monitoring U.S. troop movements, was among soldiers who came under Taliban attack at Combat Outpost Keating.
Greg Jaffe-The Washington Post
U.S. soldiers patrol outside a village in eastern Afghanistan.
Greg Jaffe-The Washington Post
Sgt. Bradley Larson, whose Humvee was badly damaged by the Taliban during the Keating firefight, helped carry a seriously wounded soldier to safety.
Greg Jaffe-The Washington Post
Sgt. Bradley Larson, left, and 1st Lt. Andrew Bundermann played key roles in preventing a worse onslaught on U.S. forces at Combat Outpost Keating.
Greg Jaffe-The Washington Post
In Konar province, soldiers patrol. Their tightly knit unit came under Taliban attack in October.
Greg Jaffe-The Washington Post
Spec. Armando Avalose and 1st Lt. Andrew Bundermann, right, survived the insurgent attack last October.
Greg Jaffe-The Washington Post
Shortly before the October attack, one senior officer had concluded that the continued U.S. presence at Combat Outpost Keating was fueling the insurgency. He petitioned for the base's closure two months before the assault.
Greg Jaffe-The Washington Post
Mountainous terrain surrounds U.S. troops and makes reinforcement efforts difficult.
Greg Jaffe-The Washington Post
Combat Outpost Keating was at the foot of a narrow valley, which some troops have described as feeling like living at the bottom of a Dixie cup.
U.S. Army
This Humvee was hit by grenades and gunfire as U.S. troops sought refuge in October.
U.S. Army
An Afghan soldier removes the body of a Taliban fighter who was killed in the Keating battle. More than 75 insurgents died in the October clash.
U.S. Army
A dining facility was reduced to rubble in the October assault.
U.S. Army
Americans used explosive charges and a B1 bomber to level the Keating base after U.S. forces departed.
U.S. Army
Lt. Col. Robert B. Brown and a senior Afghan National Police official discuss a possible alliance with an insurgent leader.
Greg Jaffe-The Washington Post
Col. Shamsu Rahman discusses plans for an Afghan Army and border police operation.
Greg Jaffe-The Washington Post
Lt. Col. Robert B. Brown, who oversaw the troops at Combat Outpost Keating, meets with local elders near Naray.
Greg Jaffe-The Washington Post
Afghan Border Police Col. Shamsu Rahman reviews a letter from Lt. Col. Robert B. Brown to insurgent leader Mullah Sadiq.
Greg Jaffe-The Washington Post
"The bad guys aren't bad because they were born bad," Lt. Col. Robert B. Brown said. "What no one ever teaches you is how to get to the bottom of the story."
Greg Jaffe-The Washington Post
Elders from the village of Naray talk about corruption in the Afghan government during a meeting with U.S. military leaders.
Greg Jaffe-The Washington Post
Lt. Col. Robert B. Brown, celebrating the Afghan new year, has been willing to entertain the possibility of dealing with insurgent leader Mullah Sadiq to achieve a larger victory: driving the Taliban from Kamdesh district and returning the Afghan government there.
Greg Jaffe-The Washington Post
Mullah Sadiq, in 2002, has been on U.S. kill-capture lists for years, but in October he sought U.S. help to broker a peace deal.
U.S. Army
Village elders from Saw learn about the U.S. military's viewpoint.
Guy Calaf for The Washington Post
"What I thought I knew coming out of east Baghdad" in 2004, "I laugh at today," Lt. Col. Robert B. Brown said. Here, he meets with Saw village elders.
Guy Calaf for The Washington Post
Lt. Col. Robert B. Brown has asked Afghan police why the United States should work with Mullah Sadiq. "We have no other choice. We really need him," one district police chief said.
Greg Jaffe-The Washington Post
Lt. Col. Robert Brown's work dealing with Mullah Sadiq is nearly over. He is due to return to Colorado in a few weeks.
Guy Calaf for The Washington Post
Lt. Col. Robert Brown meets with Saw village elders to discuss security issues at Forward Operating Base Bostick.
Guy Calaf for The Washington Post
Lt. Col. Robert Brown, with local elders, has had regular phone conversations with Mullah Sadiq's deputies.
Guy Calaf for The Washington Post
Lt. Col. Robert Brown hears a security report from Brig. Gen. Mohammad Zaman, the local Afghan Border Police chief.
Guy Calaf for The Washington Post
As Lt. Col. Robert Brown prepares to leave Afghanistan, his entreaties to Mullah Sadiq are yielding progress. "The momentum change has been significant," he wrote in an e-mail.
Guy Calaf for The Washington Post
Gallery Credits:
Photo Editor Sam Funt
