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Afghanistan : la faillite de la guerre high-tech — Transcript

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0:11Dawn breaks over the American base at
0:14Kandahar in southern Afghanistan.
0:16Around these runways, a garrison of
0:1940,000 soldiers. Kandahar base is the
0:23largest in Afghanistan. It is here,
0:25along the border with Pakistan, that
0:27the fighting against Taliban insurgents
0:29is most violent. The United States and
0:33its allies have deployed their vast
0:35resources across several hundred
0:37hectares. A fortress reflecting the
0:43scale of the American military effort:
0:46between 200 million and 1 billion
0:48dollars a day. It is from these runways
0:57that daily air raids against the
0:58Taliban are launched. To avoid using
1:01the often-mined roads, helicopters
1:04serve the forward combat outposts. We
1:08have permission to board one of them
1:10before takeoff. Standard briefing. All
1:18weapons must be checked before going
1:20through the door. No ammunition in the
1:22chamber. In case of an emergency or
1:24unexpected landing, the pilot will
1:26sound the alarm. You will hear a bell.
1:30If the pilot hasn't had time to sound
1:31the alarm, you will likely feel a
1:33violent shock and hit the ground.
1:36Assume the correct position in your
1:38seat. Once on the ground, the crew will
1:40help you exit. Never move towards the
1:44front of the aircraft. The blades
1:45rotate at a height of 1.3 meters. They
1:48would cut your head off. Heading to the
1:51tarmac with orders to wear a
1:52bulletproof vest and a heavy helmet.
1:55Even in flight, the insurgent threat is
1:58constant. Here is our helicopter, a
2:01Chinook. The first units were released
2:03during the Vietnam War. Here, it serves
2:06as a bus. On the runways, as many
2:11aircraft as at Roissy. Except at
2:13Kandahar, they are all used for war. An
2:16excess of equipment passes before our
2:18eyes. Chinooks, Apaches, Black Hawks;
2:21we count the combat helicopters by the
2:24dozen. C-130 Hercules transport planes
2:32are lined up like on parade. They
2:35handle the logistics for the 120,000
2:36soldiers deployed in the field. Yet,
2:39despite its power, the American army
2:41and its allies still haven't managed to
2:44defeat the Afghan insurgency. At war
2:46with an invisible enemy. 3 Inside the
3:12helicopter, everyone stays on guard;
3:14through the lowered rear ramp, a
3:16soldier keeps his finger on his machine
3:19gun trigger. On each side of the cabin,
3:22another weapon is also pointed toward
3:24the ground. To prevent the Taliban from
3:29aiming their fire, the pilot flies in a
3:30zigzag pattern. Two guardian angels
3:39watch over us: Griffin helicopters
3:41ready to open fire at the slightest
3:43threat. More agile than our craft, they
3:46swirl behind us, scanning the slightest
3:48movement on the terrain. Landing is
3:53particularly dangerous. In August 2011,
3:57an American Chinook was shot down by a
3:59rocket fired by insurgents, causing the
4:01death of 30 special forces commandos.
4:07Each time the helicopter serves an
4:08outpost, the stop lasts less than 3
4:10minutes so as not to give the
4:12insurgents time to organize. Helmeted
4:22like a Star Wars character, a gunner
4:24keeps an eye on a farmer in his field.
4:27The man knows that the slightest
4:29movement could be interpreted as
4:30hostile and that he risks being
4:31shredded by a burst of gunfire. So, he
4:34remains frozen like a statue. New
4:40takeoff, this time in tactical flight,
4:43meaning at 200 km/h just 5 meters from
4:45the ground. The Chinook jumps at the
4:52last moment, always to surprise the
4:54Taliban who might be hiding there.
5:00After a 20-minute flight, arriving at
5:02the Tarnak combat outpost, this post
5:13houses the headquarters of the 1st
5:15Cavalry Squadron based at Fort Drum. in
5:18the state of New York.
5:23Here is the commander, Lieutenant
5:24Colonel John Paganini. He wears the hat
5:27of the blue tunics, the cavalrymen who
5:29once fought in the American West
5:30against the Indians. In the cavalry,
5:36there is a tradition. We wear a Stetson
5:41and boots. It symbolizes that you are
5:45officially a member of this unit. We
5:49give the soldiers a certificate that
5:51authorizes them to wear them and it's
5:52great. Guys outside the cavalry don't
5:55have that chance. The officer organized
5:59a small ceremony that day. One of his
6:01men agreed to reenlist for 2 years. The
6:03event is quite rare. Today is a big day
6:07for the Army. Everything Sergeant Ross
6:10has gone through to become a soldier, a
6:11leader, well, he has decided to
6:13continue doing it for two more years in
6:15our forces. He has signed and will
6:19remain with us, continuing to be an
6:21elite soldier in our unit for the
6:23coming years. Repeat after me. Today, I
6:34solemnly swear to support and defend
6:35the Constitution of the United States.
6:37Today, I solemnly swear to support and
6:39defend the Constitution of the United
6:40States.
6:42against all enemies.
6:43against all enemies.
6:44for the better.
6:45for the better. And to obey the orders
6:47of the President of the United States
6:49and to obey the orders of the President
6:51of the United States
6:52and the orders of my superior officers.
6:54and the orders of my superior officers.
6:58At first, I didn't want to reenlist,
7:01but now that it's done, I'm happy to
7:04stay in the Army. That's all I have to
7:09say.
7:10The Colonel wants his soldier to serve
7:12as an example. Living in an outpost, in
7:15the middle of nowhere, is certainly no
7:17walk in the park. Shake his hand. Don't
7:22leave without shaking his hand. Even
7:29the night is agonizing. To stave off
7:32sleep, the soldiers on alert watch DVDs
7:34. Often films where they are supposed
7:37to feel involved. Here, Iron Man, which
7:40starts in Afghanistan and brandishes a
7:42threat: mines. The hero's high-tech
7:51armor reminds them that they too have
7:53state-of-the-art tech in Tarnac. As in
7:56every base, the sentries have
7:58night-vision binoculars to watch for
8:00suspicious movement around the camp.
8:04This man caught in the open, a few
8:05hundred meters from the post. He is
8:09joined by another. The soldiers 'fear
8:12is that he might be planting a mine on
8:14the sly. They won't miss a thing from
8:16their encounter. Suddenly, the roar of
8:23a jet engine, a fighter plane diving
8:26toward us. A second one, we're flying
8:33over Rasmot. I love watching them fly
8:42when it banks like that. And then I
8:45would love to see them pass by again.
8:49I'll film them next time.
8:51It's truly awesome.
8:54These night raids are meant to put
8:56pressure on the Taliban. An officer
8:58guides them from the ground. He agrees
8:59to speak to us on the condition that we
9:01don't turn on any lights. It's a show
9:04of force by our air power to scare the
9:06bad guys here so they know who they're
9:08dealing with. With the Air Force, we're
9:12well-coordinated. The
9:14commander-in-chief ordered this
9:15maneuver before the aircraft returned
9:17to their carrier.
9:19An aircraft carrier?
9:20Yes, it's the naval air force. Actually
9:23, the two fighter jets took off from an
9:25aircraft carrier cruising in the
9:26Arabian Sea, 600 miles away. Several
9:29patrols are constantly flying over
9:31Afghanistan, ready to support troops in
9:33trouble in under 10 minutes.
9:35I had two Navy F-18s in the sector. The
9:38first led the maneuver, the second
9:39dived toward us.
9:41Their pass over Rasmot is a final
9:43warning before a potential missile
9:45strike. At dawn, we meet up with the
9:49officer who guided those two planes.
9:54Last night, we were alerted that
9:56enemies were in our zone. We wanted to
10:01verify what they were doing. Command
10:05ordered me to have the planes fly at
10:07low altitude to scare them and to
10:11follow them back to their camp to then
10:14mount an operation. I suppose the
10:18Taliban know it's just a show of force.
10:22No, the Taliban don't know it's just a
10:24show of force. What they know is that
10:28there are planes in the sky and that if
10:30they move, they will be bombed. It's
10:35from this tent that everything is
10:37controlled. It houses a command post
10:39full of computer screens where the
10:40officer communicates with the planes.
10:43Do you comment?
10:45I receive the video feed of everything
10:47the plane sees. Specifically, I see the
10:49images from its video camera. So if I'm
10:53at the base, I can control the plane
10:55because I see everything it sees. I
10:58therefore have two ways to assess the
11:00situation. Thanks to the camera on
11:02board the aircraft and thanks to what I
11:04observe from the ground myself. From
11:07this tent, the officer can also call
11:10upon another type of device. A secret
11:12weapon capable of eliminating the
11:14adversary by surprise. A drone, an
11:16unmanned aircraft that the U.S. Air
11:18Force doesn't like to show very much.
11:21Despite everything, we were able to
11:22film one in this hangar at Kandahar
11:23base. The state-of-the-art is this
11:28model, the Predator. In Afghanistan,
11:32they fly day and night, sometimes
11:34piloted from the United States, 7,500
11:36miles away, thanks to satellite links,
11:38as these images filmed at a Nevada base
11:40show. Sitting comfortably in a chair,
11:45these new-breed pilots eliminate
11:47Taliban with a joystick, a sort of
11:49video game, but one that kills human
11:50beings. Like here, late 2010 in the
11:54Kandahar region. In these images we
11:58obtained, a Canadian drone spotted
12:00insurgents at night planting a mine on
12:03a track. They don't realize they are
12:09being filmed by the device's camera.
12:12The image quality is poor. The drone
12:17pilot waits patiently for the man on
12:18the right to join his accomplices. Then
12:22he is going to fire a missile. Here is
12:38the result, photographed the next
12:40morning by a patrol that went to the
12:41scene. Not a single Taliban survived.
12:49Back to Tarnak base. To try to control
12:53the territory, the army has set up
12:55dozens of outposts. A section is
12:58preparing to leave for one of them,
13:00located in a notorious hot spot on the
13:03edge of the district. The journey will
13:06have to be made at nightfall, even if
13:08it is always a time more favorable for
13:10ambushes.
13:14Alright, we can go.
13:20On board, we discover an Afghan who
13:22works for the American army. A
13:24translator.
13:27Do the Taliban know you work for the
13:29Americans? They don't know anything
13:30about me. That would be too dangerous.
13:35Why do you do this job? For the money?
13:37Of course, you know, it's a poor
13:39country here. I am a university
13:41graduate. I studied, but the situation
13:45is such that it's impossible to find
13:47work. Now, I earn money with this job.
13:52How much do you earn?
13:55My salary is 765 dollars. Have you ever
14:00been to the United States? Do you want
14:02to go there? Me, of course, everyone
14:05wants to go to America. It's the best
14:08place on earth and I really intend to
14:10go one day.
14:13How old are you? I'm 22.
14:17A question is burning on his lips. And
14:21by the way, do you work for a
14:22television channel? It's for a French
14:24channel, isn't it? No. Yes, yes, French
14:27. I thought for a moment you worked for
14:31Afghan TV. That wouldn't be good for me
14:33.
14:34Do you understand?
14:35Yes, obviously.
14:37Even though we tell him his face will
14:39be hidden on screen, he hides behind a
14:41keffiyeh. To the Taliban, he is a
14:44collaborator. If they capture him,
14:46he'll have his head cut off. The convoy
14:50moves slowly because of the ruts in the
14:52track. Outside the vehicle, a camera
14:55coupled with a rocket launcher. The
14:58gunner can observe everything happening
15:00around and, in case of an attack, he
15:02can open fire using a simple joystick
15:04while staying sheltered. At nightfall,
15:10the vehicle commander plugs in the GPS
15:12map to verify we are on the right route
15:14. After several hours on the track, the
15:21end of the trip, we arrive at our
15:23destination at the forward post.
15:29Where are we?
15:30Gorgan? You're staying here tonight.
15:34The post is set up near the village of
15:36Gorgan. 25 km south of Kandahar. 7:00
15:48AM, waiting for company command, the
15:50day shift is already set up in front of
15:52computers connected to headquarters and
15:55the other forward posts in the sector.
15:59Outside, Afghans live in destitution,
16:01but here we wage war with the most
16:03sophisticated means. The post commander
16:06, Captain Kevin Krupsky, a 27-year-old
16:09New Yorker, is perfectly aware of it.
16:15It's been 10 years now that we've had
16:18good logistics in our command structure
16:20, computer systems, software, hardware.
16:25We've never been at such a high level.
16:27I'm really talking about a very high
16:29level. It's the result of the war we're
16:34waging here. A conflict that is, in
16:36fact, low intensity. It's a high-tech
16:42war. Yeah, that's it. In 10 years,
16:45everything the army has managed to do,
16:47especially to know what's happening in
16:49an operational theater, is incredible.
16:53The infantry benefits today from so
16:55much support at every level. It's
16:58astonishing. Actually, it's
17:00asymmetrical warfare.
17:02That's a problem.
17:04And it's not a problem for you?
17:08Yes. But there is a reason why the
17:13enemy fights this way. Because he knows
17:16he cannot win. So, he tries to survive,
17:20and in many places, he doesn't survive.
17:24But you'll never have zero attacks in
17:26Afghanistan. That doesn't mean the
17:29enemy is winning. The goal isn't to
17:33kill the Taliban one by one. We don't
17:36count the bodies. The Russians who
17:38invaded the country 20 years ago killed
17:40thousands of Afghans. What was the
17:41point of that? This isn't a war where
17:44you have to kill at any cost. It's a
17:47war to ensure a free government can
17:49serve the Afghan people for the next 10
17:51years. Above him, the faces of the most
17:55dangerous clandestine leaders in the
17:56sector are posted. All are wanted for
17:59perpetrating attacks against Afghan
18:01authorities and U.S. forces. One of
18:05Captain Krupski's missions is to
18:07capture them, dead or alive. Here, we
18:09are conducting a counter-insurgency war
18:11based on intelligence, much like the
18:13French during the Algerian War. Except
18:17that today, it's conducted with the
18:19help of video. On this screen,
18:24operators take shifts every 8 hours to
18:26observe the area around the post.
18:31Thanks to this camera, perched high on
18:33a mast, they can see for several
18:35kilometers without being seen. This is
18:41what we see with binoculars from the
18:42post, a few hundred meters from the
18:43perimeter. Here is what we see with the
18:46camera, over a kilometer away. Every
18:49detail, better than a helicopter or
18:51even better than a drone. The plane
18:53flies itself. In the streets of the
18:57surrounding village, the inhabitants
18:58are watched day and night. The goal? To
19:01know if he's carrying weapons or acting
19:03suspiciously. This taxi, for example,
19:06parked in a square, could be a car bomb
19:09. 1,500 meters from the base, a truck
19:14stops on the track. A man gets out. To
19:18the lookout, the driver is suspicious.
19:20The soldiers fear he's planting a mine
19:22or waiting for a vehicle to attack. The
19:25soldier doesn't take his eyes off him.
19:28Then finally, a false alarm. Actually,
19:35he just went to the bathroom. These
19:37guys are just villagers. We can spy on
19:41them when they're making mines. We can
19:44know everything they do, even if
19:47they're burying explosives. In the
19:53administrative building next to the
19:55American camp, officials distribute
19:57bags of seeds to farmers. Under the
20:00close surveillance of Afghan army
20:02soldiers.
20:05In the middle of the courtyard, the
20:06behavior of this man dressed in blue
20:08seemed suspicious. He was photographing
20:11the premises with his cell phone. Two
20:13American soldiers come to investigate.
20:15It could be reconnaissance for the
20:16Taliban, who burned down the nearby
20:18school a few months ago. Come over here
20:25, you.
20:27I need to get some information on him.
20:35What is your name?
20:40How do you spell that?
20:42M O S N.
20:49Yes, his last name is Abdou Mat. to
20:54come this way.
20:56Constantly facing suspects, American
20:58soldiers now have highly sophisticated
21:01technology to check if they are on a
21:03watchlist. Using this device, the
21:07non-commissioned officer records all
21:09details that identify the stranger,
21:11primarily his iris. All these
21:14parameters feed a database located near
21:17Kabul at the Bagram airbase, 450 km
21:19from here. Turn your face, don't move,
21:26and look right at me. In fact, the
21:28Americans have put thousands of Afghans
21:30on file. The soldiers are also police
21:33officers. Are you afraid of this
21:37machine? No, no, I'm not afraid. Left
21:49finger.
21:51This one,
21:55are you waiting for the results?
21:57Yes, sir. I asked him to place his
22:00index finger here and I will
22:03immediately know if he is in our files.
22:08If that's the case, what will happen to
22:10him? It depends on how he was
22:13registered. If he's just a villager or
22:16a farmer, we'll let him go. On the
22:20other hand, if he is registered for
22:21weapons possession or as a mine planter
22:23, we will ask him to follow us. I was
22:31just taking pictures of the farmers
22:33carrying their bags. I didn't think I
22:36would have any trouble.
22:41After 15 minutes, the computer system
22:42sends back the answer. It is negative.
22:45The suspect is not on the blacklist of
22:47wanted terrorists. He can go. But
22:51technology isn't everything. Occupying
22:54the terrain means showing yourself on
22:56foot. A patrol is getting ready to
22:59leave. The soldiers don't like it. It's
23:01dangerous. A lookout perched on a mound
23:17plays guardian angel from a distance.
23:20He doesn't just observe with binoculars
23:21. Thanks to these powerful optics, he
23:24won't take his eyes off his colleagues.
23:30During the day, you can see quite far.
23:34We can see up to 3 or 4 km. We managed
23:37to catch guys planting mines. It really
23:40helps us. We join the patrol.
23:46Lieutenant Matthew Benet, 28, commands
23:48the combat section. In front of the
23:51camp, he greets passersby with a smile.
24:03But this relaxation won't last. 100
24:07meters from the post, the atmosphere is
24:09immediately tenser. This track connects
24:12the outpost to the large base at
24:14Kandahar. It is often mined, and the
24:17soldiers call it the explosion box.
24:20They are on edge, finger on the trigger
24:22, and watch where they step. Every
24:29vehicle is suspicious, even those of
24:31the Afghan army. American soldiers
24:34trust no one. Sometimes, Taliban
24:35fighters disguise themselves as
24:37soldiers. A vehicle is being searched
24:43with the help of a sniffer dog. It
24:46could be carrying weapons or explosives
24:48for a suicide mission. On the trail,
24:55the threats are numerous, including the
24:58risk of an ambush. A dull thud in the
25:05distance.
25:09What was that?
25:10It was an explosion. It wasn't here. It
25:13was on the other side of the post.
25:15Probably a mine. That happens often
25:17here. We need to go. Another one. That
25:25was definitely a mine. Now we really
25:28need to leave. OK. Mines are soldier
25:36Barns' worst nightmare. Nervous, he
25:38shoulders his weapon at the slightest
25:40incident, even for a dog.
25:44Barns, don't shoot the dog. Barns,
25:47leave him alone, he didn't do anything
25:49to you. Come on, let's move. It's just
25:59a dog.
26:02He has a hard life.
26:07This isn't a very good place.
26:11If we get cornered, we're out in the
26:12open. We have a wall on each side.
26:14We're confined in this space. That's
26:18not very good for us. He wanted to
26:30offer you some tea.
26:32Yeah, probably. But I don't speak their
26:34language. But I understood what he
26:35wanted.
26:41This is the corridor where we find the
26:42most mines in the area. We call it the
26:45explosion box. And you go there anyway.
26:48We have to patrol it because it's our
26:50logistics route to Kandar. If there are
26:57people on the road, that means there's
26:59no risk.
27:01Yes, generally, when there's traffic on
27:02the road, it's okay. But if there's no
27:06one, you can be worried. People know
27:09when the path is mined, but they don't
27:11always tell us. We are arriving in a
27:18village. As a greeting, a passerby puts
27:20his hand over the camera lens. The
27:23lieutenant hands out water bottles
27:26until we hear new blasts that intrigue
27:29the officer this time.
27:33What was that?
27:36It's another explosion near Canaké.
27:39Near the Tarnac riverbed, there are
27:41mountains that the Taliban cross.
27:45That's where the explosions are coming
27:46from. The Canadians are in charge of
27:49this zone. The Americans and an Afghan
27:52battalion are operating there. That's
27:54why it's restless. It's an explosion 4
28:07km northwest of Cadane, 307 degrees.
28:17Back at base, they apparently want to
28:19know more. He asks me questions about
28:25explosives that might be in a vehicle.
28:29Everything is a threat, like this
28:32tractor that could be booby-trapped.
28:37Are suicide bombers a problem for you?
28:39We haven't had any suicide bombers in
28:41this area. There aren't any left in the
28:44town of Kandahar. There have already
28:45been several suicide attacks. The
28:52closest attack took place 10 km to the
28:55north. A vehicle hit a homemade mine.
29:0411 a.m., rest for the patrol.
29:07Lieutenant Benette listens intently to
29:09his intelligence officer, who is
29:11questioning a villager he's in contact
29:13with. The conversation gets off to a
29:14bad start. He has some questions for us
29:17. He says that when you come to see
29:21them, you are aggressive with them. Who
29:26is aggressive?
29:30The youngest and the oldest.
29:32Ask him who was around the village last
29:34night, for example.
29:39He says he didn't see anything.
29:40Does he still have the card I gave him
29:41to contact us if he sees anyone at
29:43night?
29:44The villager claims to have lost it. I
29:47am sure I already gave him one. Don't
29:49lose it this time. We have an agreement
29:51. What is that card? It's a direct line
30:01to call us, to warn us if there are
30:03Taliban nearby, people digging by the
30:05road at night.
30:10It's hard to believe this system could
30:12actually work.
30:15If people see Taliban, they call you?
30:19Actually, it's a villager I know
30:21personally. He calls me on my cell
30:23phone. He told me he found a mine and
30:26wanted to tell us where it was. We
30:30called the deminers. They blew it up.
30:32The villager received a reward. People
30:35are afraid to talk. They generally fear
30:37for their lives. Even if it's
30:39impossible to trace it back to them,
30:41they are truly afraid to say anything.
30:44A small reward pushes them in the right
30:46direction. How much do you pay? I think
30:50the reward is 20 dollars, something
30:52like that. 20 dollars, a large sum for
30:56a farmer. But in the village, only
30:59children and the old grey-beards dare
31:02to approach us without fearing Taliban
31:04reprisals. The younger men avoid us.
31:09What do they want? They want the
31:10Americans to leave. We are happy with
31:13the help he brings us today, but we
31:15would like them to go home, like this
31:17man who takes reckless risks by coming
31:19here. The elder signals, in no
31:22uncertain terms, that I don't belong in
31:24this village. My safety is not
31:26guaranteed. He makes no secret of it.
31:27I'd better leave. Like the Americans,
31:32we benefit from their help, but
31:34uneducated Afghans consider them, and
31:37always will, as an occupying force in
31:39Afghanistan. What does he want? He
31:46wants peace. Peace at
31:52Instead of answering directly, the
31:54Afghan now turns to the army translator
31:55, taking him as a witness. You, you
31:59know Afghanistan well. You know that
32:01most Afghans are poor people starving
32:03to death. We, the people, are trampled
32:07by the government. We are at the mercy
32:12of the allied armies and the Taliban,
32:14while we simply ask to live in peace
32:16and eat properly. Look, the Taliban
32:21killed our village chief, named Malek
32:23Mosenkan, in the mosque.
32:26Now, do you have a new village head? We
32:30are afraid to appoint another because
32:32he would be shot the very next day.
32:35Will the Taliban return if the
32:36Americans leave the country? If the
32:38Americans leave, the Taliban will have
32:40no one left to fight against. It will
32:42be the end of the fighting.
32:44Even in front of the soldiers, the
32:46peasant is not afraid to say what he
32:48thinks. To him, it's simple. If the
32:50Taliban are waging war, it is to drive
32:51the Americans out of the country. That
32:53they might then return to power clearly
32:55does not bother him. After an hour
32:58spent in the village, Lieutenant
33:00Benet's patrol turns back. The
33:04insurgents might be aware of our
33:06presence. We must leave while always
33:11watching where we step. It was here
33:14that a mine exploded. You can see the
33:17crater and the walls destroyed all
33:19around. We are forced to pass through
33:20here. They know that very well. It is
33:22the ideal place to hide explosives.
33:25Back to the post.
33:30A final safety check to verify there is
33:32no round. Chambered in the barrel.
33:36Inside his CP, Lieutenant Benet wants
33:39to show us something. Apparently, a
33:42vulgar piece of wood. In fact, the
33:45firing system for an improvised mine.
33:49In general, they put this flush with
33:51the ground. They connect this wire to a
33:54battery and the explosives. And when a
33:56vehicle or pedestrian goes over it, the
33:59metal connects and triggers an
34:00explosion. Where are the explosives?
34:03They are buried underground. I will
34:05show you. He digs a deep hole to put
34:09them in. But you know, it’s not very
34:12selective. Whoever touches this mine,
34:15be it a civilian or a soldier, it
34:16explodes. A poor man's weapon, but a
34:22very effective one. It is with rustic
34:25traps like this that the Taliban defeat
34:27American technology. For the equivalent
34:30of a few dollars, they make homemade
34:33bombs capable of destroying armored
34:35vehicles. This document serves as proof
34:39; it was filmed by an independent
34:41journalist in March 2011. The footage
34:44was filmed inside a vehicle that hit a
34:46landmine. One of the soldiers is
34:48desperately calling for help. You ok?
35:07Yeah, I'm good. Oh my goodness. Come on
35:13. What's wrong with you? Any ar element
35:31. This is unready fire over. What's
35:36wrong with you? Oh my goodness. My
35:41ankling me. Oh my
35:57The wounded will be pulled from the
35:59wreckage by the survivors. Leaning
36:03against a wall, they wait for help to
36:05arrive. Always under threat of attack,
36:07because the Taliban are never far away.
36:10Those most capable will be evacuated
36:12last toward the helicopter. Back with
36:28Lieutenant Colonel Paganini. He knows
36:30this danger perfectly well. Most of the
36:33soldiers killed in Afghanistan have
36:34been victims of these homemade mines,
36:36what they call IEDs here. And his job
36:39is precisely to secure the strategic
36:41route to the Kandahar base against
36:43mines. The enemy uses the gaps between
36:47these two mountains to access the
36:48secondary road leading to the city of
36:50Kandahar. And your mission is to
36:53prevent the Taliban from accessing this
36:55area. My goal is to manage to prevent
36:57the enemy from accessing the city of
36:59Kandahar from the south. There are some
37:01very bad elements here. This problem
37:04has not been solved for 30 years. We
37:06are here to solve it. Have you lost any
37:08men?
37:10Yes, we have lost several soldiers.
37:14Every outing is an expedition. Before
37:16leaving, the officer systematically
37:18checks his personal assault rifle. In
37:20case of an attack, he too will join the
37:22fight. For us, body armor and a heavy
37:29helmet. But to counter the danger of
37:31mines, much more is needed. On board,
37:34it is mandatory to wear a three-point
37:36seat belt that holds the shoulders
37:37against the seat in case of an
37:39explosion. Every morning, the Americans
37:44are forced to clear the tracks with
37:46special rollers. Objective: to detonate
37:50the mines so that convoys can travel
37:52through. Above all, they have invented
38:02new armored vehicles. These machines,
38:05costing 1 million euros each, have a
38:07chassis designed to reduce the blast
38:09effect of mines. More than 5,000
38:12vehicles have been delivered in record
38:14time by the Pentagon. But this arsenal
38:17is not an all-risk insurance policy. On
38:20the radio. We learn that a mine
38:22exploded that very morning. We question
38:35Lieutenant Colonel Paganini, who is
38:37with us in the vehicle. Wasn't it this
38:40morning around 6 a.m., just before we
38:42left, that a mine exploded? Yes, it
38:46exploded where we are going. It was
38:49meant for us. Yes.
38:52Why did it explode beforehand?
38:55It was a pressure mine that detonates
38:57when you drive over it. There were
39:04casualties from the Afghan army. After
39:21two hours on the road, Lieutenant
39:23Colonel John Paganini reaches his
39:24destination. He has an appointment with
39:27the Afghan provincial governor to
39:28discuss pacification and security. The
39:31prefecture is built right next to the
39:33American outpost under the protection
39:34of the US Army. A simple door separates
39:37them. The colonel leaves us to speak
39:41with the governor one-on-one. Outside,
39:45we meet a Canadian, a civilian in
39:47charge of cooperation projects. His
39:49name is Antoine. At first, he seems
39:52very optimistic. But after a few
39:54minutes of conversation, he lets his
39:56doubts show.
39:57I don’t think we will ever be able to
39:58completely eradicate the insurgency. Uh
40:00, but we are hurting them very, very
40:02badly. Uh, through surgical strikes as
40:07well as larger-scale operations where
40:10Taliban strongholds are attacked, uh,
40:13very, very hard, and then certain
40:16leaders are simply eliminated one after
40:20the other. The Taliban who commit
40:26attacks and place IEDs on the roads,
40:27it's actually quite hard to know who is
40:29Taliban and who is not.
40:31It’s very, very difficult. Yeah. And
40:35who is really a committed Taliban? who
40:38is doing it because it’s a source of
40:40income that is more rewarding than
40:43growing a few vegetables that bring
40:47them nothing. Fighting an insurgency is
40:50not a, a conventional war, indeed, and
40:53it is very complex. And that’s why
40:56the international community realizes
40:58that there is no real military solution
41:01to this conflict, but rather a
41:03political solution: to show a future
41:05and give hope back to the Afghans so
41:07that they themselves mobilize, take
41:09charge, participate in reconstruction
41:11and development efforts, and then keep
41:14the Taliban at bay. At the end of our
41:18investigation, we return to the large
41:20Kandahar base. Here, they deploy
41:23treasures of ingenuity to make people
41:25forget the distance from their families
41:27and the tension in the field. To
41:34decompress inside their ghetto, the
41:36soldiers meet in a huge air-conditioned
41:39gym. A mandatory stop, because the
41:41hierarchy ensures that each of these
41:42men takes care of his muscles.
41:56I am preparing to be better in order to
41:57pass the army tests. That way, I will
41:59be in top shape.
42:01They all consider that pumping iron is
42:03not just a fad. They are preparing for
42:05the day when they will have to leave
42:06the cocoon of their base. Sport for
42:08them, they are aware of it. It’s a
42:10matter of survival. My legs need to be
42:14strong so that I can run faster and
42:16carry my equipment everywhere. Even if
42:19it's heavy, my body must be solid. When
42:22someone is injured, I have to carry
42:24them with all their gear. I have to be
42:26ready. That’s why I’m building my
42:28strength. The High Command leaves
42:32nothing to chance to support its
42:33soldiers. On the base, there’s a
42:35small wooden chapel, like deep in the
42:37heart of Tennessee. Except here, the
42:40congregation comes to service with
42:42their rifles, and the pastor wears a
42:44uniform. "Come with me, follow me," he
42:50told them, "fishers now and forever."
42:54And they followed him. What do people
43:02come to look for in your church? A
43:04source of energy, of resilience. God is
43:07within us. It's a way to remain united
43:09with Him and with each other. The
43:15pastor weighs his words carefully. The
43:16Taliban view a Christian place of
43:19worship on Muslim soil as proselytizing
43:21that must be fought with jihad. There
43:28are people who would like this to be a
43:29religious conflict, and I see that
43:34clearly, but I want to stay out of all
43:36that. This is a legitimate war. The war
43:42is taking place far from the United
43:43States, thousands of miles away. A
43:45distance that the USO, a private
43:47organization tasked with entertaining
43:48soldiers, tries to make them forget. In
43:52this bubble, they’ve recreated the
43:54traditional American way of life.
43:57Living room, comfortable sofas, library
44:02, and an ethanol fireplace. Outside,
44:07it’s 104 degrees in the shade, but
44:08thanks to the air conditioning, you’d
44:10almost think you were back in the
44:11States. Guitar.
44:19What do you prefer? The guitar or the
44:21rifle?
44:22The guitar is for back home. Here,
44:25it’s my weapon. To chase away the
44:31blues, soldiers can call home or
44:33connect to the internet whenever they
44:35want.
44:38But who pays for all this? Everything
44:41you see here was bought through
44:43donations from the American people. Is
44:45everything free? Everything is free for
44:50the soldiers, from long-distance calls
44:52to internet, video games, the flooring,
44:54the paint on the walls, and even the
44:56coffee. We’re in Kandahar, we’re on
45:03the front line. But all these guys,
45:05they might go out on patrol in an hour
45:07in the city, and they risk running into
45:09trouble. This center is good for their
45:12focus. That's not a problem. It’s
45:15good for them to feel a little at home
45:17in this center, to be able to relax and
45:19forget what’s happening outside for
45:21an hour or two. They can't believe that
45:26we built this building just for them
45:27here in Afghanistan. When they discover
45:31each room, they go, "Wow!" The most
45:36successful games are those that
45:38replicate war. On the screen, the enemy
45:40is more real than life itself. Only the
45:42bullets and the victims are virtual.
45:47You win.
45:48At least, I'm not dead yet.
45:52Outside, fighters loaded with real
45:55bombs carry out war missions. But at
45:59the end of the day, the whole base
46:01meets up on the famous Candahar
46:03boardwalk to go shopping. Authorized
46:07human souvenir vendors lay out their
46:09carpets in front of the playing fields.
46:12Tonight, a match that excites the
46:13troops is being played—a game of
46:15hockey, not on ice, which is hard to
46:16find in the middle of the desert, but
46:18on concrete. A match between Canadians
46:20and Americans. At 7:00 PM, the
46:31restaurants are full. Soldiers and
46:33civilians, men and women. The base
46:35employs thousands of non-military
46:37personnel of all nationalities. If they
46:39didn't keep their weapons always within
46:41reach, you could think you were
46:43anywhere but war-torn Afghanistan. The
46:46thing is, to keep up troop morale, the
46:47army is ready for anything. Even to
46:49lose men and money. The pizzas actually
46:52arrive in military supply convoys that
46:54are regularly attacked by the Taliban.
47:03The most luxurious establishment is
47:05fully booked, even though alcohol is
47:07prohibited everywhere on the base. The
47:10highlight is these sexy music videos
47:11playing on the flat screen above the
47:13bar. Something to surprise the new
47:15recruits who just arrived and thought
47:17they would find the hell of war here.
47:23We're new here and this place is very
47:25different from what I imagined. It's
47:29nice, it reminds me of home. And we
47:33aren't at the end of our surprises. We
47:36discover that every Saturday night, the
47:38boardwalk is like this. An open-air
47:40nightclub. Disco, Caribbean music,
47:53embraced to the languid rhythm of the
47:55islands, female soldiers and young
47:56officers from international force
47:58countries dance without inhibition.
48:01Much to the delight of this Canadian
48:03soldier of Haitian origin.
48:06So on Saturday night, the soldiers, the
48:08Marines, those in the Navy,
48:11they came here just to have some fun.
48:13To think about something else, like
48:14that.
48:15Not exactly think about something else.
48:17Do you think the Taliban can hear the
48:18music here? I don't know. I would have
48:23wished...
48:30But while people are dancing a bit
48:32further on the base, other soldiers are
48:35reflecting at the headquarters. The
48:39guard is assembled tonight for the
48:41inauguration of a new monument. Please,
48:50be seated. These walls behind me stand
48:57as a testament to the sacrifice and
48:59incredible dedication of our American
49:01brothers and Canadian soldiers for
49:03peace and freedom in Afghanistan. May
49:06they rest in peace. Brothers-in-arms in
49:17Kandahar province, Canadians and
49:19Americans built a joint memorial for
49:21the fallen. Every fallen soldier now
49:25has their photograph placed on this
49:27stone and wood monument. A monument
49:36that holds special value for this woman
49:38, Windy Ward. When her soldier son was
49:44killed, she left Canada to come live on
49:46the base. She found a job in this café
49:49. I need two creams. And here is the
49:55double coffee.
49:57Thank you. Take care of yourself.
49:59Here, everyone knows Windy's story, who
50:01came to feel closer to her son killed
50:03in action. At the Canadian headquarters
50:09. She feels like part of the family.
50:13She comes here every day to pay her
50:15respects before the photo of James, who
50:17died in combat on July 19, 2008, at the
50:19age of 25. They were on patrol around
50:28midnight. They were heading back to
50:31their base. They were on foot patrol.
50:37He stepped on a mine and then it
50:39exploded. Yes, it changed my life
50:48forever.
50:52How did the army notify you? They asked
50:56me if I was Windy Ward. James's mother.
51:01And after that, I thought about the
51:11mines, the amputations, about death.
51:20And I remember my head hitting the edge
51:22of the sidewalk. I found myself in my
51:29living room. I was bleeding, but I only
51:34had one thing on my mind: to see him
51:36again, bring him home, protect him, but
51:38I didn't know where to go.
51:43Today, Windy wants to believe that
51:45James did not die in vain. Since he
51:52died, all of this has meaning for me.
51:56We are fighting because the people here
51:58no longer live under threat and tyranny
51:59. In 10 years, the conflict in
52:06Afghanistan has caused nearly 2,800
52:07deaths in Western ranks and at least
52:0920,000 among Afghans. After an
52:12unprecedented war effort, the coalition
52:14decided to withdraw in 2014. The
52:17Canadians already left in the summer of
52:192011. The American army has been unable
52:23to overcome the rebellion despite its
52:25power and technology.

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