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Marines Unleash 2 SMAW Rockets at the Taliban

What’s better than a live SMAW rocket exploding on a known Taliban position in Afghanistan?  Two SMAW rockets – because in the Marine Corps we don’t like to fight fair.  Ever.  Maybe that’s why we win all the time?  Anywho, above is a stellar moto video out of one of my former vacation spots – Helmand Province – which features a patrol that unleashes not one, but TWO Shoulder-Launched Multipurpose Assault Weapon rockets at what started off as a Taliban position, and then likely ended up being more of that lovely Afghan moon dust.  More after the video and the link below!

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Part 2: Helmet Cam Firefight Video from Afghanistan

If you thought part one was intense yesterday, wait until you experience the next ten minutes of this Afghanistan firefight through the lens of a US Army SAW gunner’s high definition helmet cam – part two above raises the intensity level even higher.  Whereas the first video just showcased the soldiers fighting back from the same location, part two we get to see the platoon commander request air support, and watch as the entire platoon fights its way back to a stronger defensive position.  Awesome video – stop reading, and watch above – then hit the link below for more award winning commentary!

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Helmet Cam Firefight Video in Afghanistan

There’s nothing quite like 11 minutes of intense firefight video footage from a soldier’s helmet cam in Afghanistan to get you rolling before work on a Wednesday morning – am I right?  Watch through this M240 SAW gunner’s helmet cam as his squad or platoon gets caught up in a crazy firefight which has them pinned down in a nearby mud hut compound, and this time the Taliban aren’t leaving anytime soon.  More tactical video commentary after the link below!

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Actual Combat Footage of Medal of Honor Winner During Battle of Ganjgal in Afghanistan

With Memorial Day less than 72 hours away – I can smell those burgers and brats now – I couldn’t think of a better time to post arguably one of the best Afghanistan combat footage videos I have encountered to this date.  You have most likely heard the name Sgt Dakota Meyer before: he was awarded the Medal of Honor for his absolutely incredibly heroic actions during the Battle of Ganjgal, when his entire Marine Corps/US Army/Afghan National Army Embedded Training Team (ETT) came under heavy ambush.  But have you heard the name Captain William Swenson before?  Capt Swenson was a critical member and leader of that ETT, and is the second living Medal of Honor recipient from that same intense Battle in Eastern Afghanistan.  Believe it or not folks, this video is actual combat footage from that harrowing night – a firefight in which 5 US servicemembers and 8 Afghan soldiers lost their lives – and will help remind all of us that every Memorial Day – first and foremost – is a time to remember those who have made the ultimate sacrifice. More commentary after the link below – as well as a map diagram of the firefight, and links to both Medal of Honor citations.

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Controlled Detonation in Afghanistan Nearly Kills Two Soldiers

Just like that danger close 500 lb bomb video I posted yesterday, this controlled det video from Afghanistan will make you check your pacemaker.  Although some folks over in the magical land of YouTube are calling this footage out as fake, I’ve replayed it a few times over and it looks/sounds real enough to me.  I’ve had Afghan rocks rain down on my kevlar after a 50 lb IED went off in Helmand, so it’s not like I don’t know what I’m talking about (no, I wasn’t EOD either, so I guess that kinda validates the reason why we called this kick ass website “slightly qualified”, eh?).  But enough talk – you need to watch the video and decide for yourself.  More after the jump!

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Danger Close Video: 500 Pound Bomb Drops on US Soldiers by Mistake

Alright, everyone check your pants.  Okay, now check them again.  In a combat zone, direct air support – whether it comes from a Huey or an AC-130 Gunship – is almost always a motivational, morale-boosting, and Taliban-smoking experience.  I say almost always because sometimes mistakes are made in either the chain of communication when placing the order for a Super Sized, 500 pound bomb, or in the actual delivery by the pilot in the sky.  In this instance that was one of those moments in which a mistake was made, but thankfully no friendlies were hurt.  Don’t pass on this video – as always more salty commentary after the link!

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HD Combat Footage: US Special Forces in Intense Firefight

Last summer Anna Coren and her CNN team embedded with a US Special Forces unit in a district called Nejrab, which is located about 120 miles or so north of Afghanistan’s capital city Kabul.  While this likely wasn’t the first firefight she has experienced in her front line reporting travels, it most likely was one of the most intense with rounds impacting what appeared to be just feet around her.  This is yet another awesome combat footage video folks, and this time it comes fully wrapped in beautiful HD – do not miss this one!  More after the jump!

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Afghan Moto Video: Huge JDAM Obliterates Taliban Position

Although JDAM officially stands for joint direct attack munition, in the Marine Corps and Army it means something much simple to those of us who are on the ground: a ginormous morale boost.  Or as one excellent YouTube user so eloquently put it: “2,000 lbs of DEMOCRACY.”  I promised SQ Nation more airstrike videos just a few days ago, and I am a man of my word.  Airstrikes don’t get much bigger than this, ladies and gents.  More after the jump!

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Helmand Combat Video: Marines Clear Taliban Compound with ANA

Now this Helmand combat video is a must-see!  As you likely have already read in my previous Marine Corps-tagged posts and videos here at SQ, I’m a former Marine who deployed to Afghanistan – or more specifically Helmand Province – as an embedded advisor with the Afghan National Army, or “ANA”.  These videos really bring me back to 2010/2011 when I was there – not for the combat, as I didn’t see much outside of a few IEDs and small-arms fire, but for the Helmand landscape and watching the ANA operate. You have to understand that they are not Marines, or in all honesty anything remotely close to what most Americans would consider professional soldiers; they are the pride of Afghanistan, and I will tell you that these guys can flat out fight.  Sure they have their shortcomings, but fighting – at least the unit that I worked with – is not one of them.  That being said, the 1:07 minute mark in this video made me just about choke on my coffee from laughter – more details after the jump!

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Helmet Cam Combat Video: Taliban Ambush Recon Marines

Did you see the Taliban in this pretty intense helmet cam combat video?  No?  Yeah, that’s how they prefer to operate – I would wager the Recon Marines that were ambushed as they crossed that danger area didn’t see them either.  Whether it’s by firing through murder holes in the iron-strength mud walls, or initiating an ambush just at the right time when the sun is setting behind them (you know, so when you turn towards the ambush it’s nothing but blinding sun and 7.62 coming at you), that’s their gameplan: quick ambush, move and attempt a quick flank/envelop, and then get the hell out of Dodge as soon as American air power gets on station.  Don’t miss the video – as always more after the jump!

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Airstrike Video: A-10 Gun Run in Korengal Valley

How can you not like a good airstrike video?  As a former Marine, I can’t tell you the mental comfort you receive when you’re on a foot patrol in Afghanistan and you’ve got air support in the area.  While I have never been up north in the vaunted Korengal Valley (my regiment kicked ass there before the surge brought the Marine Corps to Helmand; I joined the unit just after they got back), I have been to Helmand, which in places is equal parts nasty (just don’t listen to Maxim Magazine on that).  The above moto airstrike video comes to you courtesy of the US Army Paratroopers from 2nd Battalion (Airborne), 503rd Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team, as well as the A-10 Warthog who just completely levels an enemy stronghold somewhere deep within the Korengal.  Awesome video – hit the link below for more!

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Korengal Kickstarter Trailer: Sebastian Junger Returns to Afghanistan

If you haven’t seen the excellent Afghanistan war (Operation Enduring Freedom) documentary Restrepo yet, then you absolutely need to as soon as humanly possible.  Korengal, which comes straight from Restrepo’s award winning director Sebastian Junger’s camera, basically continues on where Restrepo left off, as he states its “the same men, the same valley, the same commanders, but a very different look at the experience of war.” (http://goo.gl/w4RXtG) With 44 days left until the Kickstarter ends, Mr. Junger still needs about $55,000 to reach his goal of $75,000, which he is utilizing to bring Restrepo – and the intimate war stories of not only this incredible US Army infantry platoon, but of every force that has fought in the Korengal and Afghanistan for that matter – to the big screen around the entire country.  I am pumped for this film, as Restrepo ranks as #2 on my favorite OEF documentaries to date; find out what my number one – as well as more slightly qualified thoughts on Korengal, the movie and the valley – after the jump.

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