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KABUL INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, Afghanistan - In the rolling mountains of northern Afghanistan rests the birthplace of an Afghan hero; Ahmed Shah Massoud, “The Lion of Panjshir.” It is here the Panjshir Provincial Reconstruction Team has spent the past five years assisting the Afghan people in “The Valley of the Lion.”
Panjshir PRT has spent more than $100 million on the province of Panjshir constructing roads, hospitals, schools and other projects that assist the local Afghan people. Along with facilitating construction, the team also enables the provincial and district leaders with the means to govern themselves.
“These are projects meant to improve their livelihood but also give them an opportunity to manage themselves,” said U.S. Army Sgt. Patrick Reilly, PRT Panjshir Civil Affairs sergeant.
One of the PRT’s main projects is the construction of the Panjshir Road, which runs from southwest to northeast in the province. Approximately 80 km of road has already been constructed, and when the road is complete it will span 145 km. Before the PRT began, the road was only wide enough to accommodate one vehicle at a time.
“There was only a dirt jeep trail here until this road was built,” said Williams Martin, PRT Panjshir director. “This is the biggest project by far.”
The PRT works hand-in-hand with the local governors and village elders to find out what each village needs and assists them by providing everything from humanitarian aid to construction training. The road, along with a massive hydroelectric generator, is being built at the request of the Afghan officials.
“At this moment in history, there is no better place to be than here in the Panjshir Valley working for the PRT,” said Air Force Lt. Col. Joseph Blevins, PRT Panjshir commander.
Panjshir has a very vivid historical past. Not only is it the home and birthplace of Massoud, but it is also where the Mujahedin resistance held off nine separate attempts by the Soviets to take control of the province. When the Taliban began to take control of the country, Massoud used Panjshir as his main base to fight them.
Massoud once said “We consider this our duty-to defend humanity against the scourge of intolerance, violence, and fanaticism.” In The Lion of Panjshir’s Valley, the PRT has come to support this statement and to honor a hero of the people of Afghanistan.
| Date Taken: | 11.19.2010 |
| Date Posted: | 11.26.2010 07:18 |
| Story ID: | 60907 |
| Location: | KABUL INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, AF |
| Web Views: | 40 |
| Downloads: | 3 |
This work, Sleeping in the Lion’s Valley, by SSG Michael Reinsch, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
