Portrait of Bravery: Afghan commands convoy through ambush, demonstrates valor

KABUL, AFGHANISTAN

02.15.2011

Story by Petty Officer 3rd Class Michael James 

NATO Training Mission Afghanistan

KABUL, Afghanistan - The weather in Kandahar in August is sweltering hot. Temperatures regularly soar above 100 degrees Fahrenheit.

Most of the province is uninhabitable and choking dust storms can sweep through reducing visibility to near zero. It’s a particularly dangerous place to be caught in an insurgent ambush.

On Aug. 27, 2010 a convoy of Afghan National Police lead by Maj. Haji Nabi, acting as convoy commander, faced such an ambush. More than 60 vehicles were under Nabi’s command, the convoy stretched for miles through the desert. Their mission was to deliver thousands of dollars of coalition-provided equipment to ANP units in the north.

The convoy was traveling northwest from Kandahar to Herat province when a cargo truck (known as jingle trucks for their flashy ornamentation) in the rear of the convoy broke down.

Nabi was preparing to tow it with another cargo truck when he received word over the radio that the lead vehicles in the convoy were being ambushed. “Return fire! We are coming!” Nabi yelled over the radio, as his Ford Ranger sped to the fight.

By the time he arrived about 100 insurgents had ambushed the convoy from four positions and were trying to set the lead jingle trucks on fire with “Molotov cocktails,” and Rocket Propelled Grenades.

Nabi dismounted his vehicle, firing his AK-47 at insurgents who were trying to ignite a truck and killed one. He then climbed onto a humvee and fired the mounted PKM -- Russian machine gun -- killing a second arsonist. While he was taking aim on a third insurgent an incoming PKM round struck his firing hand. As he looked to his hand, a second round grazed the side of his head. Nabi’s police unit fought the insurgents for an hour before air support was able to provide cover fire; they kept up the fight for another hour before the enemy retreated.

“The chain-of-command ordered me to take out my personnel and leave the convoy, but since the convoy was very important for us I didn’t accept the orders and continued the fight,” said Nabi. “If I would not have fought at that time, they would have captured our personnel and burned our vehicles. They could have captured all of our ammunition and potentially they could attack Kandahar.”

Nabi lost part of his trigger finger and received a flesh wound to his scalp during the fight; there were no other injuries or casualties. But he was expedited to a medical facility for treatment. This was the third time the major was wounded in the line of duty; and though doctors have recommended he retire, he wants to continue to serve.

“I want to stay in ANP. I will serve as long as I have the capacity; as long as there is a single drop of blood in my body,” he said. Nabi is avid that the training he and his policemen received by coalition forces saved their lives and the equipment during the ambush that day.

“We have been trained many times on how to react to such ambushes, of course the training made a difference,” said Nabi. “The fact that during a two-hour firefight, I was the only one injured speaks for itself. If ISAF [International Security Assistance Force] and the coalition have more training to offer we will be very happy to learn more.”

• Date Taken: 02.15.2011
• Date Posted: 02.15.2011 01:04
• Story ID: 65443
• Location: KABUL, AF