Royal Welsh and Afghan partners establish creature comforts in new base
A Military Operations news article
17 Feb 10


Having successfully taken their objective for Operation MOSHTARAK in the Nad 'Ali district, Fire Support Company, 1st Battalion The Royal Welsh, and their Afghan National Army partners have now firmly established their new base.


As part of the campaign of engaging with the people of Afghanistan, the compounds were taken over quietly and by negotiation.

See Related News to read more about the Royal Welsh and their Afghan Army partners.

Four days after the initial offensive, the camp is now transformed with a cook area, showers, toilets and even a gym all now in place.

When the soldiers entered the compound on Saturday, they were tired, cold and covered in mud. They hadn't slept for 36 hours and were emotionally exhausted, having been part of the largest ever British helicopter assault.

They had trudged through horrendous conditions to take their objective, all the time expecting the Taliban to counter-attack.

The first shura was held at the checkpoint and the International Security Assistance Force representative was Sergeant Colin Pentith, part of 1st Battalion The Royal Welsh's Non-Kinetic Effects Team. This was his first shura. He said:

"Really the concerns of the locals are just what you would expect anywhere. They are concerned about security and then basic welfare - schools, hospitals, power, and so on.

"It is up to us to reassure them that ISAF and the Afghan National Security Services will deliver that. This is also the start of our process of getting to know who is who in the local area so that we can identify who are the key leaders."



The toilet facilities at the new Patrol Base to the east of Garbay Noray
[Picture: Staff Sergeant Mark Jones, Crown Copyright/MOD 2010]
As part of the 'hot stabilisation' process, blankets and radios were distributed after the shura together with footballs and pens for the children.

Once these tasks had been achieved they could set about transforming what will be their new home for the foreseeable future.

The soldiers are ingenious at making life as comfortable as possible.

Their basic needs are catered for first. Already there is a separate wash area and a curtained-off toilet, and the eagerly-awaited solar showers arrived by helicopter resupply last night. They are now set up and ready for use once the sun has heated them up.

The soldiers are issued with small stoves, but by now a kettle sits on a blackened hearth providing a never-ending stream of 'brews' or 'chai' (tea) which both the British and Afghan soldiers drink continually.

The soldiers are issued with mugs, but they seem to like making them out of discarded equipment. 'Greenies' - mugs made out of plastic motor shell covers - are very popular.



Corporal Stephen Hall, Mortar Platoon, Fire Support Company, 1st Battalion The Royal Welsh
[Picture: Staff Sergeant Mark Jones, Crown Copyright/MOD 2010]
Once the necessities are dealt with then more amenities can be built. The soldiers have even constructed a gym with a set of iPod speakers pumping out music so they can work out when not out on patrol.

Corporal Stephen Hall, Mortar Section Commander, said:

"This is what soldiers do. Once they have sorted out their work they want to make life as comfortable as possible and they just crack on and do it with whatever they can find."

The real work - patrolling, organising shuras and dealing with IEDs continues as ever - but in camp the ingenuity of the soldiers makes life that little bit more comfortable on the front line.

A convoy of Vikings and dismounted troops has also pushed through to the Patrol Base from Camp Bastion. They were escorting the Trojan armoured vehicle which is being used for the first time on operations.

The Trojan, which is reinforced with extra armour, carves through the soil destroying any IEDs in its way. It is clearing the main supply route from Camp Bastion to the Nad 'Ali area.