Kandagal, Afghanistan, July 21, 2010: Young villagers in Kandagal, just across the Pech River from Combat Outpost Michigan, tend to their animals as U.S and Afghan soldiers rest for a few minutes at the end of a patrol.

After U.S. forces pulled out of adjecent Korengal Valley, many wonder if it would not be better to pull out of the insurgent filled terrain of the Pech Valley, populated by an isolationist population that sees no benefit in central government. With limited resources, it is all troops here can do just to hold the ground they have. But it has come at a cost. Read the 2010 article on the battle for terrain in the Pech Valley here.

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• Troops strive to hold the line in Pech valley