This is a first…. A reporter in a Special Forces base camp. The article is much longer and a good read.
TS
(CBS) When 60 Minutes II entered the secret world of U.S. Special Forces, it was done by way of a Chinook helicopter, with pilots from the 25th Infantry Division from Hawaii.
The crew didn't know what to expect, because no television crew had ever been given access to the Special Forces base in the hostile Pesch Valley, an isolated place near the Pakistani border, where all women are expected to cover their heads in public.
Correspondent Lara Logan asked the captain in charge of the base about reports that Osama bin Laden was seen in that very valley late last year -- just before his team entered the area.
“The terrain around here provides a lot of great hiding places for a lot of bad guys, and he could be one of them,” the captain replied. “Every time we meet with the elders, we remind them that we’re looking for him, and that we’ll pay good money for him. He’s always on our minds.”
60 Minutes II couldn't reveal the captain’s name for security reasons, but was permitted to show him and his men in profile or wearing sunglasses.
"The biggest thing is we’ve made a lot of friends in this area,” the captain said. “If anybody comes here and tries to hide, they’ll come and tell us. And so the area we’re in, and we’re expanding that area, it’s not a haven. No one can come and hide without being ratted out.”
The captain said they’ll be ratted out because the more friends the Green Berets make, the harder it is for men like bin Laden to find people he can trust.
It’s a big difference from six months ago, when the Special Forces first arrived. Back then, they were rocketed every other day. Now, two to three weeks can go by without an attack, Logan reports.
And that’s not the only change. During 60 Minutes II's second night at the base, a young girl was brought in by her uncle after falling from the roof of her home. The Special Forces medic, a pharmacist from Utah, was immediately called in. Her injuries were minor, but the base is the only place in the valley where people can get medical care anytime, day or night. And they regularly do.
The Green Berets also focus on education. There wasn’t a single girl in school until they set up a temporary facility. Now, they’re building a high school that will double the number of children being educated in the valley the day its doors open.
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/...in618513.shtml
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