Image Gallery 2009
18 February 2009
Meeting with locals in Zabol Province
With Australian Engineers from the 1st Mentoring and Reconstruction Task Force (MRTF-1) rebuilding a bridge in the valley below, soldiers provide security for the mission.
The soldiers moved to the adjacent Qualas (walled dwellings) to meet the locals and inform them as to why they had come to their valley.
Utilising a Pashtu-speaking soldier, the MRTF-1 members explained to the locals that their new neighbours were here to rebuild their bridge and reopen the essential supply route linking northern and southern Afghanistan.
The Afghans welcomed the Australian forces, sharing a joke, and despite the relative poverty of their area, checking that the soldiers had enough food and water, offering to share theirs.
| 20081217ara8502859_0140 A Pashtu-speaking Australian soldier chats with a local, as Australians establish a reconstruction project near his village in Zabol Province, in Southern Afghanistan. (Date taken: 17 december 2008) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20081217ara8502859_0146 Regimental Sergeant Major, Warrant Officer Class One Dave Allen, utilises Private Ahmad Ahmadi to communicate with local villagers, during a 1st Mentoring and Reconstruction Task Force patrol in Zabol Province, Southern Afghanistan. (Date taken: 17 december 2008) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20081217ara8502859_0164 An Australian soldier provides perimeter security during a village patrol in Zabol Province, Southern Afghanistan. (Date taken: 17 december 2008) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20081217ara8502859_0170 A local family chats with members of the 1st Mentoring and Reconstruction Task Force. In the background, the supply convoys bound for the north of the country back up as they wait for an unreliable bypass route, which will soon be replaced by a new bridge built by Australian engineers. (Date taken: 17 december 2008) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20081217ara8502859_0175 An Australian soldier patrols through a village near a 1st Mentoring and Reconstruction Task Force bridge construction project site. (Date taken: 17 december 2008) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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