For sixteen years, the US military has been at war in Afghanistan. The guests on this episode were there at the very beginning. Jason Amerine and Mark Nutsch were both Army captains and in command of the first Special Forces detachments on the ground in Afghanistan in 2001. They share stories from the earliest days and weeks of what would go on to become the longest war in American history.
In 2007, Tony Luberto was a maintenance platoon leader deployed in Baghdad. Early one morning, he awoke to the devastating sounds of a Katyusha...
In the previous episode of The Spear, Karl Blanke shared a story that featured the actions of one of his former Marines, Lance Corporal...
In February 2012, Capt. Jannelle Allong-Diakabana was a military police platoon leader deployed in Nangarhar province, Afghanistan. One day, as she and her platoon...