Twelve members of the U.S. special forces and dozens of tribal eastern alliance fighters were trying to take out an al-Qaida defensive position at Tora Bora when they came under machine-gun fire. In an exchange of fire, two of the Americans were grazed by bullets -- one in the shoulder, the other in the knee. The wounded men, in Afghan dress, were well enough to walk down the mountain. They were taken back to a schoolhouse in a nearby town where they have been staying for medical treatment. The special forces were also acting as spotters for an American airstrike against the machine-gun placement. The Americans and their allies eventually took the al-Qaida position.
With reports of wounded almost non-existent, with the exception of claims in the Pak papers, it would seem body armor's been vastly improved in the past few years. Bet that cheezes the al-Qaeda Bad Guys no end. |