The first series, first broadcast in January 2008, followed the 2007 deployment of the 1st Battalion (1 R ANGLIAN, "The Vikings") of the Royal Anglian Regiment. As a follow-up to the first series, Ross Kemp: Return to Afghanistan, first broadcast from 1 February 2009, followed the 2008 deployment of the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders (5 SCOTS), the 5th battalion of the Royal Regiment of Scotland. Kemp and his crew participate in the Vikings' (Royal Anglians) initial training in Britain for the deployment. They then visit the unit during their six-month tour, filming both life at rest and on fighting patrols in Helmand. The series finally covers their return to the UK. In the second series, Kemp returns to Afghanistan to assess how the conflict has changed since his first visit in 2007.
A special two-part third series, entitled Middle East, follows Kemp as he visits soldiers working in Gaza and Israel. In the fourth series, Back on the Frontline, Kemp returns to the frontline with the Royal Marines as he re-visits Afghanistan two years after he last departed, to see how the country has progressed since his last visit. A final special, broadcast in 2012, entitled The Invisible Wounded, follows soldiers as they return home from Afghanistan, some of whom are forced to deal with the aftermath of PTSD.
Unlike a "traditional" war documentary, the first series was firmly positioned by Kemp as being the "soldiers' story", focusing on the experiences of the soldiers at home and abroad, and also features the views of their families. With a personal connection with the Vikings, Kemp is an ardent supporter of the men and the mission, and his film makes many criticisms of the situation the soldiers find themselves in.
During the filming of the first series, in one engagement the crew were pinned down by fire from the Taliban, with Kemp "nearly dying" with bullets passing "within inches". In filming the second series, Kemp runs into a possible minefield. The show was praised for the closeness and realism of the battle footage, and is believed to be the first documentary of its kind filmed in high definition.
Kemp expressed that the a main motivation for the series was to hear from the soldiers who generally don't have a voice[5][6] compared to other public workers. Kemp stated: "I've got many friends who are in the services, but you never really hear a squaddie giving his point of view. I'd never heard one talk publicly and I wanted to hear that voice."[7] This would be the view of the young men being sent to the foreign climes of Afghanistan from a situation such as being 18 years old and still living at home with mum and dad, as opposed to hearing from officers trained in media relations.[6] The series would examine the experiences of soldiers at home, injured soldiers and the families of serving soldiers.[8] Kemp wanted to ascertain the motivation of the troops, their level of political knowledge about the situation, their views on Muslims.[8] Kemp stated his opinion that the public gaining an understanding of what it's like for the soldiers is a good thing whatever anyone's political views on the war.,[5] informing the public what was happening out there and what the soldiers are doing[8] for the people back home who are "fortunate to live in a free country".[8]
Setting up
The idea of the documentary was first thought of by Kemp around January 2005, after the series on Gangs[9] when he came up with the idea of embedding himself with a unit.[6] Kemp had initially wanted to do a series about troops in Iraq following the 2003 invasion[6][9] and posed the idea to James Murdoch, head of Sky TV.[5][9] Due to the prevailing sensitive political situation, the MOD were reluctant.[9] as it was around the time of the controversial death of David Kelly.[5]
After repeated enquiries to the MOD,[8][9] they suggested[9] and later approved a series in Afghanistan.[7] The program also had support of a brigadier who had gone to school with one of the programme's makers.[7] The commanding officer of the Anglians initially approved filming of the training by the crew[7] on a probationary basis.[7][9] The crew were subsequently deemed to have "handled ourselves reasonably well"[9] and were allowed to go on the deployment.
Kemp's personal link to Anglians
The Anglians were chosen as Kemp has a twofold personal interest in the Vikings. His father saw active service as part of the Anglians in the 1950s,[8] and had served in[6] one of the Royal Anglians predecessor units,[5] the Royal Norfolk Regiment, for four years[5] in Cyprus. Kemp also claimed to have an affinity[5] with the soldiers in the Royal Anglians, as having grown up in Essex[8][9]/East Anglia,[10] he had the same background and possessed shared life experiences[9] as the troops who fall in the Anglians' recruiting area, albeit with an age difference. Kemp at 43 is significantly older than the current generation of front line troops, who are invariably very young, several just 18 years old.
Series in detail
Synopsis
The series follows the soldiers of B Company of the 1st Battalion[7] on their training for deployment, on fighting operations, as well as examining life and conditions at the Now Zad front line base.[11] At times the Taliban are no more than 50 metres away.[12] The series also features interviews with soldiers and their families while still in England before deployment;[7] with the mother of the Anglians' first casualty in Afghanistan, killed in May 2007 in a firefight at Nawzad;[11] with the family of one of the men killed in the friendly fire incident; and with a corporal who survived the bombing.[12] The series runs until the soldiers return to the UK.[12]
Timeline
The crew trained with the battalion in January 2007[9] for eight weeks[8] at Pirbright barracks, Surrey,[8] and Salisbury Plain, Wiltshire,[6][9] in a cold British winter[13] in freezing temperatures,[7][9] three months prior to deployment for real.[13] From March - August 2007 as part of 12th Mechanised Brigade, the 1st Battalion was deployed to the Helmand province[6] of Afghanistan as part of Operation Lastay Kulang[6] (Pashto for "pickaxe-handle".), the sixth phase of the ongoing Operation Herrick. During this six-month tour[12] The Battalion's activities ranged from protecting convoys and guarding the Kajaki Dam to house to house clearances in Taliban held villages during major offensives in the Sangin Valley[14] At one point the soldiers are fighting for 23 days straight[15] between rest periods. The crew spent two months[6] in Afghanistan in three separate spells.[16] The crew first arrived at Camp Bastion in Helmand Province,[7] the main British base in Afghanistan, before moving on to forward operating bases at Lashkar Gah, Sangin and Nawzad.
On arrival at Bastion, the crew are given a medical briefing[17] before immediately accompanying an offensive operation in the 'green zone', a thin strip of farm land along the banks of the Helmand River,[17] during which a corporal is killed when an improvised explosive device blows up his vehicle.[17] While the crew is back in England, three soldiers are killed in a friendly fire incident.[18] Eight days after,[18] the crew returned to Afghanistan for a second tour in late August for three weeks.[8] On returning to the UK, Kemp met Defence Secretary Des Browne[8] and gave MPs a preview of the series at the House of Commons.<[citation needed]
Training
Training consisted among other things of sleeping out with the unit for about a month on Salisbury Plain,[9]mock battles in a cold-war era mock Eastern European village,[7] convoy protection,[13] deployment from Chinook helicopters,[13] military tactics, and what to expect while in country. In mock battles, Kemp and others were judged to have been 'killed'.[13] In an unusual practice not known for embedded journalists with the MOD,[5] the crew were taught how to handle and fire weapons,[15] namely the SA80 personal rifle and .50 calibre machine gun.[5] The crew would not be carrying weapons in the field,[9] but the commanding officer insisted the crew were trained to be able to defend themselves in an emergency.[5][9]
Deployment incidents
Convoy IED strike
On the first operation in Afghanistan, a convoy a few hours out from the main base a Viking armoured vehicle was struck by an IED, which killed a corporal.[17] The crew were in a convoy just ahead of the struck vehicle, and had apparently driven past the location of the IED.[6]
Friendly fire incident
On Thursday 23 August, in a "blue on blue accident", a fighting patrol north west of Kajaki was struck by friendly fire when the patrol called in close air support after they were attacked from a number of positions. Three soldiers were killed when bombs dropped by two American F-15E Strike Eagle aircraft hit their compound.[18] The three fatalities were declared dead at the scene, while two more that were seriously injured were evacuated by helicopter to the medical facility at Camp Bastion.[19] The series features amateur video footage of the incident taken by the soldiers at the time.[18]
Major engagement
On his second day in Afghanistan[8] Kemp "nearly got shot"[15] when the crew were pinned down when accompanying B Company[20] were ambushed in broad daylight while on an operation against Taliban compounds near Sangin.[6] The patrol was designed to cause an engagement with the Taliban by patrolling into an area where they knew the Taliban would be likely to attack, allowing the patrol to counterattack and call in the heavy artillery. The contact started as the patrol walked into an area near Jucaylay village. The Taliban were hidden in irrigation channels in the fields and apparently knew the patrol was coming and had prepared an ambush. The contact occurred when the patrol stepped out of cover to go around a compound.[citation needed]
One round passed between Kemp's shoulder and head[9] upon which Kemp stated he wet himself, although on another occasion he later claimed this may have been due to a split water pouch.[9] The crew were pinned down by accurate fire from AK-47s and rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs),[6] with five to seven RPGs flying over their heads by just a metre[9] and bullets passing inches from their heads and hitting the ground either side of them.[20] Only after fierce return fire and a delay of three or four minutes could the crew be extracted.[6]
Reactions of Kemp
On speaking about how he unwound from his experience in Afghanistan, which he described as "an unhealthy environment in many ways",[7] On returning Kemp said "it's difficult to come back and see life the same as it was before going".[21] "I can honestly say, after Afghanistan, I'll never take anything in my life for granted again."[15] Kemp stated he was most proud of this series, more so than any of his previous work.[7] He expressed hope that after the series people would appreciate the soldiers a bit better[6] and see their bravery in coping with hard conditions.[15]
Kemp, as he expected, was the recipient of some piss taking from the soldiers for his acting role as a staff sergeant in the SAS in Ultimate Force,[5] a show he later described as "dreadful".[9] He took it in good humour, recognising it as part of the way the soldiers cope with their time in theatre.[9]
Speaking about the conditions in the theatre, Kemp explained that the soldiers in Afghanistan were experiencing more enemy fire in six months than most soldiers have faced in 25 years[8] in intolerable conditions and stifling heat[20] Soldiers were under "a constant threat of snipers, RPG attacks and land mines",[20] inducing a distinct fear of IEDs or misplaced aircraft strikes.[6] Stating that while the everyday living conditions are bad for the men, in a war zone you "don't complain about the small things"[15] Kemp expressed surprise that his and other's beliefs that wars since the first Gulf War were now fought electronically from a distance were wrong, and combat was still contested in close contact on the ground.[6][7][9]
He found the soldiers "intelligent, witty and very aware of the political situation."[6] with many soldiers believe it is possible to defeat the Taliban, an improvement over the situation he perceived in Basra, Iraq.[8] Kemp was moved to tears when told by three seriously wounded soldiers returning to base that their actions were not appreciated back home.[8]
Some of the soldiers he had been deployed with came to see him in the Christmaspantomime season at the end of 2007, stating that it was a good way to relax after what they had been through.[5]
Kemp criticised the "appallingly low" pay the soldiers received.[5] Kemp was also critical of the compensation system for wounded soldiers and the "despicable" shortage of helicopters, the most important thing needed, which were unavailable purely for monetary reasons, but which ultimately had cost lives on the tour.[7] Kemp found that kit was unsuitable for desert ops, such as cold war rations and clothing deteriorating too quickly.[7] Kemp also criticised the unfit state of Pirbright barracks living quarters.[8]
On the time he and the crew were pinned down, Kemp stated he started praying, "cowering in the dirt with fear",[6] wanting the ground to swallow him up[6] "I was so scared..."[20] "The most frightening experience of my life..."[20] I will never forget that day face down in a field for the rest of my life."[6] Speaking about the sound of bullets flying overhead, Kemp stated "you realise that nobody has ever come close to replicating the sound of bullets cutting through the air in films or on television".[15]
However, he said the hardest thing he had to do in the series was not to be shot at in Afghanistan, but to interview the families of the dead men.[7]
Reception
On Kemp's return, even the MoD were said to be surprised when they reviewed the film as to how close to the action the filming had come.[7] Kemp received praise from the Sergeant's Mess[5] and from Prince Harry, who briefly served in Afghanistan as a forward air controller.[21] It also gave some of the soldiers on the ground the chance to see how close some of the situations they were in actually are, something they don't appreciate at the time in the heat of battle.[5]
Commentators praised how the series showed the resourcefulness and humanity of the soldiers who are fighting.[7] Kim Sengupta, a war correspondent who has also been to Afghanistan, stated the footage was "striking and gritty" and "conveys well the sense of isolation and silence punctured by prolonged bursts of sudden ferocious violence, the fear and excitement, one experiences in the type of combat being undertaken by British forces in Afghanistan". He added it was a realistic portrayal of the events of combat, including the sheer relief of survival followed by cathartic stress relief.[5] Sengupta also stated that the prolonged period of filming from before and after deployment allowed Kemp to realistically portray the effects of intensive close combat, where soldiers become fitter and appear to age markedly, weather-beaten, and become introspective with the so-called "thousand yard stare".[5]
The series was criticised for not dealing with the rights or wrongs of British policy in Afghanistan,[5] however Kemp stated "we did not go to make a so-called traditional documentary, we tried to show was what the ordinary soldiers are facing"[5] and "My documentary is about what it is like to be a British soldier in Afghanistan."[6] While the series was not to be a political piece according to Kemp, he did consider the Iraq invasion was "a mistake", but believed the British involvement in Afghanistan to be a just war.[5]
In addition to Kemp, the crew consisted of the director a cameraman and sound man[15] with the director doubling as a second cameramen.[9] The crew were embedded with British troops[6] and accompanied the soldiers every single day[15] being "in constant danger" according to Kemp.[15] Of the crew's status in the unit, Kemp commented: "Everyone said, "The soldiers are there to protect you." F*** off! They are looking after themselves.[9] The crew were to get no preferential treatment and experienced the same conditions and routine as the soldiers[9] While the Vikings are a mechanized infantry unit of the 12th Mechanised Brigade, much of the filming followed dismounted operations carried out on foot.
The series was filmed in high-definition[6] and mixed in Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound.[22] It is believed to be the first time a HD camera has been taken into a war zone and used in this way.[22] The director commented: "We had long discussions about the HD cameras. The advantages are pictures of amazing sharpness, how all the awful things of war are caught in a kind of surreal colour, war in all its terrible detail. There was, of course, a price to pay for this."[5] The HD cameras were approximately four times heavier than the cameras which are usually used for filming of this type. They are also more than 20 times more expensive, costing up to £100,000 each.[5]
The series in Afghanistan took place in sand storms and temperatures of over 50°C.[20] The caustic sand was so sharp it caused nosebleeds.[9] The crew members carried two stone (12kg) of body armour, nine litres of water, and provisions[9] Kemp carried the camera batteries[9] In theatre, Kemp went deaf with an ear infection, became near-immobilised with cracked feet,[6] and suffered a cracked tooth. He also lost two stone while making the film[23] Having expressed concerns about his fitness and being able to cope in theatre weighed down with equipment, he stated: "you can run very quickly when someone's trying to kill you. It's very motivational."[7]
Total casualties of the tour
The 1st battalion suffered 9 casualties during its tour, 5 of those due to hostile actions by the Taliban and 4 due to accidents.[24] Kemp was travelling in a convoy in which a corporal was killed by a mine strike on his vehicle. He also witnessed the death of a private.[8] The film was dedicated to the dead soldiers, and the men and families of the Vikings.
Series 2 - Return to Afghanistan
Following the first series, Kemp's next project was to be a documentary on drugs in Thailand for Sky.[5] Reports in September 2008 that filming of a follow-up series in Afghanistan was underway, and indicated that it as to be a two-part series[25][26] of 60 minutes each, to be provisionally titled Ross Kemp: Return To Afghanistan.[26] It was later confirmed that the second series like the first was to be a five-part programme,[27][28] and was to premiere on Sunday 1 February 2009.[27]
5 SCOTS had been in Helmand Province since March 2008[29] on a seven-month tour.[30] As well as 5 SCOTS, in the follow-up series Kemp also spent two weeks with Victor Company of 45 CommandoRoyal Marines, who had deployed to Afghanistan in October 2008. During the second series he was also thought likely to patrol with soldiers of the Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment (The Tigers), the Royal Irish Regiment and the Afghan National Army.[29] In motivation for creating the second series, Kemp stated that with the follow-up he wanted "to see whether the sacrifice they made was actually worth it, if this is a situation that's winnable, how long this situation will go on and to get to meet 5 SCOTS".[29]
Musa Qaleh was held by the Taliban during the time of the first series.[25][28] The town was described by the MOD as "a much sought after target for both ISAF and Taliban forces and scene of the heaviest fighting in the country".[27] It was recaptured in December 2007[29] by ISAF and the Afghan National Army in the Battle of Musa Qala. While it was held by the Taliban Musa Qala was described by the MOD as "a key staging post for arms and drugs transported to and from Pakistan and Iran",[27] who stated that the Taliban want to regain control of it because of its tactical importance.[27] Producer Matt Bennett said of 5 SCOTS, "They're very much at the sharp end of pushing back the Taliban and opening up that area around Musa Qala",[29] while Kemp stated "Progress in Helmand rests and falls on what happens in Musa Qaleh. The Taliban surround it on all sides".[28] Kemp was also keen to document how the soldiers worked with the local population of the town.[29]
At the beginning of episode 1 of the second series, 5 SCOTS and Kemp are ambushed by the Taliban within 30 minutes of his first patrol,[28] targeted by small arms fire and RPG rockets.[27]
Speaking of the situation in Afghanistan since his visits in 2007, "it's a very different war since I was here a year ago but the fighting with the Taliban is as intense as ever. The war's changed in that the Taliban are using far more IEDs (improvised explosive devices) and anti-personnel mines...[25] Kemp described how the Taliban had now apparently taken to engaging from a distance, and planting IEDs and mines in areas where troops are likely to take cover, switching from conventional tactics to a greater use of booby traps and suicide bombers.[29]
5 Scots returned to their Howe Barracks base in Canterbury in October 2008.[30] Meeting them on their return, Kemp said of the soldiers of the battalion that they were "a fantastic bunch of lads with a great sense of humour. They really are a tribute to the British army. There was no point when they did not take the fight to the enemy."[30]
The Royal Anglian Regiment is an infantry regiment of the British Army. It consists of two Regular battalions and one Reserve battalion. The modern regiment was formed in 1964, making it the oldest of the Line Regiments now operating in the British Army, and can trace its history back to 1685. The regiment was the first of the large infantry regiments and is one of the three regiments of the Queen's Division.
The Pathfinder Platoon is a pathfinder unit of the British Army, and an integral part of 16 Air Assault Brigade. The Pathfinder Platoon acts as the brigade's advance force and reconnaissance force. Its role includes locating and marking drop zones and helicopter landing zones for air landing operations. Once the main force has landed, the platoon provides tactical intelligence and offensive action roles for the brigade.
1st Battalion, 2nd Marines (1/2) is an infantry battalion in the United States Marine Corps based out of Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, consisting of approximately 900 Marines and sailors. The battalion, callsign "Typhoon'" falls under the command of the 2nd Marine Regiment and the 2nd Marine Division.
Operation Mountain Thrust was a NATO and Afghan-led operation in the War in Afghanistan, with more than 3,300 British troops, 2,300 U.S., 2,200 Canadian troops, about 3,500 Afghan soldiers and large air support. Its primary objective was to quell the ongoing Taliban insurgency in the south of the country.
Sangin is a town in Helmand province of Afghanistan, with a population of approximately 20,000 people. It is located on 32°4′24″N64°50′2″E in the valley of the Helmand River at 888 m (2,913 ft) altitude, 95 km (59 mi) to the north-east of Lashkargah. Sangin is notorious as one of the central locations of the opium trade in the south of the country, and is also a town that has traditionally supported the Taliban. It was described by British newspaper The Guardian as "the deadliest area in Afghanistan" in 2010. Sangin also houses the main bazaar for Sangin District. Route 611 passes through Sangin.
The United Kingdom was one of the first countries to take part in Operation Enduring Freedom against the Taliban regime in autumn 2001.
Operation Herrick was the codename under which all British operations in the War in Afghanistan were conducted from 2002 to the end of combat operations in 2014. It consisted of the British contribution to the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), and support to the American-led Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF), within the South Asian country.
Nawzad is a small town, the centre of Nawzad District in Helmand Province, Afghanistan. It is located at 32.4000°N 64.4667°E at an altitude of 1221 metres ASL. It was the site of the Battle of Nawzad.
Musa Qala is a town and the district centre of Musa Qala District in Helmand Province, Afghanistan. It is located at 32.4433°N 64.7444°E and at an altitude of 1,043 m in the valley of Musa Qala River in the central western part of the district. Its population has been reported in the British press to be both 2,000 and 20,000. It is in a desolate area, populated by native Pashtun tribes.
Nāwa-I-Barakzāyi District is an administrative district in Helmand Province, Afghanistan located south of the provincial capital of Lashkar Gah along the Helmand River. It is bordered by the districts of Lashkar Gah, Nad Ali, Garmsir, and Rig, as well as the provinces of Nimruz and Kandahar. It falls within the area known as Pashtunistan,, an area comprising most of southeast Afghanistan and northwest Pakistan. The dominant language is Pashto and many of the 89,000 residents practice the traditional code of Pashtunwali. Nawa-I-Barakzayi's name reflects the dominant Pashtun tribe in the district, the Barakzai. Prior to the 1970s, it was called Shamalan after a small village at the south end of the district
The siege of Sangin was a military engagement which occurred between June 2006 and April 2007, between Taliban insurgents and the British Army during the war in Afghanistan. During the engagement, the district centre of Sangin District in Helmand Province was occupied by British forces and was completely surrounded by Taliban fighters. At one point fighting became intensive, causing General David J. Richards, the then-NATO commander in Afghanistan, to declare that Helmand province had seen the fiercest fighting involving British troops since the Korean War. The siege became emblematic of the difficulty of the mission being carried out by British soldiers in Afghanistan, who nicknamed it "Sangingrad".
The Helmand province campaign was a series of military operations conducted by the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) forces against Taliban insurgents and other local groups in the Helmand Province of Afghanistan. Their objective was to control a province that was known to be a Taliban stronghold, and a center of opium production. None of the ISAF's intended strategic and political objectives were achieved in the long term.
The Battle of Musa Qala was a British-led military action in Helmand Province, southern Afghanistan, launched by the Afghan National Army and the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) against the Taliban on 7 December 2007. After three days of intense fighting, the Taliban retreated into the mountains on 10 December. Musa Qala was officially reported captured on 12 December, with Afghan Army troops pushing into the town centre.
US and NATO International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) operations, alongside Afghan National Army forces, continued against the Taliban through 2007.
Mullah Abdul Salaam Alizai is a former member of the Taliban movement who defected to the Afghan government in December 2007. He is a leader of the Alizai, a Pashtun tribe.
The siege of Musa Qala took place between July 17 and September 12, 2006 in Afghanistan's Helmand province. A small force of International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) troops and Afghan security forces were besieged by Taliban insurgents inside the district centre of Musa Qala.
Operation Panchai Palang, or Panther's Claw, was a British-led military operation of the War in Afghanistan in Helmand Province in southern Afghanistan. It aimed to secure various canal and river crossings to establish a permanent International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) presence in the area. The commander of the operation declared the first stage a success on 27 July 2009.
The Battle of Nawzad (2006–2014) was a battle between ISAF (coalition) forces and Taliban insurgents in Nawzad at the center of Nawzad district in the northern half of Helmand Province, southern Afghanistan.
Events from the year 2008 in Afghanistan.
Operation Toral was the codename for the British presence within Afghanistan post-2014 as part of NATO's Resolute Support Mission. UK forces had two major tasks: training and mentoring Afghan Forces, and providing force protection for NATO advisors via the Kabul Security Force/Kabul Protection Unit.
1 2 3 thisiskent.co.ukArchived 15 February 2009 at the Wayback Machine , Actor Ross Kemp greets Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders in Canterbury, 29 October 2008, accessed 25 January 2009
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