Checkpoint 710 News Today

>> in terms of this checkpoint. earlier today we were at a police substation. they have a different mission, they are there to be a resource for the community and security. you are here to stop traffic, check it before you allow it to go through. what are you looking for? how do you know if a person you are stopping is trouble? >> you never know. there are indicators. what you try to look for is multiple military age males or a vehicle that looks weighed down or a vehicle acting erratically are ...

You can see from where we are right now it is a bazaar right across the street from the exec point. how do people who make their living selling things in the bazaar feel about the checkpoint? >> from our interaction so far they seem too like us here. we had the gas station owner ask questions, if they try to blow us up will it blow his gas station up. we tried to assure him we will do our best not to blow your gas station up. >> i would like to be a fly on the wall. how do you translate that? we...

That checkpoint is across the street from a bazaar full of little shops. with a help of a pashto translator i asked the shopkeeper if he likes the troops being here. can you ask him his name and thank him for his time. are you happy that the checkpoint is across the road or not happy? >> translator: im happy with the checkpoint. i dont have any problems. hes saying i have one problem. whenever you make the checkpoint is making a lot of traffic, like tankses, humvees keep coming. theed is bombers...

Argandab district and kandahar city. is that right? >> right. >> how far is the district out? >> you can see it from here. that is the argandab. >> it is famous in the states because people know how much fighting is going on. >> right. >> the role of this checkpoint is to stop the trouble there from coming to kandahar city? >> definitely. >> the idea of the checkpoint is there will be 13 of them ringing the city, to essentially disrupt the freedom of movement of insurgents who may be operating b...

I really appreciate it. >> absolutely. >> in terms of what we are overlooking, this nice paved road heading out of kandahar city. where does this go? >> towards panjuay and anzari. >> two regions where there is a lot of fighting, insurgent activity. what is the mission of this checkpoint and the other three checkpoints you lead? >> each of these checkpoints is strategically placed on one of the main routes in and out of the city interdicting or disrupting the freedom of movement of the insurgent...

Soldiers and the local folks? what are you asking of them and what has it been like? >> it has been very positive. the locals are wary of our presence somewhat but know we are here to help support their government and help make them safer. some people there are mixed reactions. some people are wary. most of the children are receptive and are willing to talk to us and talk to my soldiers and they feel safer knowing afghan national police are beginning to protect them and offer an alternative to t...

Part of our self-declared little cable news mission in afghanistan is to figure out what things are like for the americans who are serving here. you and me, civilians, because these soldiers are here, we are incuring a life-long debt to the american serving in uniform and assume public responsibility for them for the rest of their lives as veterans. part of respecting that service is to understand what exactly it is we are asking them to do here, not just how much danger we are putting them in, ...

Something. >> i can. ten months ago i would tell you absolutely not. when we first got in country to see the progression they made is incredible. >> through train something. >> through training. at first they were reluctant without our technology or weaponry to go out. by the end of the time they would go out without us and tell us about it later. they needed the confidence boost to go out independently. we were able to accomplish that. i dont think it will be any different here. >> the point of...

Set up. >> it sure is. a week ago there was nothing here. >> because this is brand new locals are just now experiencing what it means to have a checkpoint where there didnt used to be one. have you had any reaction you can tell us about so far? >> sure. the compound that is right here to our right closest to our tower, they were skeptical because of their culture. the tower would look over their compound and they had adolescent females in the compound. so that one is lower than all the other tow...