COMMENT US soldiers sit beneath an American flag, raised to commemorate the anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, at Forward Operating Base Bostick in Kunar province, Afghanistan IT was a godforsaken place. One of those seemingly forgotten outposts which, if it had been in the Vietnam War, would be worthy of a scene from the movie Apocalypse Now. Clinging to a steep craggy mountainside, combat outpost Najil in the Alishang Valley in Afghanistan’s Laghman Province had frequently been attacked by the Taliban. Crouched opposite me in the US Blackhawk medevac helicopter that day was flight medic Sergeant Nate Whorton, who from the second we touched down had gestured for me to stay on board.