real general dostum and mitch nelson

When an American team finally recovered Spanns body, they discovered it had been booby-trapped with a live grenade (which they removed without incident). Under intense pressure, the Regulators had called in a perfect surgical strikea bomb drop in a crowded urban area without a single civilian casualty. It also means a great deal to our families, who sacrifice so much, that what we accomplished is finally being brought more into public light. Dostum has decided to clean up the regions last remaining pocket of Taliban himself. I thought the guy was this ruthless warlord, one soldier says. Also, there was hardly any assurance that the team would be safe with the Afghan fighters they were working alongside. General Abdul Rashid Dostum had arrived. Planning a one-day live-ammo training exercise can require six months of paperwork. I was sick of this guy running back and forth getting ammo. Faizal has his prosthetic leg off. I talk to an Iraqi, as well as to Pakistanis and Saudisall of whom speak English. If we had been there, Mikes death would not have happened., When they got word of the incident, the unit desperately wanted to get back to the prison. One of the soldiers from the ODA 595 died later while serving in Iraq. The unexplained feeling of relief when you know your loved one is safe. Our commanders said they didnt know what to expect, but at least they were honest enough to admit it, the Green Beret continues. Americas finest were about to fight their first war on horseback in more than a hundred years. -The Fayetteville Observer, Yes. Captain Mark Nutsch, Special Forces commander on the mission and Chief Warrant Officer Bob Pennington, the real-life counterparts to the roles played by Chris Hemsworth and Michael Shannon, were both on set to ensure accuracy in the movies portrayal. He ended up in the Takhar Province, in the northeastern part of the country. We had an entire 250-man cavalry ready to charge. The Regulators wanted Dostums right-hand man, Commander Lal, to hold off while they got their aircraft in position, but Lal had already given the order. Dating at least to the days of Genghis Khan, the violent game is not so much about scoring as it is about using every dirty trick possiblebeating, whipping, kickingto prevent the opposing team from scoring. The Regulators rush to catch up in two mud-covered cars. "We slept on the ground the first couple of nights." These Special Forces soldiers took on the Taliban on horseback His father is old. ", Yes. Im looking through the optics while rounds are zinging all around us. At this point in the tale, Mike nodded toward Paul, who was sitting next to him on the couch at Dostums guest house. A small group of CIA that included Mike Spann, flew in to the Darra-e Suf the day before ODA 595 would land. But 9/11 changed all that. You have to understand: Dostum had told them, If an American gets hurt . However, the rugged Afghan terrain forced them to adopt the rudimentary practices of the Afghan horse soldiers. Six months ago, he traveled to Kabul with some Pakistanis to join the Taliban. He would take a village by getting the mounted guys up close. The gear seemed to float from the landing site under a procession of brown blankets and turbans. The book was quietly taken out of print. Battle of Bescham | Historica Wiki | Fandom Dostums meetings do not end until well after midnight. The Taliban had dug-in, trench-line bunkers shooting machine guns, heavy ma-chine guns, and RPGs [rocket-propelled grenades]. Some American soldiers are billeted upstairs in the guest houses; men in camo pants run up and down the stairs. When we climbed up to the top of that hill, we could see the Taliban on the other side, regrouping for the final attempt to stop us. All the while ostracizing the now First Vice President Dostum who is currently in exile in Ankara plotting his next move. "All of these guys have blood on their hands. I watch a fighter go up to the top, then crumple into a black pile of rags. The mission was also chronicled in Doug Stanton's 2009 book, Horse Soldiers, on which the movie is based. He talked for half an hour. Mazar-i-Sharif was the stronghold for the Taliban's northern force and once liberated, the northern provinces quickly fell. Blackened, twisted vehicles are perforated with thousands of jagged holes. Washington, D.C.. He is so sincere; whenever I see him, I feel joy. He pauses for a moment, lost in reflection. To my surprise, these men felt at home., And more than that: The Afghan warlord and his tiny band of American soldiers had clearly formed a bond that only men who have been through combat can understand. Some hide their faces, others convulse and shiver. Astoundingly, after two days of bombardment, the prisoners still control the fort. Mullah Nuri insists he doesnt know them and they refuse to come up. Robert Young Pelton, all rights reserved. For a brief moment, the general stands triumphant, the conquering hero, the bring-er of peace, the warlord who has ended war in the northand, therefore, perhaps eliminated his own reason for being. Pennington is portrayed by Michael Shannon in the movie. They are direct military descendants of the Devils Brigade, a joint Canadian-American unit that fought in Italy during the Second World War. Both of the named Green Berets are commanding officers, John Mulholland and Max Bowers. is the manner in which military members tend to downplay their service or push aside thanks, rarely focusing on themselves, but on their team or country as a whole. Anticipating more fireworks, I head there with him and move into another of his residences, a huge, high-walled compound that includes a mosque and, improbably, an unfinished health-club complex. That he is known to be a deft alliance makerand breaker. Others have speculated that the filmmakers changed some of the names to diversify the Special Forces team for the movie, but that has not been confirmed. Dostums real success was in negotiating enemy commanders to lay down their arms and to join him. Outmanned, the Green Berets decided to move out on horseback. People demanded that I do something, says Dostum. Spotlighting a Special Forces unit that went to Afghanistan soon after 9/11 to hunt and destroy al-Qaeda, "12 Strong" follows this dirty dozen led by Hemsworth's "Capt. They told us, If Dostum wants to go to Kabul, you are going with him. Paul, Andy, and I drive past villages of round, domed huts, past a checkpoint manned by Dostums men, and up along the winding road to the Tingi Pass. I targeted a spot right next to this guys head. What happened next was the first of many distortions and fictional retelling of their story. Men wept as the imam prayed and thanked Dostum for deliverance. you die. We were focused on calling in an air strike to take out this truck that had rumbled into view, and now RPG rounds are flying over our heads. It was then that Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld showed the press an image of a bearded Green Beret on a horse and explained that the man was directing air strikes against Taliban and al-Qaeda targets in northern Afghanistan. Three years of drought have broken: A cold rain pours down in gray sheets. The team had been working together for two years and the average age was 32 years old. This is the first close-air-support strike in years in an urban area, says Air Force Steve. This included using horses to navigate the mountainous region. Theres one time Ill never forget, he says. Payback was certainly on the minds of some members of the team, while others focused primarily on the mission at hand. It was September 12, 2003. In the courtyard, a soft-eyed cow tries to eat spilled oats just beyond its reach. The rounds are zinging over my head. Theyve just finished installing a satellite TV. Robert Young Pelton, all rights reserved. -BUILD Series. They placed it in a body bag and lowered it into the ground. As for why the names were changed, one article stated that the studio did not want to have to pay all of the real-life people for the rights to use their names. In an air attack, says Air Force Steve, you do one of two things. "Very Good," replied Dostum. Then came September 11. There are twelve Green Berets here and two Air Force forward air controllers. He told them his name was Abdul Hamid. "Excellent." The Horse Soldiers monument in New York City is not based on any one person. The CIA provided intel on which ethnic leaders to work with, including Afghan General Rashid Dostum. Whoever gets the high ground first wins the wars here. From their perch on the east side of the gorge, the Green Berets could shoot directly into the trenches of the Taliban. At its core, 12 Strong is not just a war movie; its a story about learning to respect the differences that separate us but also to embrace the qualities that unite us., Terms of Use He also used to compete in collegiate rodeos. They have been blowing themselves up with grenades. When SFC Bill Bennett invited me over to jointhe teamSCUD hunting before the war he did not like that war. Questioning, sad children. "For all of our teams, the risk was extraordinary," Lt. Gen. John F. Mulholland said. Despite knowledge of the mission being available to the public, it had remained largely unheard of until the book. The 12 Strong true story reveals that they finally left Kentucky on October 5, 2001. Three hours later, I am awakened by a massive explosion a few yards from the houseanother near miss by a rocket fired from inside the fort. Headstrong and known to get into fights,was adept at the game of buzkashi, in which horsemen attempt to toss the headless carcass of a calf into a circle. So we haven't even taken the southern part of the country and we're still working with the Northern Alliance. A good reminder for all Americans are the scenes portraying the oppressive lives the Afghan people were subjected to under Taliban rule. When a local singer wrote a song about Dostum, the name stuck. Because of this, Dostum was forced to flee . Some details of their mission they cant discuss. I looked at Lahl and said, Bombs away. We had 30 seconds till impact; meanwhile, the Afghan horde is screaming down this ridgeline. I get off the horse and say, Screw this; Im walking.. It feels like a scene out of a bad Mexican movie. The heavy shooting, the worried soldiers, the rapid radio chatterall signal that something ugly is going on over there. Yes. I have been to America and know the quality of life they enjoy. While researching to answer the question, "How accurate is 12 Strong?" They moved and attacked mostly at night, riding small, wiry Afghan horses that are well suited to steep slopes and long desert walks. The movie isn't revealing anything new. You raise your flag," Nelson says. At least two Red Cross workers who descend into the bunker are shot and wounded. Prisoners were so hot that they had to lick the sweat off each other one man said. Within hours, they are gone. "There was nothing built up," Mark Nutsch said. With the help of his troops and Muslim counterparts in Afghanistan, he not only captured the strategic city of Mazar-i-Sharif, but also topple the Taliban. We fought with nothing but hope.. Newsweek, The New York Times and other outlets insisted that eyewitness had seen American soldiers laughing and shooting into containers. It took about an hour to get the aircraft. '12 Strong' battles for hearts and minds - Boston Herald The 12 Strong movie has Chris Hemsworth's character (Mark Nutsch in real life) being given the candy-bar-sized piece of metal by Colonel Mulholland. Families back home monitor the news, not wanting to look but more afraid to turn it off. He went on to serve in the US Army, although he did not see combat until the invasion of Afghanistan in 2001. "They were very mature, very family-orientated," Bob Pennington said. A cavalry charge is an amazing thing, Will says. He confesses that he had worried at first how the Americans would handle Afghan warfare: It was cold; the food was bad. The sound of canon firecontinues without a break but at a slower pace. It took a few hours for bombers to arrive from their carriers. Robert Young Pelton, all rights reserved, The scene at the hospital is ugly. It never happened in real life, though Pennington says that he still suffers from back pain from riding the horse. Hemsworth plays Capt. July 22, 2018. The Taliban are running. It is rated R for violence and language throughout. The general gets out of the car and goes down the line, trying to embrace and talk to each person, but it is getting dark. The old men are frail, with deeply lined faces. Bill and the team were wearing armor decorated with my logo when he died. Transfixed, they watch the Christmas tree being lit in Rockefeller Center. We thought he was wounded. And that he became the first Afghan commander to take over a major city when he entered Mazar-e Sharif on November 10. Dostum, portrayed brilliantly by Navid Negahban, comes off as a kind of Obi Wan Kenobi, the ancient-wisdom-dispensing warrior. After days of killing as many Taliban as they could they were accused of murdering prisonersin shipping containers. Yes. A hundred yards away, villagers stand against a long compound. We were ready to throw down the mattress and settle in for the night when one of the security guards came up with a radio and said that Dostum needed someone to go up to the front to call in aircraft. At first, their mission was one of personnel recovery, tasked with rescuing any pilots shot down during the air war in Afghanistan. During the Talibans reign, thousands of Hazara Shias were murdered in northern Afghanistan; the mullahs are unrepentant. How the 'Horse Soldiers' helped liberate Afghanistan from the Taliban Staying off the roads and in the wilds, they could swoop down andattackthe Taliban but could not hold the ground. The tape now shows Dostum, leaning against a mud wall, watching through large binoculars. 12 Strong: Directed by Nicolai Fuglsig. In the last two semi-wars we have been in, every time American soldiers get killed we pull out. Since he cant speak Urdu, he was assigned to the Arab-speaking branch of Ansar (the helpers), a faction that Walker claims is sponsored by Osama bin Ladenwhom Walker says he saw many times in the training camps and on the front lines. ODA 595 followed by ODA 555 were the first two teams to have boots on the ground in Afghanistan following 9/11. They range in age from mid-20s to early 40s. Weve spent years apart from our spouses due to Middle East deployments, and some of us, like me, are now sending our sons and daughters to fight the same war in the same places. General Abdul Rashid Dostum is a man who has rarely been interviewed but has often been typecast as a brutal warlordusually because of his reputation for winning. Now three weeks later the war was supposed to be over. Captain Mitch Nelson (played by Chris Hemsworth) refuses. Instead, 12 Strong simply tells a storya true one. Dostum and his commanders wanted to negotiate, but the foreign Taliban shot and killed their peace envoys, which left Al-liance leaders with little choice. It didnt seem to matter that there was no actual evidence. Down below, small Afghan horses are nipping the dry grass on the safe side of the hill, their riders chatting while awaiting the order to charge. At the end of the Soviet period Dostum had 45,000 troops with about half of them as village reserves. Then the concussion: ka-RUMPH! The pilots, however, could not lock in on the laser-sighting device that the team was using to identify the target. He rose through the ranks quickly becoming a paratrooper in 1973, an armored unit in 1978 and Battalion 734 KhAD by 1983. Since I was a guest of General Dostum it was a little difficult for the men to avoid me. CHRIS HEMSWORTH, left, as Captain Mitch Nelson and NAVID NEGAHBAN as General Dostum in "12 STRONG," (Warner Bros. Pictures) CHRIS HEMSWORTH as Captain Mitch Nelson in "12 STRONG." (David James) Paul here is busy shooting at guys. 21st Century Horse Soldiers - Special Operations Forces and Operation This scandal would tarnish General Dostums very realaccomplishment of being Americas most aggressive and stalwart allyagainst the Taliban and al Qaeda. After four times or so, they didnt get bombed, so they just stayed there. In 2014, General Dostum became Vice President of Afghanistan. Then theres Steve, a well-mannered southern medic; Pete, the burly chaw spitter; Mark, their blond, midwestern captain; and so on. It was indeed as much of a surprise to the real team as it is in the movie. Here, the 12 Strong movie and the true story match up. I am surprised, then, to see Dostum wrap his blue turban around his head and chin and stride into the village . More hits: Tall, fat smoke plumes cast moving shadows on the grass. The team was ordered to exile to meet Donald Rumsfeld and be interviewed by Robin Moore. Military families cant escape the fact that weve now been at war nearly 17 years. It works against tanks, but its plain stupid in this terrain. No. Paul points to a misty, triangular peak that forms one side of the gap. And waited. Their motto is To Free the Oppressedsomething they have done so far in this war with no civilian casualties, no blowback, and no regrets. Some huddle together to watch the gray pillars of smoke from the bombing runs. What '12 Strong' Tells Us about Afghanistan - The National Interest Soldiers run up to the bite in the wall, shoot into the fort, and then scurry back down. They are men with wives, children, mortgages, bills. Theres the erratic chatter of AK-47s and the deep dut dut dut dut of Taliban machine guns. A crude videotape made by one of Dostums men shows a battle in the rolling hills of the Darra-e Suf, where the yellow grass contrasts with the deep blue sky. -The Fayetteville Observer, ODA 595 was an experienced, mature team of Green Berets that had recently worked with special operations forces in Uzbekistan, Afghanistan's northern neighbor. "I need to be back on my team. He wont tell me who to contact, or provide any information that would get him out of the crudely equipped hospital. Then, here is Dostum, says Will, a guy trained in tanks whos using tactics developed in Genghis Khans time.. So we would put in for priority for the planes. The teams primary weapons were not pistols or rifles; they were the most fearsome tools in the American arsenal: F-18s, F-16s, F-14s, and B-52s. Mitch Nelson, a character based on Nutsch. No one individual was the model for the statue. I wondered if they could adapt to these circumstances. At first he is hostile, like a kitten baring its claws. We will never end wars if we dont understand how to win them. All the while, we could see troops moving and disappearing. What else do you expect my enemies to say? he asks. Yes, but the tagline is a bit of an exaggeration. In contrast to the Americans high-tech warfare, some of Dostums tactics would have seemed familiar to the British troops who tried and failed to pacify this region in the 19th century. Captain Nelson was determined to get the mission done in a timely fashion because of the promise he made to his superiors. Almost immediately after the bombs exploded, the horses swept across the objectivethe enemy was so shell-shocked. Outnumbered by enemy fighters 5,000 to 1, the men were also in extreme danger due to the huge bounties placed on their lives by the Taliban. We set up in a bomb crater and used it as our bunker. We transfer him to Dostums house, and the next day hes spirited away at the same time that his story is being broadcast around the world. Robert Young Pelton, all rights reserved. The Regulators final destination turned out to be Uzbekistan, where they spent a week building a tent city and waiting for a mission. He knew that he had to put in his time shuffling papers in order to move up in rank. This part of Afghanistan is ancient, arid, windblownand is the real cradle of its history and wealth. We only had the time it takes 250 horses to travel 1,500 meters, so I told the pilot to step on it, Will says. You felt the air leave. The CIA gave us a briefing. Although the Regulators were among the first, other small teams of U.S. forces would soon be airlifted in for similar missions, a response to Dostums request for American assistance to be sent to other Northern Alliance commanders. I waited for it, that inevitable politicization of our troops presence in Afghanistan, but was happily surprised when it never came. The Afghans shoot from horseback, but there is no aiming in this country. "The threat of capture, torture was very real." The team set up on the roof of a building about 400 meters from the madrasah and called in a strike. Accused of Rape and Torture, Exiled Afghan Vice President Returns I convince the staff to move him to an upstairs bed, where Bill inserts an IV of Hespan into the mans dehydrated body to increase blood circulation. Yes. John Walker Lindh was among those who surrendered in the battle for Mazar-i-Sharif and his story is included in the Horse Soldiers book but not in the movie. Starring Chris Hemsworth, Michael Shannon, Michael Pea, Copyright 2023 HistoryvsHollywood.com, CTF Media, Horse Soldiers Documentary & Related Videos, Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile. The soldiers on the U.S. Special Forces teams were used to state-of-the-art warfare. It was put on display across from Ground Zero in 2012. They sit patiently for hours, clutching tiny pieces of paper, seeking his aid. The moments of shockIs this really happening? First arrival on the Observation Post. The doctors huddle around a steel-drum stove, smiling and talking, oblivious to the pain and suffering around them. Nelson commits to leading 595 into Afghanistan as word of the disastrous terrorist attacks that day breaks. They didnt have enough cloth for shrouds, so they had to bury dead comrades in burqas. When a Marxist government came to power in a bloody coup in 1978, the new regimes radical reforms ignited a guerrilla war with the mujahidin who based themselves in the countrys remote mountain ranges. The idea that that Dostum would actually savethe day for an embattledAmerica is an irony that has not fully played out. We pass the twisted, stripped wrecks of trucks and Toyotas. There were some deep unresolved internal conflicts because of the death of Mike Spann and why they over their protests had been sent to Kunduz. Most of the fallen look as if they were killed instantly. Its like a casting call for The Dirty Dozen. We accepted a huge amount of risk." 12 Strong Best Quotes - 'We're on our own.' - MovieQuotesandMore The Regulators have served in the gulf war, Somalia, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and in other places they cant talk about. "The battle at the end was not depicted accurately," says the real Bob Pennington. Weve all been there. However, at least 3 false starts delayed their deployment for almost a month. (19 Dec 2001) 1. They formed an alliance with Afghan rebels led by Gen. Abdul Rashid Dostum, played by Numan Acar. Up on the parapets, Dostums troops stream toward a gap in the ramparts created yesterday by an errant American 2000 lb bomb. 12 Strong: The Declassified True Story of the Horse Soldiers Rifles, night-vision gear, and boots are strewn everywhere. We are alive thanks to you. As Dostum stands on the porch, looking at the place of his birth, he chokes up. But I never travel without a few Mr. Nuri has the black look of a Pashtun who has endured a lifetime of war.

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real general dostum and mitch nelson

real general dostum and mitch nelson