Afghan soldiers deliver flood relief supplies

PAKTYA PROVINCE, Afghanistan – Afghan National Army soldiers, acting without U.S. or other coalition involvement, delivered food to flood-affected civilians in Jani Kheyl District, Paktya Province Sept. 3 through 5 in an effort to establish goodwill.

The soldiers delivered enough flour, salt, sugar, oil, beans and tea to feed 856 families of seven for one month, according to the standards of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. Upon receiving the supplies, one of the village elders expressed loyalty to the Afghan government, saying, “These are our ANA, and nothing can happen to them.”

Soldiers of the ANA’s 203rd Thunder Corps conducted the mission using the Chamkani District Center as a logistics hub. The 203rd Thunder Corps religious and cultural affairs team provided the supplies for the mission. Soldiers of 3rd Kandak, 3rd Brigade provided security while those of 5th Kandak, 2nd Brigade provided the transportation support. ANA public affairs personnel accompanied them on the mission and released video and print products to the local media. Coalition forces were not present.

“The mission was very successful and the people [of Jani Kheyl District] showed their support,” said ANA Command Sgt. Maj. Habiibullah Chamkani, command sergeant major of the 203rd Thunder Corps and senior enlisted soldier on the relief mission.

Jani Kheyl District is known to the ANA as a high-risk area for operations because its isolation and mountainous terrain make it rife with organized crime. The people, however, are generally supportive of the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, Chamkani said.
“Jani Kheyl people are really good people,” Chamkani said. “They have shown their support to us [in the ANA]. They encourage their children to join the ANA … They know if there is no government, there is no security.”

The “military support to civilian authority” mission came after a panel of six governmental and non-governmental agencies determined which areas of Afghanistan were hardest hit by the August flooding. There will be four more such missions, which altogether will feed about 4,800 families.

ANA Capt. Roz Mohammad and ANA Maj. Najibullah, both religious and cultural affairs officers for the 203rd Thunder Corps, said the mission demonstrates that GIRoA has the capability to respond to a crisis.

Chamkani said he wanted to emphasize to the other affected Afghans that the ANA would not cease the relief missions while needs remain unmet.

“We will help you, too,” Chamkani said.