The 17 Hour Firefight

On April 22, 2007, the most wanted terrorist in the Pech is thought to be hiding in his home village of Shudergay. Answering an intel lead, soldiers of the Second Platoon, C/1/32 10th Mountain Division, head up to investigate. They occupy the village at dawn and unknowingly trap the enemy commander, who frantically begins calling for help on his radio. From all over the Pech, and from across the Pakistani border, insurgents rush to Shudergay to attack the Second Platoon and free their trapped leader. The US soldiers are unaware that the enemy commander is hiding somewhere in the village and are stunned to find the enemy--who typically flee after the first fifteen minutes of combat and certainly before air support arrives--not only staying and fighting but maneuvering on them and aggressively trying to wipe them out. The battle escalates when the Third Platoon attempts to relieve the embattled Second Platoon and are themselves ambushed by insurgents arriving from Pakistan. The 17 Hour firefight results...