Afghan National Army unit checks out Parris Island
PARRIS ISLAND, S.C. - A half-dozen members of the Afghan National Army watched Marine training at Parris Island this week, hoping to bring back home some of what they learned.
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Associated Press
Col. Shamsurahman Shams and five of his fellow officers and noncommissioned officers observed recruits enduring the Crucible on Tuesday, a 54-hour final test where recruits must complete drills together on little sleep and food.
They were most interested in the obstacle course, watching as recruits crawled on their stomachs through the course as speakers boomed background fire noise.
"It's very important for a soldier to get through every obstacle he encounters. If a soldier cannot manage his way through obstacles, he's failed. He cannot be helpful for his country," Shams said through an interpreter.
The Afghan soldiers watched intently as the last lanky recruit attempted to make it over the high wall as two of his comrades waited at the top to help him over.
With some interpretation and many hand gestures, the older, more experienced military men quietly discussed how they would do it.
After a few excruciating minutes, the last recruit finally got a stirrup grip on his fellow recruit and pushed himself over the wall.
"That's good," one of the Afghan National Army soldiers shouted.
Recruits in the Afghan National Army undergo 11-week boot camp but get no training after that. Shams said he hopes to change that when he gets back to Afghanistan.
But Shams said it could be hard, because as soon as his recruits graduate, they are needed to fight al-Qaida.
The Afghan soldiers are on a 14-day trip to the United States. They also have visited Marine Corps headquarters in Quantico, Va., to observe Officer Candidate School and the Noncommissioned Officer Academy, and they visited Camp Lejeune, N.C. see the School of Infantry, training which Marines attend after completing boot camp.
They have also visited the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., and The Citadel.