And the Oh, Welcome to another episode of 1001 Heroes, Legends, Histories and Mysteries.

This one titled The Heroes of Cam-Desh, is from our Heroes Series and covers the bloody battle that took place at American

Command Outpost Keating in Afghanistan near the mountain village of Cam Desh on

October 3rd 2009 and the events that led to the bloody confrontation when a force of 300

Taliban assaulted the American combat outpost. The attack was the

bloodiest battle for US forces since the Battle of One Ott in July 2008, which occurred

only 20 miles away from Kamdash.

The attack on COP Keating resulted in 8 Americans killed and 27 wounded whilst the Taliban suffered an estimated 150 killed.

This story is dedicated to all those who stand ready to sacrifice their lives for our freedoms. This is your host, John

Haggadorn, and this is our story. The Allies believe the key to denying the

Taliban and other anti-coalition militia access to supply lines into Pakistan

was to build provincial reconstruction team bases.

The Allies hoped that by extending these bases intostan, one of the most remote and isolated

eastern provinces in Afghanistan, they could demonstrate to the entire Afghan population

the government's credibility and power.

These bases were a key element of the American counterinsurgency strategy.

Colonel John Mick Nicholson, commander of the 3rd Infantry Bombat team of the 10th Mountain Division had observed that

CAM-DAS was located at a point where three of the valley systems from the

Pakistan border in the north converged. Nicholson and officers of his command believed that much of the flow of weapons and

troops from Pakistan could be stopped at Camdesh. The camp was constructed by

3-71 cavalry, 10th Mountain Division, Reconnaissance, Surveillance, and Target Acquisition

in the summer of 2006 and was manned by their able troop element till June 2007. The area had not been occupied by any

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