No Worse Enemy : The Inside Story of the Chaotic Struggle for Afghanistan

Informed by over 300 hours of frontline footage with the U.S. Marines, critically acclaimed documentary filmmaker Ben Anderson provides a gripping account of the Afghanistan war in Helmand province.The only journalist to have witnessed every Afghan military campaign under Obama, Anderson charts the progress of the President’s counter-insurgency strategy and shows how it has become a lost cause. Including interviews with military top brass, this book reveals the disturbing chasm between official rhetoric and the reality on the ground. While Afghan civilians doubt American resolve and miss the relative peace under the Taliban, the drug-addled local army is hopelessly unprepared for American handover.Enjoying unrivaled respect from the troops (one marine described him as a “brave motherf\*\*\*er”), Anderson offers the most intimate depiction of the war seen in print. Eating, sleeping, and being shot at with the troops, he witnessed first-hand IED explosions, American casualties, civilian deaths and Taliban soldiers that melt into the local population. The definitive book on the struggle for Helmand, __No Worse Enemy__ is a bold and frightening exposé of the longest war in U.S. history. The most comprehensive and gripping account of the Afghan war, by a BBC journalist. The war in Afghanistan is over ten years old. It has cost countless lives and hundreds of billions of pounds. Politicians talk of progress, but the violence is worse than ever. In this powerful and shocking expos#233; from the front lines in Helmand province, leading journalist and documentary-maker Ben Anderson (HBO, Panorama, and Dispatches) shows just how bad it has got. Detailing battles that last for days, only to be fought again weeks later, Anderson witnesses IED explosions and sniper fire, amid disturbing incompetence and corruption among the Afghan army and police. Also revealing the daily struggle to win over the long-suffering local population, who often express open support for the Taliban, No Worse Enemy is a heartbreaking insight into the chaos at the heart of the region. Raising urgent questions about our supposed achievements and the politicians' desire for a hasty exit, Anderson highlights the vast gulf that exists between what we are told and what is actually happening on the ground. A product of five years' unrivalled access to UK forces and US Marines, this is the most intimate and horrifying account of the Afghan war ever published The most comprehensive and gripping account of the Afghan war, by a BBC journalist. The war in Afghanistan is over ten years old. It has cost countless lives and hundreds of billions of pounds. Politicians talk of progress, but the violence is worse than ever. In this powerful and shocking exposé from the front lines in Helmand province, leading journalist and documentary-maker Ben Anderson (HBO, Panorama, and Dispatches) shows just how bad it has got. Detailing battles that last for days, only to be fought again weeks later, Anderson witnesses IED explosions and sniper fire, amid disturbing incompetence and corruption among the Afghan army and police. Also revealing the daily struggle to win over the long-suffering local population, who often express open support for the Taliban, No Worse Enemy is a heartbreaking insight into the chaos at the heart of the region. Raising urgent questions about our supposed achievements and the politicians' desire for a hasty exit, Anderson highlights the vast gulf that exists between what we are told and what is actually happening on the ground. A product of five years' unrivalled access to UK forces and US Marines, this is the most intimate and horrifying account of the Afghan war ever published. Informed by over 300 hours of frontline footage with the U.S. Marines, critically acclaimed documentary filmmaker Ben Anderson provides a gripping account of the Afghanistan war in Helmand province. The only journalist to have witnessed every Afghan military campaign under Obama, Anderson charts the progress of the President’s counter-insurgency strategy and shows how it has become a lost cause. Including interviews with military top brass, this book reveals the disturbing chasm between official rhetoric and the reality on the ground. While Afghan civilians doubt American resolve and miss the relative peace under the Taliban, the drug-addled local army is hopelessly unprepared for American handover. Enjoying unrivaled respect from the troops (one marine described him as a “brave motherf***er”), Anderson offers the most intimate depiction of the war seen in print. Eating, sleeping, and being shot at with the troops, he witnessed first-hand IED explosions, American casualties, civilian deaths and Taliban soldiers that melt into the local population. The definitive book on the struggle for Helmand, No Worse Enemy is a bold and frightening exposé of the longest war in U.S. history.

The war in Afghanistan is over ten years old. It has cost countless lives and hundreds of billions of pounds. Politicians talk of progress, but the violence is worse than ever.In this powerful and shocking exposé from the front lines in Helmand province, leading journalist and documentary-maker Ben Anderson (HBO, Panorama, and Dispatches) shows just how bad it has got. Detailing battles that last for days, only to be fought again weeks later, Anderson witnesses IED explosions and sniper fire, amid disturbing incompetence and corruption among the Afghan army and police. Also revealing the daily struggle to win over the long-suffering local population, who often express open support for the Taliban, No Worse Enemy is a heartbreaking insight into the chaos at the heart of the region.Raising urgent questions about our supposed achievements and the politicians’ desire for a hasty exit, Anderson highlights the vast gulf that exists between what we are told and what is actually happening on the ground. A product of five years’ unrivalled access to UK forces and US Marines, this is the most intimate and horrifying account of the Afghan war ever published.

The war in Afghanistan is over ten years old. It has cost countless lives and hundreds of billions of pounds. Politicians talk of progress, but the violence is worse than ever. In this powerful and shocking exposE from the front lines in Helmand province, leading journalist and documentary-maker Ben Anderson (HBO, Panorama, and Dispatches) shows just how bad it has got. Detailing battles that last for days, only to be fought again weeks later, Anderson witnesses IED explosions and sniper fire, amid disturbing incompetence and corruption among the Afghan army and police. Also revealing the daily struggle to win over the long-suffering local population, who often express open support for the Taliban, No Worse Enemy is a heartbreaking insight into the chaos at the heart of the region. Raising urgent questions about our supposed achievements and the politicians' desire for a hasty exit, Anderson highlights the vast gulf that exists between what we are told and what is actually happening on the ground. A product of five years' unrivalled access to UK forces and US Marines, this is the most intimate and horrifying account of the Afghan war ever published Critically acclaimed documentary filmmaker Ben Anderson (Panorama and Dispatches) provides a gripping account of the frontline in Helmand province, Afghanistan, and details how it has descended into a quagmire, with ever-increasing levels of violence and confusion. Including interviews with military top brass, from commanding officers to General Petreaus himself, this book reveals the disturbing chasm between official rhetoric and the situation on the ground. Informed by more than 300 hours of firsthand frontline footage with the U.S. Marines, documentary filmmaker Anderson (HBO's "The Battle for Marjah") provides a gripping account of the Afghanistan war in Helmand province. Follows the journalist's experiences in Afghanistan, describing the struggle to combat the Taliban's resistance, rise in civilian attacks, incompetent Afghan forces, increasingly ineffective policies, and unsuccessful peace-keeping efforts The chilling modern classic on the disastrous war in Afghanistan, now available in paperback