AFGHANISTAN. Pech Valley, Kunar. Afghanistan. 2007. An Afghan boy in a school in the Pech Valley. American forces have fought in the Pech for much of the war,
and over one hundred soldiers have died there. In February 2011 American forces started withdrawing. An
unnamed American official said, “What we figured out is that people in the Pech really aren’t anti-U.S. or
anti-anything; they just want to be left alone. Our presence is what’s destabilizing the area.” Six months
later, American troops started rebuilding their force in the valley.