Photos

Marines

Two M1A1 Abram tanks overlook and provide security for Marines with Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, as they clear compounds in search of Taliban fighters April 17, 2012. The Marines and sailors with Charlie Company took part in a month long operation where they cleared the Gostan valley of enemy forces.

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Marines with Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, patrol through rough Afghan terrain while searching for enemy combatants, April 17, 2012. The Marines and sailors with Charlie Company took part in a month long operation where they cleared the Gostan valley of enemy forces.

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Marines with Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, prepare to search a village for Taliban fighters in the early morning, April 18, 2012. The Marines and sailors with Charlie Company took part in a month long operation where they cleared the Gostan valley of enemy forces.

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A tank drives by to provide better security for the Marines with Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, as they prepare to search a village for Taliban fighters in the early morning, April 18, 2012. The Marines and sailors with Charlie Co. took part in a month long operation where they cleared the Gostan valley of enemy forces.

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Marines with Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, observe a compound within a village before they search it for enemy forces, April 18, 2012. The Marines and sailors with Charlie Co. took part in a month long operation where they cleared the Gostan valley of enemy forces.

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Petty Officer 3rd Class Matthew Sears, a corpsman with C Company, 1st Battalion, 8th Marines, Regimental Combat Team 6 patrols in Nimruz province, Afghanistan. Before joining the Navy, Sears was a firefighter/EMT in his hometown of Dayton, Ohio.

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Petty Officer 3rd Class Matthew Sears, a corpsman with C Company, 1st Battalion, 8th Marines, Regimental Combat Team 6 sits inside an Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicle. Before joining the Navy, Sears was a firefighter/EMT in his hometown of Dayton, Ohio.

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Petty Officer 3rd Class Matthew Sears, a corpsman with C Company, 1st Battalion, 8th Marines, Regimental Combat Team 6 enjoys some down time while conducting combat operations in the Gostan valley, Nimruz province, Afghanistan. Before joining the Navy, Sears was a firefighter/EMT in his hometown of Dayton, Ohio.

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Petty Officer 3rd Class Matthew Sears, a corpsman with C Company, 1st Battalion, 8th Marines, Regimental Combat Team 6 shakes hands with children who run up to him while patrolling through the Gostan valley, Nimruz province, Afghanistan. Before joining the Navy, Sears was a firefighter/EMT in his hometown of Dayton, Ohio.

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Sgt. Waylon Sliker counts 40-millimeter high-explosive dual-purpose grenade rounds at the 1st Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment ammunition supply point, May 15, 2012. Sliker is the sole ammo technician for 1st Bn., 8th Marines.

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Sgt. Waylon Sliker carries Javelin missiles to the ammunition supply point after they were returned from a recent operation, May 15, 2012. Sliker is responsible for more than $3.2 million in ammunition at Forward Operating Base Whitehouse and dispersed throughout 1st Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment's area of operations.

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Sgt. Waylon Sliker, ammunition technician, 1st Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, searches for insurgents during an indirect fire attack at Forward Operating Base Whitehouse April 10, 2012.

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Petty Officer 3rd Class Eduardo D. Estrada, corpsman, Golf Company, 2nd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, along with two other corpsmen, helped save the life of 1st Lt. Michael Rhoads, a forward observer, who was shot in the torso, April 15, 2012. Estrada, 24, from Tucson, Ariz., stuck three needles into Rhoads to empty blocked space in his chest cavity, helping save his life.

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