John Ware

Key decision makers reveal the inside story of how the West was drawn ever deeper into the Afghan war. Reporter John Ware charts the history of a decade of fighting and looks at when the conflict may end.

During the 1980s, Russia fought a disastrous war in Afghanistan. Shot by a Western crew, the 40 minute film includes footage of combat missions with the Spetsnaz elite units, helicopter gunship pilots from a Kabul-based Air Assault Unit flying missions, the patrolling of the Salang mountain pass and the military hospital in Kabul.  Soviet General Lev Serebrov referred to the making of the film as "An experiment in glasnost".

A "dogumentary", made according to Lars von Trier's Dogme rules for documentaries.  Completely unprepared Pål Hollender and his friend-with-a-death-wish, Swedish pop star Olle Ljungström, went to Afghanistan, wrecklessly diving into the tension building up in September 2002, the anniversary of 9/11 approaching. The result is a series of visually strong and intimate scenes from Afghanistan. The disturbing ignorance of the two friends from Sweden is as relevant as the meeting with the Afghan people and their culture.

Afghanistan, immediately post-9/11: Small teams of Green Berets arrive on a series of secret missions to overthrow the Taliban. What happens next is equal parts war origin story and cautionary tale, illuminating the nature and impact of 15 years of constant combat, with unprecedented access to U.S. Special Forces.

The daily life of the citizens of Kabul during the civil war: the bazaar, mosques, the literacy movement awarded honors by UNESCO, women's education, and English school. Scenes of live and self-defense in nearby farm villages. The lives of war orphans. And a new holiday-the anniversary of the revolution, seen in the faces of the 200,000 people gathered to celebrate. This is a document of the only "democratic republic" in the West.

Haji Omar and his three sons belong to the Lakankhel, a Pashtoon tribal group in northeastern Afghanistan. The film focuses on his family: Haji Omar, the patriarch; Anwar, the eldest, his father's favorite, a pastoralist and expert horseman; Jannat Gul, cultivator and ambitious rebel; and Ismail, the youngest, attending school with a view to a job as a government official.

A poignant story about overcoming our demons and finding hope through darkness. Haunted by the affects of PTSD induced by fighting a war, the physical injuries that led to copious amounts of opiates, the emotional strain of his squad leader committing suicide, losing his best friend from overdosing on heroin, all combined with his drug addiction ultimately left Shawn losing all hope in life.

Mark Urban tells the inside story of Britain's fight for Helmand, told with unique access to the generals and frontline troops who were there.

In August 2021, U.S. forces withdrew from Afghanistan and the Taliban were back in power. One group answered the call of duty and volunteered to save our allies. Their effort to rescue one interpreter turned into an evacuation saving thousands of lives.