This handout photo taken on June 27, 2009 and received from US Coalition Forces on July 2, 2009 shows Afghan commandos distributing humanitarian assistance items to villagers during a combined humanitarian aid mission with coalition forces in Gardez district, Paktia province. The Taliban-led insurgency has intensified this year as Afghan and international troops launch operations to clear militants out of hotspots ahead of the August 20 presidential and provincial council elections. Getty Images logo Getty Images 4 months ago

This handout photo taken on June 27, 2009 and received from US Coalition Forces on July 2, 2009 shows Afghan commandos distributing humanitarian assistance items to villagers during a combined humanitarian aid mission with coalition forces in Gardez district, Paktia province. The Taliban-led insurgency has intensified this year as Afghan and international troops launch operations to clear militants out of hotspots ahead of the August 20 presidential and provincial council elections.

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  1. In this photo taken Sept. 11, 2009, Pashtun tribal elder Khaki Jan Zadran, 55, shows his identity card from when he was in the Mujahedeen movement against Soviet forces during an interview with The Associated Press, in Kabul, Afghanistan. Zadran said that he hasn't been able to return to his village in Afghanistan's Paktia province after Taliban-allied gunmen threatened him for his work on the Provincial Council.
  2. In this photo taken Sept. 11, 2009, Pashtun tribal elder Khaki Jan Zadran, 55, gestures during an interview with The Associated Press, in Kabul, Afghanistan. Zadran said that he hasn't been able to return to his village in Afghanistan's Paktia province after Taliban-allied gunmen threatened him for his work on the Provincial Council.

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