General: GIs Preserve Afghan Freedom

[NVMojo]

BAGRAM, Afghanistan (AP) -

The top U.S. operational commander in Afghanistan on Saturday told hundreds of troops at a Veterans Day memorial that American forces are preserving freedom from terrorism just as World War II veterans preserved freedom in Europe and Asia.

Maj. Gen. Benjamin Freakley thanked troops gathered at Bagram, the largest U.S. military base in Afghanistan, for pausing to remember veterans who lived and died before them.

"Veteran's Day recalls the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, when hostilities ended in the first World War," he said. "And it gives us hope for our 11th hour and our 11th day, when peace will come to all peoples of the world and our wars will stop."

Some 20,000 U.S. troops are serving in Afghanistan, with about 12,000 of those serving under the NATO flag. At least 288 members of the U.S. military have died in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Uzbekistan as a result of the U.S. invasion in late 2001 to oust the Taliban regime for hosting Osama bin Laden.

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http://www.lasvegassun.com/sunbin/stories/w-asia/2006/nov/11/111103056.html