Hammerhead Six How Green Berets Waged an Unconventional War Against the Taliban to Win in Afghanistan's Deadly Pech Valley

Two years before the action in Lone Survivor, a team of Green Berets conducted a very different, successful mission in Afghanistan's notorious Pech Valley. Led by Captain Ronald Fry, Hammerhead Six applied the principles of unconventional warfare to "win hearts and minds" and fight against the terrorist insurgency.

In 2003, the Special Forces soldiers entered an area later called "the most dangerous place in Afghanistan." Here, where the line between civilians and armed zealots was indistinct, they illustrated the Afghan proverb: "I destroy my enemy by making him my friend." Fry recounts how they were seen as welcome guests rather than invaders. Soon after their deployment ended, the Pech Valley reverted to turmoil. Their success was never replicated. Hammerhead Six finally reveals how cultural respect, hard work (and the occasional machine-gun burst) were more than a match for the Taliban and Al Qaeda.

A third-generation veteran, US Army Captain Ronald Fry served in the 82nd Airborne Division and as a Special Forces team leader in Afghanistan. He has completed the military's Survival School and the Ranger, Pathfinder, Jumpmaster, and Combat Diver trainings. Fry lives with his wife and five children near San Jose and works in sales management.

Tad Tuleja, author of thirty-two books, has taught courses on war and conflict at Harvard, Princeton, Oklahoma, and American University.