Navy SEALs serve as buffer between Afghans and Taliban

An Afghan commando speaks with an elder from the village of Shah Wali Kot in rural Kandahar province. The commandos and U.S. Navy SEALs conducted a mission recently to search for suspected Taliban commanders and explosives.

U.S. Navy SEALs and Afghan commandos are dropped off by helicopter in a remote village in Kandahar shortly after dawn to conduct a search for high-value targets. The SEALs specialize in operating in hostile areas with little or no support.

A SEAL scans the horizon while others establish a security perimeter. Because of the sensitive nature of their missions, the SEALs will not allow their faces to be photographed or their identities revealed.

A Navy SEAL keeps an eye on Afghan men from a remote village, assembled to discuss the possible presence of the Taliban in their midst. SEALs say that many of the men could themselves be Taliban or their sympathizers.

A Navy SEAL looks for the helicopter for extraction after conducting a mission in a remote village in Kandahar province. Even as troops are withdrawn from Afghanistan, SEALs will work with specially trained Afghans to prevent militants from gaining back territory won by the coalition.

Dust from a recently departed helicopter fills the air after U.S. Navy SEALs and Afghan commandos are dropped off on a remote hilltop in Kandahar province. "Nothing is absolute, but we anticipate being here for the long haul," says spokesman Lt. Col. Todd Harrell, emphasizing that a longer-term presence of special operations forces "must first be discussed with the Afghan government."