Embeded with the world´s armies in Afghanistan

Between 2006 and 2009 journalist Nick Allen travelled to Afghanistan to 'embed' himself with soldiers on the front line in the war against the Taliban. He was posted with military units from many countries, including Britain, America, Finland, Sweden, New Zealand, Denmark and Estonia, and spent time with the Royal Gurhka Rifles, the US Marine Corps, the 39th Combat Engineer Regiment and the 506th Airborne of Band of Brothers fame. Embed is an unrivalled first-hand account of military operations from the battlefields of Helmand and Kandahar, to the so-called 'backwaters' of the Afghan conflict. It explores the daily existence of ordinary soldiers from around the world as they face a cunning and fanatical enemy, and their endurance of the drama, tragedy, boredom and farce that characterises war. This eyewitness portrayal of combat operations, reconstruction and daily soldiering life faithfully reproduces the reality of life on the frontline. It also surely helps to answer the question: what is the West doing there?

NICK ALLEN has worked as a journalist for 15 years, including periods as a war correspondent for the German Press Agency dpa in Afghanistan. He has written for many international publications, including The Daily Telegraph, The Guardian, The Scotsman, Der Frankfurter Allgemeine, Der Spiegel magazine, The Moscow Times, and Russian Life magazine. He gave up his secure job with dpa to immerse himself fully in the Afghan conflict. His insight and his images are unique. He lives in Essex.