i'm not laughing at the germans because sometimes they are placed on nothing with the talent and i don't think deep into the german culture. you don't seem to think there's grandma you it's all that. no time rachel join me for me to get the coolest. german peacekeeping troops on patrol in mali. there's all the info it's the biggest challenge i've ever faced. the troops are still finding their way around. them to outsiders so we're trying to get a grip on the situation in. the midst of i used to some this mission raises serious ethical questions. what are we doing here is this what should we be here and.

put on. the. first lieutenant mathias lena is a platoon leader in mountain infantry company base need bad reichenhall in bavaria in a few weeks he'll head out on his first foreign mission to mali. what i know what we're going to know if anything needs fixing tell me otherwise i'll assume it's ok of course. this and i don't get that gotten used to the idea of foreign deployment and you learn that early on if you're in the military you're probably going to be sent overseas but you never know when or where organ all of us on the ground. and off guard dogs you get your orders and you go where they tell you and. not

tradition of course there are ways to get out of those kinds of missions but generally speaking it's not open to discussions and even. those from the us understand about it. mathias is twenty seven years old he and his wife clara live in munich they got married recently and she's now pregnant mathias and clara grew up in berlin and have known each other since this school days after he graduated from high school mathias signed up for a twelve year hitch in the bundeswehr. he attended officer training school. i mean if i'm you going to that my family was surprised they had no ties at all to the military but even in my high school it was really our usual for anyone to consider military service. hoped in houston at the time i thought the blunders vera would offer me a little adventure and a chance to work outdoors like you've all seen someone that's why i joined the good

sort now he's going on a dangerous mission disincentives this route i'm actually pretty nervous about it some day i'm not worried about his personal safety but these soldiers have to face all kinds of challenges and that can cause a lot of stress including psychological stress subtly say our last few years i kind of i'm concerned about all that stuff but if you join the fun just where you have certain responsibilities i believe that germany is right to take on these kinds of missions i just wish that they wouldn't send my husband to dangerous places but that's how it is. this is all. at the blunders by a combat training center new mag to bug you ten atlanta and his platoon a preparing for their mission which will probably involve counterinsurgency measures.

you've been doing today we're going to simulate a patrol in an operational area. i love go for the gold although this is all our job will be to secure the perimeter and prevent direct or indirect attacks on our camp. oh boy if we're attacked it's important to take cover and establish fire superiority. that's the background any questions. it's. just our platoon is made up of a pretty diverse group of guys and we have to learn to work together in. minutes on kind of the if when we're finished with this training program i want to be sure that my men will be ready for this mission. and when you come. along the this situation will be new for me and that creates

a certain amount of tension. it's also new for most of these men. when it's their first real mission in a conflict zone specifically molly. if you only see it's one. of . the soldiers have no idea what's going to happen june is exercise. this ahmed vehicle is about to hit an i.e.d. o.b.b. track. to your i.e.d. on to gather three this is full should we close the road or keep going. on this is very close the road where you are. lying delta told one knock. this is true but i've got two wounded here one with birds you still own shares on america. officers monitor and evaluate the

exercise now the wounded are being brought to safety and then you have the consequence of these exercises you just rely on your training but you don't get emotional about it because it's just practice i haven't experienced the real thing yet but often you don't need as was just a mission. linda has called in a helicopter to transport the wounded to platoon secu is the area and blocks off the road standard operating procedure but the instructors say that the men stayed too long the painting being called. don't just focus on first date but the entire unit is pinned down near the vehicles and it might be attacked again so leave the kill zone as quickly as possible because especially for us it's just all to carry out the way in just provide covering fire and get as far away from the vehicle as you can so that's it is it has.

lain it is now packing for his mission in mali twelve thousand u.n. peacekeeping troops are already there the german soldiers will receive extra hot shit pay so what is our vice on it looks like we'll have just two minutes a day to take a shower i can do that before i go to bed well that was involved. and . it's always been the best i think i weigh about one hundred twenty kilos with the body armor and all the other combat here you could do without it i weighed ninety three kilos or something like that being right. then unsponsored i'm twenty seven years old i've trained forty one men to the point where i feel comfortable serving with them on a mission for four months and we're headed for a conflict zone at the core people can be killed. that's something you could never

imagine happening in germany. and how do i deal with all of this expensive equipment. it's all on my shoulders. lieutenant laina the miracle worker. this is the bond has been a transport facility at cologne born airport after almost a year of planning training and practice your ten and eleven and his unit a starting the first overseas mission. to the north of me to call i've known for some time what i'm getting into and now we're underway we've trained for this and i'd say that i'm pretty relaxed right now that missions goes from one .

lane and his men will be in mali for at least four months. this is the city of galle in northern mali about ninety thousand people live here a rich mix of ethnic groups tribes and religions in two thousand and twelve two are agreeable as an islamist fighters occupied the city the rebels like to declared the region's independence from the rest of the country. in twenty thirteen the united nations sent peacekeeping troops to the region today more than fifteen thousand soldiers from nearly fifty countries the serving there about a thousand german troops stationed at camp cast a navy airfield on the outskirts of gal.

you can get used to just about anything but it's still stressful. and there are more pleasant things to do than working outside all day in forty degree heat and then spending the evening in a tent with nine or ten other guys. and people are always coming and going and we do guard duty in shifts some of the guys have to get up at four in the morning to do that. so you have to be considerate of the people in your tent. and there's no place here where you can just be by yourself. because. as soon as his unit arrives at the camp they stop preparing for this mission. the moment if you want to meet with the squad leaders today. then the. first thing to morrow morning was you know the right will take care of the stuff on your to do

list so i won't have to deal with it tomorrow or. we'll let the guys rest and get ready. and where they're going to be with. the new troops the set to head out on the first patrol tomorrow when they're off duty the soldiers are not allowed to leave the camp because of the threat of insurgent attacks. this mission requires a sense of duty. there's no room for emotion here if you don't feel like carrying out a particular order you can't just refuse if you have to do it and do it well because that's part of the job. can be frustrating sometimes but you just have to deal with it until. the officer who linda is replacing gives him a status update including local insurgent activity lane and his unit will serve as a quick reaction force. the short. of the critical you are after is like

a fire brigade if a dangerous situation develops somewhere it's. our job to respond to it once again was maybe too good anything can happen and we have to be prepared to move out quickly and deal with it. and that's what i've done this. if someone needs help they call us you know. it's time for reconnaissance patrol. on the van out with imo we're going to drive around the city so that we can get a general idea of the layout might be the one off we don't you know we're going to call both. cities a little more as evidence you know it's not unusual to see someone walking around

with a gun but you never know which side they're on. there are a lot of dangers that you just can't see the threat of attack is always there. on the other hand some of the local residents wave at us especially the kids going off and on and that's a positive development that was due to. the patrol of arrives at an observation post and gets a briefing on the situation it. was with a what about that checkpoint at a farm gate so this area is controlled by five of the mali and government troops. there some hesco barriers there a member got a machine gun and then the guys spend most of the day just lying around in the shi'ite. montes military doesn't have the troops all of the equipment to provide proper security in this part of the country that's why the u.n.

peacekeepers are here. meanwhile in munich clara has been taking her lower exams and she's well along in her pregnancy. the type of your plans are time goes by slowly but i've got a lot going on right now i'm taking my exams when i'm pregnant with our first child and of course i really miss my husband but he and i are a team and we both have different things to take care of. and off the eyes of a guy that i was up and still i miss having him here to take over some of the work . or to just give me a hug. or to live as part. mathias sends a text message he wants to know how she is and she writes a little about his mission it's not easy i also miss him doesn't provide a lot of detail because he doesn't want me to worry but i'm especially concerned that he might develop psychological problems that could happen if they were

actually involved in combat but there's going to be a lot of stress until he comes back. and then if the first few weeks months i'll see whether he's changed and if so. does he also at least on the con. if it's ok i would prefer to be with my wife is at home alone and pregnant that's all she's in a tough position and that just breaks my heart and i don't like to think about the fact that i had to leave her by herself at this difficult time. plain as unit has been here for three months now working the story was going to vary with nothing as i thought another day of doing nothing i suppose i could work out but tonight i just want to relax a little. bit but suddenly it's time to go to work i don't have to push to the spot and you will become bought. a bottle out of the much of the bottle

because i. don't. delta is lieutenant lin his call sign in radio traffic. they're going to tell to all units moved out of the idea they did and of. course has come in that there's a cache of explosives hidden on a road north of gal this represents a danger to soldiers and civilians elaina's platoon is ordered to find secure and defuse the explosives they'll be accompanied by a munitions disposal team from cambodia. i've dated a lot of the altar to all units situation report we're going to get new coordinates from the cambodians. i'll get them to you shortly right now we're just a little north of those new coordinates. is the only going over we still don't know exactly what we're dealing with so we've set up

a large security perimeter because of the nature of the terrain. the cambodians are sweeping the area right now. they have a wide area to cover up in the primary not popovic over. the cambodian troops use metal detectors to look for mines unexploded ordinance and they'll be traps any mistakes can be deadly. but there were a lot of men passed the status report along to the joint operations command line and the phone towers and the sweep turned up nothing so the cambodians are going to call off the search dogs ablation sometimes a mission just doesn't work out so we can do it. from time to time i ask myself what are we actually doing here should we be here at all. what makes us different from guys who are just looking for a little excitement. in view but i'll be better than guys who drive around in the

desert falls where they could be killed by an i.e.d. or stung by a scorpion. the names for. clara keeps hearing media reports about attacks in mali that caused casualties but she tries to lead a normal life and in front of her friends she puts on a bright face. oh how it's done if the u.n. troops are involved in the fighting my husband can tell me about it anyway and i worry that one day the door bell will ring and someone in uniform will be standing there that kind of fear just paralyzes you the others didn't talk. the. in this training exercise an armored vehicle has hit a baby trap. the driver is seriously wounded and his unit provides

first aid get the more free and much better i think response can mean the difference between life and death all the statistic all said the statistics show that the mortality rate is highest during the first hour of the. that's why it's so important to treat the wounded as quickly as possible. even jaring a training exercise like this the troops try to make that sixty minute stand to rescue helicopters take off from camp caster with doctors and paramedics on board. yet all along with few more dates now nine thirty seven. if they still need twenty minutes they're behind schedule but there must've been some communication problems that's definitely too long. the rescue helicopter arrived just in time

the wounded soldier is put on board in the end things turned out ok. young wasn't going to thank god we haven't had to deal with the real thing yet when it's like you don't think about the fact that it could happen at any time because it will soon come to. give you know nobody wants to take a human life without good reason but we're here to carry out our mission and to do that we have to be properly prepared. and. i'm fully aware of the fact that under extreme circumstances i may have to kill someone or order my men to kill us. but we will only do so when it's absolutely necessary. and this. is. the un peacekeepers are trying to stabilize the political situation in mali and to

protect its people. all this village has a small community center a school and a mosque today we're going to meet the village elder. it's about five hundred meters from here. but even a short man. march without an armored vehicle for protection is dangerous in this part of the country. the village called the tal is located about an hour's drive north of gal. but in. the lobby of. this visit is part of lieutenant lynas ethen to learn more about the local residents there's a. new story. about the give them life public. good but the little during these meetings you tenant always tries to be friendly. to the

village elders is pleased that the german troops are here. we smile we have a lot of problems in mali and the un peacekeepers are helping us to solve them they should stay here if they believe things could get difficult again. these personal contacts with local residents showed the german soldiers that their mission is important. it's not just sitting around in the desert for days on end. almost five months have passed now since lennon and his men arrived in mali. they spent weeks touring reconnaissance patrols in support work but they never fired a shot. and now it's time to return to germany. back home critics have complained that the mission in mali has not achieved much

they say that germany has no business sending troops here. but these soldiers are he had to carry out their orders even if they didn't agree with some of them. some of our orders were nonsense in fact a lot of them were we all wondered what we were doing here i certainly did because of still every single one of you did your damn job and you did it well. on the gulf. news. and now after one hundred forty one days in mali lieutenant linna is on his way back to germany. because if you start a cycle i can definitely say that this mission to change me is that i can't say how just yet. i think i'll find out only after i get home and start interacting with people again that's going to start especially as all that.

and it's two months later mathias clara and their infant daughter have moved from munich to bad russian hol a mountain infantry brigade is stationed near the town. to fly i was lucky because i didn't become depressed after our mission what it was for i love being with my daughter but a new baby is a real challenge. i don't have time to think about anything else. and this. good job well done. this law will as. i think he's a lot more coming relaxed than he used to be. especially in stressful situations. in as what he wants now and how to get it i think that he's learned what's

important to him in life this is where and who comes to mr. sinclair to night is to know there will be more missions probably in mali again for sure but i have new responsibilities now because i have a family i can't think about the military all the time. it was but someone has to sign up for those missions. i think it's important to make a contribution to society it doesn't matter whether it's working in a nursing home for the elderly or picking up the garbage every day. for meals and my contribution to society is military service. and i'm convinced that it's an important one and bosses in the published.

the parliamentary mandate for the bundesbank mission to mali is jus to expire in may twenty ninth the book is titled to side with the turin year which.

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sarno just couldn't get this song out of his head. the musicologist began searching for the source of these captivating sounds. and found that deep in the rain forest in central africa. the body aka. and. nothing else. and let's look really evil because. the anyone. living. he was so fascinated by their culture that he stayed was. only a promise to. the jungle and return to the concrete and glass jungle but. the result reverse culture shock.

the prize winning documentary song from the forest starts april first on t.w. . a city in ruins maro a. symbol of a long conflict in the philippines between the muslims and the christian population . and structures occupied the city center in two thousand and seven team president to church's response was brutal. by the terrorists will never gain a foothold in. the ring conquest turned into tragedy this is not the kind of freedom that we want how did morality become a gateway to islamist terror. an exclusive report from a destroyed city. for. in the sights of fire starts april eleventh on t w.

this is d w news live from berlin the death toll in the christ church mosque shootings rises to fifty. zero new zealanders mourn the victims of the country's worst ever terrorist attack while the government promises police protection from mosques and tougher gun laws the resident of christ church struggled to come to terms with what has to.