Incredible images of US soldiers crammed into plane on way to Afghanistan
CRAMMED tightly into a military plane, these US soldiers are on their way to Afghanistan.
The men, pictured here at the US transit centre at Manas airbase near Bishkek, are heading to Afghanistan for military service.
The photographs depict the men laughing and joking with one another before their deployment in Afghanistan, where dozens of U.S. servicemen die each month.
U.S. servicemen sit after boarding a transport plane at the U.S. transit center at Manas airbase
U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said on yesterday it was important for NATO-led forces to continue implementing their strategy to end the conflict in Afghanistan despite growing signs of public fatigue after 10 years of war.
He said: "We have to operate based on what we believe is the best strategy to achieve the mission that we are embarked on.
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And the mission here is to safeguard our country by ensuring that the Taliban and al Qaeda never again find safe haven in Afghanistan."
Soldiers board the plane
His remarks came a day after a mew public opinion poll, by the New York Times revealed that more than two-thirds of Americans believe the United States should no longer be fighting in Afghanistan with 68 percent saying the fighting was going "very badly" or "somewhat badly."
Soldiers laugh and joke as they prepare to take off