MSG Paul Evans, U.S. Army, Afghanistan, Gulf War

Paul Evans joined the U.S. Navy as a young adult but after three years on ships he left the service. A short time later, he enlisted in the U.S. Army. Before long, he was pursuing Army Special Forces. His job as a Green Beret would take him to the Gulf War and later to Afghanistan as one of the renowned "Horse Soldiers" just weeks after 9/11.

In this edition of Veterans Chronicles, Evans tells us what valuable lessons he learned during the Gulf War that he put to good use in later conflicts. he also explains how Operational Detachment Alpha 595 (ODA 595) was going to be dismantled until the 9/11 attacks. Then their experience and skills became extremely valuable.

Evans also shares how their assignment in theater changed twice before they were tasked with helping General Abdul Rashid Dostum push the Taliban out of Mazar-i-Sharif, how ODA 595 was split up to help their new Afghan allies be as effective as possible, and how they called in devastating U.S. airpower against the enemy.

He also takes us inside the fighting leading up to Mazar-i-Sharif and how the Taliban fled, with one notable exception.

Don't miss this inside look at some of the first U.S. action following the worst terrorist attacks in U.S. history.