all forms of government other than a council of elders, viewed the U.S. troops as invaders. This created constant tension between the locals and the U.S. military which prevented significant progress against the Taliban. And so, after years of sustained fighting and casualties, the U.S. military closed Korangal Outpost on April 14, 2010, after which the valley reverted to Taliban control. Forty-two American service men died fighting in the Korangal and hundreds were wounded, primarily between 2006 and 2009. Many Afghan soldiers died there as well. The valley has been dubbed "The Valley of Death" by American forces. British photographer Tim Hetherington won the World Press Photo award for 2008 with a shot he took while reporting on the war in Korangal Valley for Vanity Fair magazine in January 2008. Sebastian Junger's (2010) book War, and the subsequent film Restrepo, document his experiences while embedded with Battle Company, 2nd Battalion, 503rd Infantry, 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team manning the small Outpost Restrepo, named for fallen medic Juan Sebastián Restrepo, in the Korangal Valley. A second film, Korengal, gives a more in depth view into life at Outpost Restrepo. By early 2019, the valley was captured by Islamic State - Khorasan Province affiliated groups, after multiple clashes with Taliban groups present in the area. Clashes are still ongoing between Taliban-affiliated groups and ISKP fighters in the valley. See also Restrepo, 2010 documentary Korengal, 2014 documentary Valleys of Afghanistan Operation Rock Avalanche References Bibliography External links Valleys of Afghanistan Landforms of Kunar Province