( CNN ) -- Military personnel threw away , and ultimately burned , confiscated Bibles that were printed in the two most common Afghan languages amid concern they would be used to try to convert Afghans , a Defense Department spokesman said Tuesday . Afghan workers enter a walkway on March 3 , 2009 , at Bagram Air Base , Afghanistan . The unsolicited Bibles sent by a church in the United States were confiscated about a year ago at Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan because military rules forbid troops of any religion from proselytizing while deployed there , Lt. Col. Mark Wright said . Such religious outreach can endanger American troops and civilians in the devoutly Muslim nation , Wright said . `` The decision was made that it was a 'force protection ' measure to throw them away , because , if they did get out , it could be perceived by Afghans that the U.S. government or the U.S. military was trying to convert Muslims , '' Wright told CNN on Tuesday . Troops at posts in war zones are required to burn their trash , Wright said . The Bibles were written in the languages Pashto and Dari . This decision came to light recently , after the Al Jazeera English network aired video of a group prayer service and chapel sermon that a reporter said suggested U.S. troops were being encouraged to spread Christianity . The military denied that earlier this month , saying much in the video was taken out of context . `` This was irresponsible and dangerous journalism sensationalizing year-old footage of a religious service for U.S. soldiers on a U.S. base and inferring that troops are evangelizing to Afghans , '' Col. Gregory Julian said . The military says a soldier at Bagram received the Bibles and did n't realize he was n't allowed to hand them out . In the Al Jazeera video , which shows the Bibles at the prayer service , an unnamed soldier says members of his church raised money for them . The chaplain later corrected the soldier and confiscated the Bibles , Wright said . Military officers considered sending the Bibles back to the church , he said , but they worried the church would turn around and send them to another organization in Afghanistan -- giving the impression that they had been distributed by the U.S. government . That could lead to violence against troops or U.S. civilians , Wright said . Al Jazeera English , a Qatar-based international news service , said its reporters tried to get a response from military officials for its story but were unable to do so . The U.S. military air base at Bagram is home to thousands of troops from all branches of the U.S. military . The vast majority of the troops do not leave the base and are in various support roles for U.S. troops across Afghanistan . CNN 's Mike Mount at the Pentagon contributed to this report .
Unsolicited Bibles sent by U.S. church were confiscated about a year ago . The Bibles were printed in two most common Afghan languages . Military feared they could be used for proselytizing , which is forbidden to troops . Score: 6