In the year 2011, a total of 565 NATO forces stationed in Afghanistan were killed -- down from 711 in 2010 -- marking the largest decline in annual deaths during the decade-long conflict. The large number of NATO soldiers on the ground appears to have made a difference, a fact that worries Afghans as the U.S. and others accelerate their planned pullback. This year, 23,000 U.S. soldiers are scheduled to depart the country, heading toward a full withdrawal by 2014. For now, U.S. troops appear to be focusing on intensive training of Afghan forces and preparing for the logistical challenge of shipping home some $30 billion worth of military gear. Gathered here are images of the people and places involved in this conflict over the past month, as part of an ongoing monthly series on Afghanistan. [42 photos]
Cpl. James Hernandez, a combat engineer with Alpha Company, 9th Engineer Support Battalion, and a native of Goodyear, Arizona, uses an electric saw to dismantle a HESCO barrier at Firebase Saenz, in Helmand province, on December 13, 2011. FB Saenz is the first of several patrol bases being demilitarized by the Marines of 9th ESB throughout the month of December. (USMC/Cpl. Bryan Nygaard)
- 158th Aviation Regiment
- 1st Infantry Regiment
- 335th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron
- 3rd Marine Regiment
- 9th Engineer Support Battalion
- Afghan Border Police
- Afghan National Army
- Afghan National Army
- Afghan Uniformed Police
- Afghanistan
- Afghanistan
- Afghanistan National Army
- Ahmad Jamshid
- Ahmad Masood
- Ahmad Shah Massoud
- Alpha
- Andy Hoyle
- Anja Niedringhaus
- Ann Marie Toebes
- Aref Karimi
- Arizona
- Arlington
- Ashoura
- Asia
- Asia Pacific
- Associated Press
- Aviation Regiment
- Baghban
- Baghlan
- Ben Goff
- Bibi Hava
- Brandy Hoyle
- Britain
- Bryan Nygaard
- Burness Britt
- burning NATO supply oil tankers
- C-17 Globemaster III
- Camp Atterbury Joint Maneuver Training Center
- Cary
- CH-47D
- Chahar Dara
- Charleston
- Charlie Company
- Chinook
- Christmas Day
- Cody Norris
- Daykundi
- Detroit
- Devon Boxa
- Elaine Deamer
- explosive device
- explosive devices
- F-15E Strike Eagle
- Farhad Darya
- First United Methodist Church
- food
- French Culture Center in Kabul
- Funeral services
- Gastonia
- Gelan
- Getty Images
- Ghazni
- Goodyear
- Governor's Office
- Governor\'s Office
- Helmand
- Herat
- Houston Chronicle
- Houston Chronicle
- Hunter Holmes Medical Center
- Husn Banu Ghazanfar
- Imam Hussein
- International Security Assistance Force
- International Security Assistance Force
- Iraq
- Isa Khel
- Jacquelyn Martin
- Jalalabad
- James Hernandez
- Jeanelle Costner
- Joel Saget
- Justin M. Boling
- Kabul
- Kabul
- Kandahar
- Ken Scar
- Kush mountain range
- La Porte
- Levi Hoyle
- Logar
- Lou Sennick
- Marco Mancha
- Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron
- Marine Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Squadron
- Maritza Batallas
- MASSOUD HOSSAINI
- Matt Hecht
- Matthew Leistikow
- Matthew Scotten
- Matthew West
- Mayra Beltran
- metal detector
- Michael Creech
- Michael Norris
- Mike Morris
- Military
- Military of Afghanistan
- Muharram
- Mustang
- Naderkhan hill
- Nathanael Callon
- NATO
- North Atlantic Treaty Organization
- North Carolina
- Omar Sobhani
- Oregon
- Pakistan
- Peter Richards
- Prophet Mohammed
- Pul
- Qasamabad
- Quetta
- Richmond
- Sahar Gul
- San Angelo
- Secret Cinema
- Sesame Street
- Shah Baaz
- SHAH MARAI
- Shoaib
- South Carolina
- supply oil tankers
- Surobi
- Susan Walsh
- Taliban
- Taliban
- Tarana
- Tarana Akbari
- Team
- Terri Norris
- Texas
- The Gaston Gazette
- Thomas Peter
- Travis Beard
- United Nations
- United States
- United States Army
- United States Marine Corps
- United States Navy
- US embassy in Afghanistan
- Vincent Bell
- Virginia
- virtual reality
- War
- War in Afghanistan
- Zachary Fisher