As I peer through the heavy calibre bullet belt of the door gunner, suddenly lush, green fields appear and then out of this wilderness, sparkling in the sun rises the Helmand river bringing life to this barren land.

BBC: Afghanistan: Landing in the camp

In Beida and other cities, youths who despaired of confronting African mercenaries' heavy-calibre machineguns with stones resorted to dynamite used for catching fish.

ECONOMIST: The liberated east

On Monday, the conservation group issued a warning that a 17 armed individuals, some with heavy-calibre rifles, had entered the park and was heading for the Bai, known locally as the "village of elephants".

BBC: Elephants