Fellow U.S. Marines escort Sgt. Michael Medina-Sanchez to a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter during his medical evacuation in the Nawa district of the Helmand province of Afghanistan Aug. 4, 2009. Medina-Sanchez, assigned to Bravo Company, 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, Regimental Combat Team 3 (-REIN), 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade, Afghanistan, was shot in the finger during a patrol. The Marines are deployed in support of NATO?s International Security Assistance Force to improve security and stability in Afghanistan. (DoD photo by Cpl. Artur Shvartsberg, U.S. Marine Corps/Released)

U.S. Marines with Alpha Company, 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment play cards during their rest period at the company’s forward operating base in the Nawa district of Helmand province, Afghanistan, on Aug. 5, 2009. Marines with 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, Regimental Combat Team 3, 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade, Afghanistan are deployed in support of NATO’s International Security Assistance Force and will participate in counter insurgency operations and the training and mentoring of Afghan security forces. DoD photo by Lance Cpl. Jeremy Harris, U.S. Marine Corps. (Released)

U.S. Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Phillip Elgie (left) teaches Cpl. Kory Christenson video editing at the company’s forward operating base in the Nawa district of Helmand province, Afghanistan, on Aug. 5, 2009. Both Marines are with Alpha Company, 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment. Marines with 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, Regimental Combat Team 3, 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade, Afghanistan are deployed in support of NATO’s International Security Assistance Force and will participate in counter insurgency operations and the training and mentoring of Afghan security forces. DoD photo by Lance Cpl. Jeremy Harris, U.S. Marine Corps. (Released)

U.S. Marines conduct weapons drills to maintain proficiency at a forward operating base in the Nawa district of the Helmand province of Afghanistan Aug. 5, 2009. The Marines, assigned to Alpha Company, 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, Regimental Combat Team 3 (-REIN), 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade - Afghanistan, are deployed in support of NATO’s International Security Assistance Force to improve security and stability in Afghanistan. (DoD photo by Lance Cpl. Jeremy Harris, U.S. Marine Corps/Released)