NBC combat correspondent and weblogger Kevin Sites has returned to Iraq, and posts two new entries to his blog today: "Coming Home," a dispatch about the psychological challenge for soldiers to "turn off the killer switch" as they prepare to return to their families in the US — and a photo essay, excerpted here.
"These families of a rural neighborhood called Albo Eatha, south of Baghdad, were awakened at dawn by the 82nd Airborne's Alpha Company, 2nd Platoon, so their houses could be searched and their cooperation requested in stopping insurgent activities. Despite the early hour, the woman and children seemed cheerful. The imposition became an opportunity for them to socialize — while helicopters and jet fighters flew overhead."
Links: PHOTO ESSAY: Women and Children of Albo Eatha, and DISPATCH: Coming Home. Discussion forum here.
UPDATE: Kevin has just posted a series of new photos to accompany the dispatch "Coming Home." Link.
