In October 2001, the most militarily advanced nation on Earth came into conflict with one of its least developed nations as American forces poured into Afghanistan. The tip of the spear, the sharpest of the attacks, were drawn from the U.S. Special Forces community, and largely from the units of the United States Army Special Forces--the famous Green Berets--who, together with the Special Activities Division and the Afghan Northern Alliance, overthrew the Taliban in a lightning campaign that redefined modern warfare.

This new study reveals the grueling Green Beret training and preparation, the specialized equipment they used in the field, and traces their deployment throughout the campaign: from the first arrival of forces to the fall of Kabul and Kandahar; from the Taliban uprising at the notorious Fort of Warin Mazar-e-Sharif to the clearance of Tora Bora and Operation Anaconda in the Shah-i-Kot Valley.