The Guards Of Peace On Earth
To really appreciate what Christmas is like for the U.S. troops in Bosnia, you have to remember what went on there.
Christmas away from home is one of the toughest parts of military service no matter where that service takes you. But to spend the season of peace on Earth at the scene of the most brutal events in this half of the twentieth century is hard to take, even for professional soldiers. CBS News Correspondent Jose Diaz-Balart reports.
Camp Dobol, one of the remote U.S. base camps that dot the Bosnian landscape - all mud and fog and military hardware - is no one's first choice as a place to spend Christmas.
"Personally, it's very hard," says Capt. Omar Jones of the U.S. Army. "It's the second Christmas in four years I've been away from home. For many of my younger soldiers, it's the first time they've been away from home for Christmas. That's hard."
| CBS News Video |  |
 U.S. soldiers in Bosnia offer their holiday greetings to family on CBS 'This Morning' |
Capt. Jones is company commander of Delta Company, Second Battalion, 5th United States Cavalry.
"You guys are here for 111 days," Capt. Jones says to his troops. "What has kept us safe for 111 days? What should keep us safe for the remaining time we have in Bosnia?"
"Communication between all the personnel in the convoys, sir," a soldier answers.
"You got it right there," Capt. Jones nods.
 An American soldier surveys a Bosnian town from his armored vehicle. (CBS) |
The patrol travels in tightly-controlled convoys, and security is tight. This is the only way U.S. troops leave the base in Bosnia: armored convoys, two soldiers in a Humvee. The stops along the way allow the men to stretch their legs and remind themselves of what they're doing here.
The convoy's first stop is the Zwornick Dam, site of one of the worst atrocities of the war. The river through here, the story goes, ran red with blood. It's a tough place to be at Christmas time, even for a professional sldier like Capt. Jones.
"The other side of the river is the former Republic of Yugoslavia. That is Serbia," Capt. Jones says, pointing to a gray panorama of water, land, and cottages.
As the troop nears the city of Srebrenica, the landscape is littered with burned-out monuments to a brutal war. The convoy pulls over at what's become a kind of shrine to these soldiers: the site of a mass grave where more than a thousand bodies were buried in a bulldozed pit.
"I drive through here every day," Capt. Jones says. "As I drive to this exact location, I think about the men who were operating that heavy machinery, and I wonder what they were thinking. How do you go back home and have dinner with your family?"
A home destroyed in the war. (CBS) |
For Jones' men, visits to these sites of unspeakable inhumanity sharpen the vision of their mission, their values, and their duty.
When asked what they are accomplishing in Bosnia, the soldiers are certain of their answers.
"Peacekeeping," says Spc. Lup Jacques of the U.S. Army. "Making sure everything's okay, that it doesn't start all over again."
"I want to ensure that these people have a safe place to be, especially the children," says Pfc. James Hopkins. "When you see the kids around here, you really wanna make sure they're okay."
"It's tough being away from home during the holiday season, but you gotta do what you gotta do," says Sgt. Phillip Pforter.
Bosnian children talk to Capt. Jones. (CBS) |
What will they miss most about Christmas at home?
"Home cooking," Pforter says.
"I'm gonna miss the Christmas tree and all the presents underneath it - just the sights and sounds of Christmas," says Hopkins.
But for these men, this year, Christmas will be put on hold. Thoughts of gifts, home cooking, and Christmas trees will have to wait for another time and a better place.
Delta Company stops in Srebrenica every day, reminding this city in Serbian Bosnia that the world is still watching. But the purpose of this patrol is also to win the hearts and minds of the next generation.
For Capt. Jones, who is missing his two sons this Christmas season, the children of Bosnia have become both a kind of proxy, and a symbol of hope.
"It's not the same as being under the tree with your own ids, but for me at least, it reminds me of home," he says. "The kids here are going to be the future of Bosnia and hopefully they can look back on this when they are young adults. . . and remember when the Americans were here, it was a time of peace."
Reported By Jose Diaz-Balart.
Photos By Susan Bean