Media reports on Afghanistan battle 'exaggerated'

Col. Charles "Chip" Preysler, commander of the 173rd Airborne Brigade said his paratroops and their Afghan allies were involved in a fierce attack at a small post near the village of Wanat. But the attack is not a sign of conditions worsening in the country, he said.

The small outpost consisted of protective wire and observation posts surrounding strategically placed vehicles. "That’s all it was, a series of vehicles that went out there," ... "People are saying that it was a full-up combat outpost, and that is absolutely false and not true. There were no walls ... a vehicle patrol base, temporary in nature."

The Army did not "abandon" the 'base' after the attack, as many media reporters have suggested. The decision to move from the location following the attack was to reposition, which his men have done countless times throughout their tour. "If there’s no combat outpost to abandon, there’s no position to abandon,"

He also didn’t like the media’s characterization that his men were "overrun."

"As far as I know, and I know a lot, it was not overrun in any shape, manner or form," an emotional Preysler said. "It was close combat to be sure — as a matter of fact, it was, I think, the bravery of our soldiers reinforcing the hard-pressed observation post, or OP, that turned the tide to defeat the enemy attack."

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