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It isn't every day that I get to add something obscure to the collection, but today two items arrived that I consider to be in that category.
I'm sure some of you saw these for sale on Ebay. I was the only bidder on both items and I think that may have been because people didn't know what they were
From what I understand, the toy Afghan Commando soldier and the stocking cap/toboggan were items that were given out to civilians by the Afghan Commando AIDO (Afghan Information Dissemination Operations) as a way to ingratiate themselves into the hearts of the local populace. It was a type of "hearts and minds" campaign.
From what I understand, the toy soldier was given out to children in order to promote a positive image of the Afghan Commandos to them. The soldier has a large Afghan Commando patch on the left sleeve, a Commando knife on the belt, and an M4 carbine (somewhat stylized). It is also wearing the maroon beret of the Commandos. I have seen one other of the Afghan Commando toys and it was at Ft. Bragg and was not for sale at the time.
The stocking cap/toboggan has direct embroidery on it and has the station number of the local AIDO run Commando Radio in Kabul.
Here is an article about the Commando Radio:
Link: https://www.dvidshub.net/news/55842/promoting-truth-with-commando-radio
Here is an article about the Afghan Commando AIDO program:
Link: https://www.dvidshub.net/news/56006/aido-commandos-ready-inform-afghan-populace
I'm sure some of you saw these for sale on Ebay. I was the only bidder on both items and I think that may have been because people didn't know what they were
From what I understand, the toy Afghan Commando soldier and the stocking cap/toboggan were items that were given out to civilians by the Afghan Commando AIDO (Afghan Information Dissemination Operations) as a way to ingratiate themselves into the hearts of the local populace. It was a type of "hearts and minds" campaign.
From what I understand, the toy soldier was given out to children in order to promote a positive image of the Afghan Commandos to them. The soldier has a large Afghan Commando patch on the left sleeve, a Commando knife on the belt, and an M4 carbine (somewhat stylized). It is also wearing the maroon beret of the Commandos. I have seen one other of the Afghan Commando toys and it was at Ft. Bragg and was not for sale at the time.
The stocking cap/toboggan has direct embroidery on it and has the station number of the local AIDO run Commando Radio in Kabul.
Here is an article about the Commando Radio:
Link: https://www.dvidshub.net/news/55842/promoting-truth-with-commando-radio
Here is an article about the Afghan Commando AIDO program:
Link: https://www.dvidshub.net/news/56006/aido-commandos-ready-inform-afghan-populace
Last edited by Nkomo on Thu Jun 11, 2020 8:48 pm; edited 1 time in total
