Shkin, Paktika

Shkin is a scattered village in Gomal District, Paktika Province, Afghanistan located about a kilometer west of the newer, much larger, and border-straddling village and bazaar of Angur Ada. Angur Ada is controlled by the Pakistan Frontier Guards. As with the area immediately to the north, the Barmal Valley, the region is primarily populated by ethnic Pashtuns who share many of the same characteristics of their neighbors in the South Waziristan Tribal Agency of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan.Soil conditions near Shkin are marginal and only allow for limited agricultural seasonal use. Aside from small apple orchards/farms there is only minimal economic activity. The closest competent health care can be found in Wana, Pakistan or Kabul. Ethnic tensions between the Kharotis and Wazirs remain high in this region. Until recently there were no paved roads in this Barmal Valley region. However, with the construction of the firebase, a permanent road from Urgun has made its way all the way to Barmal. The estimated elementary level literacy rate for males in the Barmal Valley is 60% and 10-20% for females in the Bermel Valley. It is an impoverished region even by Afghan standards.The Shkin Firebase was named after this village and was renamed Firebase Lilley to honor Master Sgt. Arthur L. Lilley, a U.S. Special Forces soldier who was killed in a firefight there in 2007. This heavily fortified military base has housed mostly American special operations forces since 2002 and is located just six kilometers from the Pakistani border and resembles the Alamo. It is considered the most dangerous location in Afghanistan.