In Afghanistan, Marine cheats death by Taliban sniper
Marine Lance Corporal Andrew Koenig is living proof Taliban snipers have been getting more accurate in Afghanistan.World In a gunbattle this week, the 21-year-old from Casper, Wyoming, took a sniper’s bullet square in his forehead as he fought from the roof of a compound seized by U.S. Marines taking part in an offensive targeting the Taliban hotbed of Marjah.
Knocked back by the blow, he felt for blood from what he was sure was a head wound. Nothing.
“(It was) the craziest experience. I don’t think you could get any luckier than that. Total shock. The gear works, this proves it,” Koenig told Reuters, pointing to his dented helmet.
The bullet struck just above the rim of his helmet, dead center. Without the helmet, the shot was sure to have been fatal.
