Hearts and Minds: The Siege of Musa Qala

By Adrian Bean.

In 2006 Musa Qala, a small town in Southern Afghanistan, became the setting for a dramatic siege. British soldiers, starved of supplies, fought to hold the city against relentless Taliban attack. This drama-documentary tells the story from the perspective of the Afghan locals, focusing on a fictional young Taliban recruit.

Rasoul is a 17 year-old Afghan boy who leaves behind his life as a goatherd to join the ranks of the Taliban, in an attempt to emulate the glory of his Soviet-fighting Grandfather. But as the siege of Musa Qala draws on, Rasoul must confront the realities of a bitter and deadly war.

Directed by James Robinson
A BBC Cymru Wales Production

Adrian Bean is a hugely experienced writer and director with credits across TV and Radio Drama. For Radio 4 his credits include dramatisations of Len Deighton's 'Bomber', Robert L Pike's 'Bullitt' and James M Cain's 'The Butterfly'. In 2012 he wrote Radio 4's 'Cry for Me: The Battle of Goose Green' - a re-telling of the Falklands battle from the Argentine perspective.