Original U.S. Military Afghanistan Visual Language Survival Guide, Kwikpoint, Afghanistan, 2004

Original U.S. military-issued Afghanistan Visual Language Survival Guide produced by Kwikpoint and GAIA Communications for deployed service members. 

Title: Afghanistan Visual Language Survival Guide

Leaflet Number: N/A

Operation: N/A

Conflict / War: War in Afghanistan

Year: 2004

Country / Theater: Afghanistan

Language(s): English, Pashto, Dari, and Farsi

Format: Original laminated fold-out visual language survival guide, multi-panel, double-sided

Publisher / Producer: Kwikpoint and GAIA Communications

Associated Command: United States Joint Forces Command, shown by the USJFCOM emblem on the cover

Provenance: N/A

Translation / Content:
The guide uses labeled pictorial panels rather than a continuous text message. Sections include regional maps, suspect identification, vehicles, weapons, ambush scenarios, booby traps and caches, destruction and vehicle stop procedures, surrender instructions, strip search procedures, basic phrases, and useful command-and-control words. The back panel includes Pashto phonetic phrases such as “stop,” “surrender,” “drop your weapons,” “hands up,” “do you speak English?,” “do not resist,” “move slowly,” “form a line,” “lie on stomach,” “turnaround,” “no talking,” “speak slowly,” “calm down,” and “we are Americans.”

Imagery: The guide is composed of color-coded instructional panels with simplified illustrations. It includes regional maps of Afghanistan and surrounding countries, visual identification charts for height, age, weight, eye color, skin color, hair color, facial hair, clothing, vehicles, weapons, and military activity. Other panels show how to identify ambush positions, explosive devices, trip wires, caches, concealment sites, vehicle stops, and surrender procedures. The imagery is designed for pointing, recognition, and communication across language barriers.

Objective: To provide deployed U.S. personnel with a rapid, visual communication tool for interaction with Afghan civilians, detainees, suspects, and prisoners where shared language may be limited. The guide supports identification, questioning, surrender management, threat recognition, and basic humanitarian or command communication without requiring full language training.

Condition: Very good condition. Laminated surfaces remain bright, clean, and legible, with visible fold lines, light surface wear, and minor handling marks from use. The guide remains complete and readable across the visible panels.

Exhibited in Khajistan: Office of War Information (O.W.I.) at Pioneer Works, New York, May 08 – Aug 09, 2026.