WHEN I LAST reported on the Gurkhas, the elite Nepalese warriors in the service of the British army, there was much anticipation that they would be unleashed on the Taliban. After all, about 150 Gurkhas happened to be in nearby Oman performing joint military exercises at the time of the September 11 attacks, and many of them were eager to do battle: “The attack on America was very sad and many lives were lost. It was terrible to watch on television. So I would love to go to Afghanistan to fight,” said one. “From what I have read, the Taliban are bad people, so the fight would be very just. I would even ask to go first,” said another.

So how did they do? Did the Gurkhas storm the Hindu Kush, run into dark caves with guns blazing, kukri knives flying through the air, beheading members of al Qaeda? Well, no, not exactly. As it turns out, they were never even deployed.