Soldier saves cat in Afghanistan
'He pulled me out of one of my darkest times.'
In December 2011, when Staff Sgt. Jesse Knotts was at his base in Afghanistan mourning the loss of two friends who were killed by a suicide bomber, something unexpected arrived to ease his pain: a cat, who suddenly jumped in his lap.
Although Knotts knew pets were not allowed, he couldn’t help but develop a companionship with the feline, whom he named Koshka, which is Russian for "cat."
He didn’t think Koshka was safe living in Afghanistan, so with the help of a brave local interpreter, Knotts got the animal to Kabul, and his parents footed a $3,000 bill to fly Koshka from there to their home in Oregon.
"He pulled me out of one of my darkest times, so I had to pull him out of one of his darkest places," Knotts said.
— Read it at CNN’s Headline News and watch it at Oregon’s KPTV
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Photo: Staff Sgt. Jesse Knotts helped Koshka the cat after the cat helped him / KPTV
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