It was the squad’s first time in the field together, and these elite soldiers of all nations were building camaraderie.

“Come here, baby,” the Brazilian said to his assault rifle, hoisting it up through the hatch in the roof and aiming it at the horizon for what he and everyone called Les G.A.T.s — the French acronym for Armed Terrorist Group. A Hungarian sergeant held the Brazilian’s leg steady as he got his balance.

Standing in the hatch was the one opportunity in our four-day journey for a little privacy, or what we might now call social distancing. My turn to stick my torso up — while my legs stayed down below — coincided with that of the Nepali soldier, almost totally concealed in desert battle uniform, looking for G.A.T.s through his gun sights.

This soldier, who under the rules of the trip can be identified only as Private Binod, turned out to be a Hindu-Buddhist. He preferred Buddhism, but ate a lot of meat, so didn’t think of himself as a very good follower of Buddha.