Commonly referred to as a shoulder patch or unit patch, the Shoulder Sleeve Insignia worn by U.S. Army personnel assigned to Combined Joint Interagency Task Force 435 was approved for wear on 26 April 2012.
The three vertical bars in the insignia’s chief (upper third) are the colors of the Afghanistan National Flag and symbolized the democracy being formed in the nation at the time. Three gold stars, one in each of the bars, denote the partnership between U.S. Forces-Afghanistan, the Afghan National Army, and the Afghan National Security Forces and their command status.
Snow-peaked mountaintops below the bars stand for the Hindu Kush, a mountain range west of the Himalayas that runs through central and western Afghanistan that is a symbol of Afghanistan sovereignty. A crossed sword and key signify the command and control that will ensure security for Afghan citizens both in the present and the future. Surmounted on the key and sword is a scale of justice, an emblem that reflects the growth of the judicial system in the country.
Combined Joint Interagency Task Force 435 (CJITF 435) was preceded by Joint Task Force 435, established by the Secretary of Defense on 18 September 2009 with a mandate to assume the command, control, management, and responsibility for all detainee operations being performed by U.S. forces in Afghanistan. It became operation in January 2010, and on 1 September 2010 JTF 435 was redesignated as CJITF 435.
The Task Force’s mission was to train, assist, and advise the justice sector of the Afghan National Security system, ensure that third-country Law of Armed Conflict detainees received humane care, and prepare the Afghan government for the successful execution of the Resolute Support Mission, a noncombat mission intended to advise and Afghan security forces to provide long-term security to the country. "Justice For Afghanistan" was the CJITF 435 motto.
While the CJITF 435 ceased operations in October 2014, the Resolute Support Mission continued until it was formally disbanded on 12 July 2021, due in no small part to NATO’s decision on 1 May 2021 to drawdown troops deployed in its support.