A former U.S soldier and Afghan native returned to Afghanistan and risked his life to rescue around 30 people. The soldier, a former staff sergeant who fought in the war in Afghanistan went to neighboring Pakistan a month ago and illegally crossed into Afghanistan in order to rescue his family who were being targeted by the Taliban for their connection to the veteran and for their work against the Taliban.
The veteran said to Fox News, “”I’m a proud American soldier. I’ve taken an oath, and I’ll never forget that oath.” He is staying anonymous to protect himself and his family. Along with family members and Christan refugees he has also rescued Hazaras, a Persian minority from Central Afghanistan that has been persecuted by the Taliban. One rescue that he is very proud of is a couple that recently converted to Catholicism, and when word got out about their conversion, they immediately became a target of the Taliban, “Everyone in their neighborhood knew about it, and they started snitching on them.”
On his rescue mission, he was caught by the Taliban and lashed, “On my way back from this area, I got caught by the Taliban, and they lashed me on my back, I think it was only seven times, but had they known that I had actually just helped a Catholic family get out, it would have been worse. Far worse.” He also spoke about the problems getting his family and other Taliban targets evacuated safely and efficiently, as they had to avoid Taliban checkpoints in order to get to Pakistan. He has implored governments such as the United States for assistance but has not heard anything, “I pleaded for help from the U.S. government. I did not receive any.” The Taliban has been targeting his family as his niece is a journalist and an outspoken critic of the Taliban, and his niece has been sick since the Taliban attacked them.
Photo Cred: Jalil Rezayee/EPA, via Shutterstock
