” We cant breathe here. The Taliban have no mercy on us,” Ayoubi said.
Shirzad said he has no concept what he did wrong and never received a description for his termination. His visa rejection letter from the United States Embassy mentioned “absence of faithful and valuable service.”.
Shirzad said he was thrilled to work with the Americans, and became a lead intermediary between US and Afghan Special Forces. One recommendation letter for the visa, from a United States leader, explained how Shirzad participated in 63 “high-risk direct action fight objectives” and was “crucial” to the success of his groups operations. It detailed how he helped the recovery of a staff member who was captured in a blast and left with harmful injuries.
The dad of 3 said his agreement with the US armed force was terminated in 2014 after he also stopped working a polygraph test. He had obtained his visa the year before.
Pardis pal and co-worker Ayoubi said he also failed a polygraph test and was ended regardless of being awarded a medal for assisting to conserve an American sergeant who stepped on a bomb. Like Shirzad, he feels he was unfairly release and said his possibility to move his household to security has been dashed.
Simply days before, Pardis had actually confided to his pal that he was receiving death threats from the Taliban, who had found he had actually worked as a translator for the United States Army for 16 months during the 20-year-long conflict.
Shirzad said he was thrilled to work with the Americans, and ended up being a lead intermediary in between United States and Afghan Special Forces. My other half and childrens future are in danger,” she said.
Formerly, the Biden administration stated it was in talks with a number of nations to act as safe havens till the US can complete the long visa procedure, a clear indication the federal government is aware of the looming hazard postured by the Taliban.
Snuggling their youngest kid, his partner said they are horrified of being captured by the Taliban.
” If they catch me theyre going to kill me, kill my kids and my partner too. Its repayment time for them you know,” he said.
” Our message to those females and men is clear: There is a house for you in the United States, if you so choose and we will stand with you, simply as you stood with us,” Biden stated.
Villagers who witnessed the incident informed the Red Crescent the Taliban shot his automobile prior to it swerved and stopped. They then dragged Pardis out of the lorry and beheaded him.
However Afghans who have actually been declined say they feel America has abandoned them.
” We kindly ask for President Biden to save us. We assisted you and you have to help us.”.
Pardis left behind a 9-year-old daughter whose future is now uncertain. Shes being looked after by his bro, Najibulla Sahak, who told CNN they had to leave their house in Kabul for their security, fearing they would be targeted next.
The translators and those spoken with in the story accepted be called because they believe their identities are already understood to Taliban and are actively being hunted. They feel global direct exposure is their last and just alternative to avoid being killed.
CNN reached out to the United States Department of Defense which directed concerns about making use of polygraphs and visa process to the State Department.
It was supposed to be a happy event taken pleasure in with family. However throughout the five-hour journey on May 12, as Pardis, 32, drove through a stretch of desert, his car was blocked at a checkpoint by Taliban militants.
Sohail Pardis was driving from his home in Afghanistans capital Kabul to close-by Khost province to get his sis for the upcoming Eid holiday celebrations to mark completion of Ramadan.
Those who spoke to CNN stated their lives are now under risk as the Taliban launch revenge attacks following the United States withdrawal from Afghanistan. At the height of the war, there had to do with 100,000 United States troops in the nation, as part of a NATO force.
On July 8, US President Joe Biden pledged to evacuate Afghan interpreters and their families who have worked along with American troops in Afghanistan.
Around 18,000 Afghans who worked for the United States military have actually obtained a Special Immigrant Visa program that would enable them to go to the United States.
” Im so worried about the safety of my family. Theres very little operate in this nation, and the security circumstance is very bad,” he said.
Speaking from his brothers gravesite, on a barren hillside among flags, rocks, and tumbleweeds, Sahak said they are not safe.
Kabul, Afghanistan
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In a statement provided in June, the Taliban stated it would not hurt those who worked along with foreign forces. A Taliban spokesperson told CNN that they were attempting to confirm the information of the occurrence but said some incidents are not what they are represented to be.
” I thought we would have a stunning Afghanistan. We never ever thought about this scenario like now,” he said.
There are numerous Afghan translators who had their agreements terminated for what they state was as unfair cause. And while the United States government said it wont be reviewing those cases, the translators CNN spoke with fear if they remain in Afghanistan they will suffer the very same fate as Pardis.
Family Handout.
Sohail Pardis, an Afghan translator who worked for the United States Army, was eliminated by the Taliban in May.
He showed CNN photographs of his time on missions in the Kejran Valley in Uruzgan province dealing with the United States Navys SEAL Team 10. However according to Shirzad, his service has actually now totaled up to a death sentence. The United States government declined his Special Immigrant Visa, and he stated thats made him a target for the Taliban.
The United States Embassy representative said visa records are confidential under United States law, therefore, they could not talk about the information of private visa cases. All visa applications are adjudicated on a case-by-case basis, they stated.
” Were still examining possibilities for abroad areas to consist of some department setups that would can supporting prepared moving efforts with proper short-lived residences and supporting infrastructure,” Kirby stated.
” We have long said we are dedicated to supporting those who have assisted US military and other federal government workers perform their tasks, often at excellent individual danger to themselves and their families,” the representative stated.
An US Embassy representative in Kabul said they were “actively dealing with every possible contingency to make certain that we can assist those who have assisted us.”.
Shirzad can not go back to his home province and moves locations with his family on a monthly basis.
” They were telling him you are a spy for the Americans, you are the eyes of the Americans and you are infidel, and we will eliminate you and your household,” his friend and colleague Abdulhaq Ayoubi told CNN.
The screenings were conducted by a contracted business, the translators said, and they took concern with a few of the concerns postured and thought them to not be trustworthy.
As he approached the checkpoint, Pardis put his foot on the accelerator to speed through. He was not seen alive once again.
” If we had peace in Afghanistan, if I had not served the US military, if the Taliban were not after me, I would never leave my nation,” he stated.
” We are very terrified. My husband and kidss future remain in risk,” she said. “My partner was dealing with them and he put his life in risk and now I want Americans to save my partner from threat.”.
The translators CNN spoke to stated polygraph tests were typically utilized for security clearance to access US bases in Afghanistan. They were also used as part of the screening procedure to apply for the visa, they said. The United States federal government rejected his Special Immigrant Visa, and he stated thats made him a target for the Taliban.
The translators CNN spoke with said polygraph tests were normally utilized for security clearance to access US bases in Afghanistan. They were also utilized as part of the screening process to get the visa, they stated. Pardis was never informed why he stopped working the polygraph.
Pardis was among countless Afghan interpreters who worked for the US military and now deal with persecution by the Taliban, as the group gets control of broader swaths of the country.
Shirzads letters of suggestion from SEAL commanders, seen by CNN, show a translator who went above and beyond duty. They describe him as a “valuable and required asset” who “braved enemy fire” and “certainly saved the lives of Americans and Afghans alike.”.
” To be clear, our embassy in Kabul will continue to operate after our forces draw down. SIV processing will continue, including for those people who stay in Afghanistan, and we will continue to rise resources to process applications to the fullest extent possible.”.
The vetting procedure for visas is lengthy and complicated, and every candidate is evaluated on whether they pose a danger to US national security, according to the SIV Program Quarterly report. There are likewise many reasons that visa applications are turned down, including those who dont certify due to the nature of their work or not having sufficient time in the task.
After 16 months working for the US, Pardis was terminated in 2012 after stopping working a regular polygraph, or lie detector, test. He was looking for an escape of Afghanistan however didnt receive the Special Immigrant Visa due to the fact that of his termination, his friend Ayoubi said.
On July 14, the White House said it was releasing, “Operation Allies Refuge,” an effort to transfer the countless Afghan translators and interpreters who worked for the US and whose lives are now at risk. The evacuation will start in the last week of July for Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) applicants currently in the pipeline, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said in an instruction.
Pentagon spokesperson John Kirby said on Wednesday that the Defense Department “is thinking about options” where Afghan nationals and their households could potentially go.
Abdul Rashid Shirzad is among them. He served for 5 years as a linguist working alongside Americas military elite, translating for United States Special Forces.