An Afghan sniper working alongside British special forces in the war-ravaged country was chased by the Taliban on Monday and executed in front of his family, according to a former British Army colonel.
The victim, a father of five identified only as the “N” to protect his surviving relatives, was killed after being one of hundreds of Western allies he left during a disastrous evacuation effort.
“He [had] he has been in hiding because of the threat he had to face, ”former British captain Ash Alexander-Cooper, a senior adviser to the Afghan Interior Ministry, told the London Times.
“But they found him and he was shot several times, executed in front of his family,” said Alexander-Cooper, who did eight tours in Afghanistan, including at least one alongside “N.”
The assassinated sniper had been in a “very effective” elite Afghan squadron, known as CF333, which was “guarded by the British,” the former army officer said.
“N” tried to be evacuated from his homeland once the Taliban took power, fearing he would be a “collaborator” target, but he was one of hundreds left behind when U.S. troops left and British, the medium said.
“It was entirely predictable that this would happen to all those who were left behind and received no guidance,” Alexander-Cooper told the UK Times.
He said the assassination shows that the Taliban’s amnesty statements for those who worked against the Islamic fundamentalist group are nothing more than a “fantasy.”
The UK newspaper said an interpreter who was also not evacuated after helping the British army was abducted by a 25-man Taliban squadron and badly abused.
The man, identified as Sharif Karimi, a 31-year-old married father of 31, said he was detained for four days in a small cell with enough oxygen.
He was eventually released because local elders intervened and his family managed to pay a $ 21,500 ransom, according to the report.
The UK Ministry of Defense told the British newspaper that the nation’s “armed forces” were able to evacuate more than 15,000 people from Kabul.
“Unfortunately, we were unable to evacuate everyone in the limited time we had available,” said the department, which insisted that its “commitment to Afghanistan and those who supported our mission there” remain.
“We will continue to work with international partners to ensure that they have a safe passage out of Afghanistan,” the Ministry of Defense added.