there is no goat

by Jennifer Dunham

  One night, Farid and Khazrat, broke down the door to their room, ran through the prison compound, climbed over the compound wall, and escaped. They fled immediately to Afghanistan. Somehow, Farid contacted his family and convinced them to move to Afghanistan, which they did shortly thereafter. Khazrat’s family also moved to Afghanistan and lived not too far from Farid. Unfortunately, this was not the happy ending for these two. Several months later, some unknown assailants shot and killed Khazrat in the middle of the street in his village. Farid assumed they were Taliban members sent to hunt down, and kill, the two of them. Farid happened to be away from the village the day his friend was gunned down and his survivor’s guilt was apparent when he told me this.

  I asked Farid to tell me the moment at which he decided he no longer wanted to be in the Taliban. He explained that, when he was falsely imprisoned by the Taliban, he no longer believed in their crusade or teachings. He realized he had been lied to and manipulated for many years. Despite his devotion to the group, and risking of his life for them, the Taliban betrayed him. This is yet another example of the lack of loyalty throughout the Pashtun culture. Because of Farid’s periodic contact with the outside world (i.e. during his “vacations” from the Taliban compounds), he grew to understand that the foreign military forces in Afghanistan were not there to take over the country. He finally understood that they had good intentions and wanted a peaceful future for his family’s homeland. Unfortunately, his realization came too late.

  Being in the Taliban is analogous to being in a gang like the Crips or Bloods. One does not just walk away from the group unscathed. Farid’s future is probably bleak and I do not expect him to make it very far into his adulthood. I can’t say that bothers me either. He likely has the blood of American soldiers on his hands, at least indirectly. Therefore, I feel little sympathy for him. I do recognize that he was brainwashed at a young age, however his family attempted to guide him down a moral path. He made his own decisions and he has to live, and die, with those. I do, however, give him much credit for having the courage to come to Afghanistan and work for Coalition Forces, helping to locate insurgent members and explosive devices, in order to save American lives.

  In early 2011, a tragic incident occurred in Kunar Province resulting in the death of nine Afghan children. Insurgents in the local area, possibly members of the Taliban, launched several rockets from the steep surrounding mountains at a U.S. military base. In response, the U.S. base commander ordered two attack helicopters to search the nearby mountains for the attackers. The pilots fired upon several persons they thought were insurgents, but who turned out to be local children collecting wood. Although this appears, on the surface, to be a dreadful case of mistaken identity, I suspect it was not merely a coincidental accident. I am confident the Taliban routinely and purposely place women and children in the path of striking U.S. forces, with the intent of fueling the hate held by so many Afghan citizens.

  When such cases of civilian casualties occur, the outrage is immediate and widespread. In this case, demonstrators amassed and protested against the presence of U.S. and NATO forces throughout the country. These demonstrators argued that countless civilian casualties could have been avoided if the U.S. had just stayed home. What they failed to recognize or address was that this particular horrible chain of events began with the offensive rocket strikes, conducted by the insurgents. Without the firing of this artillery at one of our bases, our helicopter pilots would have never left the ground that day and all nine children would have returned home unscathed. Over and over again, I see the place of blame deposited on the wrong group. But, this improper burden of responsibility works in favor of the Taliban and other insurgent groups, as they gain the sympathy of local Afghans.

  The equivalent of an emotional nuclear bomb detonated in Afghanistan, in February of 2012, after my departure from country. All trash on the bases is destroyed by controlled fire and local workers oversee the process, examining the trash bags for contraband and flammable materials, prior to burning it. Local Afghan workers assigned to the “burn pit” at Bagram Air Base noticed several Korans mixed in with the trash. The Koran is the most sacred, respected book in the Islamic religion and the burning of one is strictly prohibited. For a non-Muslim to be involved in the destruction of a Koran(s) is considered particularly disrespectful and offensive. In addition, many Muslims associate the burning of such a religious item with hell and/or the devil.

  Once the discovery of the charred Korans became public, Afghanistan and many other Islamic societies erupted. There were demonstrations worldwide and, within Afghanistan, at least two dozen U.S. and NATO troops were killed. Scores of other soldiers and civilians were wounded in the aftermath, which consisted of rocket and grenade attacks, small arms fire, car bombings and even an attempt to burn down the U.N. building in Kabul. Many called for an immediate departure of U.S. troops from Afghanistan, because of their disrespect for the Muslim religion and culture.

  I imagine many Taliban members sat by, watching the drama unfold, with smiles on their faces. Right before them, without any effort on their behalf, a percentage of the country had just turned its back on the Americans and their allies. However, yet again, the blame was placed in the wrong hands. The U.S. soldiers had meant no disrespect when trying to dispose of the Koran books. Their actions had only been an appropriate response to the fact that inmates within the Bagram detention center were using their “sacred books” to pass extremist messages back and forth to one another. This type of behavior is strictly prohibited within the jail and the books in question were confiscated, as per the very public jailhouse rules. Even more ironic is that Islam expressly prohibits anyone from writing in, or defacing, a Koran and especially does not allow the book to be used to the advantage of insurgents. I found it interesting that these latter facts were only briefly addressed by the media and were not addressed at all by the worldwide protestors. As in the incident with the young children described above, this event, too, never would have occurred if the insurgents in the detention center had not incited the chain of events. Time and time again, I see such episodes misconstrued and misreported, to the advantage of the Taliban and other insurgent groups.

  We can trace this pattern back to even the day the 9/11 attacks occurred. Clearly, these assaults were offensive in nature, launched by Osama bin Laden and his minions, who were harbored in Afghanistan and Pakistan by the Taliban. The U.S. did not instigate the attacks, however the Taliban somehow forget to mention this fact, when spreading propaganda about the “American invaders” or the “Infidel Occupiers”. I could be wrong, but I do not remember U.S. citizens flying planes into high rise buildings in Kabul, killing thousands of innocent men, women and children.

  The same theme held true when Osama bin Laden was killed in Pakistan in 2011. The Taliban and Pakistanis appeared outraged at the fact that we did not inform the Pakistani government of the raid ahead of time. Shouldn’t the outrage have been directed at the fact that the most wanted terrorist in the world managed to live under their noses, undetected, for six years? Clearly not, which leads me to believe the Taliban and Pakistani ISI were well aware of his presence.

  In the fall of 2011, the former President of Afghanistan, Burhanuddin Rabbani, was assassinated. He served as the country’s president from 1992 to 1996, but remained involved in political processes long after his term in office. President Karzai appointed Rabbani as head of a peace negotiation mission between the Afghan government and the Taliban. After his Presidential reign, Rabbani fought with the Northern Alliance, against the Taliban, until they were overthrown in 2001. Despite his loyalty to The Northern Alliance, which allied itself with U.S. forces, Rabbani actually opposed the presence of American and NATO troops in Afghanistan. He felt he, and the Afghan government, could come to a peaceful understanding with the Taliban and other insurgent groups. He believed they could achieve this goal without the help of other nations. Regrettably, his efforts failed in the most ironic way, as he was killed by a
Taliban member attending peace talks under the guise of a negotiator. The negotiator in disguise utilized a head turban which doubled as a bomb.

  It was immediately clear after this attack that the Taliban representatives had no intention of sitting down to discuss a peaceful future for Afghanistan. They manipulated the situation to their advantage, allowing a suicide bomber to be ushered into a secure, protected area. The killing of Rabbani re-built any walls between the two parties that had, albeit deceptively, been disassembled previously. Suddenly, the potential peace process was struck down and any trust that had been built was destroyed.

  My colleagues and I understood the ramifications of Rabbani’s death and the negative effect they would have on the potential for future negotiations with the Taliban. I wondered how many of the locals I interviewed each day would know or understand about the situation. Remarkably, many more than I imagined were aware of the murder and had some concept of the implications the event had for the future of their country. Most men I spoke with expressed sadness and dismay at the death of their former President. I remember one man telling me that the chaos had only begun. He was sure that this was the beginning of a trend and that the Taliban would continue to mislead government officials, as a way to gain access to them and their facilities. In my mind, the trend had started more than a decade prior. This type of deception and murder was nothing new for the Taliban.

  Several other men I spoke with expressed disbelief that Rabbani would allow proclaimed Taliban members into his home. Some called him rash and senseless for this decision that cost him his life. I tended to agree. It is one thing to be optimistic, but another to be recklessly careless.

  I was working late one evening and was at my office alone, when I heard pounding on my front door. I hurried to open it and found a U.S. soldier there, obviously upset. He nearly pushed his way into my office, saying something about working with a Taliban member. I sat him down and asked him to explain what was going on. He proceeded to tell me about an incident he had just experienced, involving one of the local Afghan interpreters who worked with him. He had known the interpreter for several months and never had any problems with him, until that night.

  The interpreter went by an American nickname, to hide his identity when out on patrol with his assigned U.S. military unit, and to make it easier for the Americans to communicate with him. For these reasons, I will call him “Rocky”. Rocky worked for a couple of years with the Route Clearance Patrol, assuming one of the most dangerous jobs possible. His unit was responsible for clearing roads of Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs), both in vehicles, and on foot. One day, while clearing a route on foot, an IED exploded, knocking Rocky to the ground. The IED had been filled with small caliber bullets and, as a result, Rocky took three or four rounds to his torso. In addition, he suffered a severe injury to his left arm, a concussion and temporary hearing loss. He was treated for the bullet wounds and arm injury at the hospital on our base and instructed to rest for several weeks.

  Following his recovery, Rocky was re-assigned to be an interpreter with the soldiers at our main Vehicle Gate. He was responsible for translating conversations between U.S. soldiers and the Afghan drivers, who delivered supplies to the base each day. His English was very good, he was a hard worker, and no one ever complained about him.

  On the day the soldier appeared at my office, Rocky apparently snapped. He was reprimanded (though not punished or fired) for lightly harassing an American female contractor on the base. Several times, he approached her and asked her out. She turned him down, but he was persistent. The female eventually reported it to Rocky’s chain of command, and he was given a warning to leave her alone. According to the soldier who reported the incident to me, following the counseling session, Rocky stated he wanted to quit his job. The soldier reminded him that he was not being fired, only reprimanded. Rocky said he did not care and demanded to be taken to the base badging office, so he could turn in his base badge and resign (a requirement for anyone quitting their job). The soldier attempted to talk him out of it, but with no luck. So, he escorted Rocky to the badging office, which was situated next door to mine. At this time, he left Rocky with the badging office employees and walked next door to inform me of the events that had transpired that day.

  While the soldier was escorting Rocky to the badging office, Rocky reportedly began ranting about being a member of the Taliban. He stated, after he quit his job, he was going to sit outside the base and shoot as many Afghan employees as he could. Obviously, claims such as this are not taken lightly in a combat zone, or anywhere. The soldier was concerned that Rocky had suffered some kind of brain damage, in the IED attack months before, and was manifesting symptoms of it now. The soldier was insistent that Rocky had never caused any problems and he had no suspicions that Rocky was, in fact, a member of an insurgent group. But, one can never be too careful or too sure.

  At this point, I called my interpreter back down to the office, so he could talk to Rocky one on one. He had known Rocky for quite a long time and I felt he would have a better time getting to the bottom of the situation. However, when the two went into a room together, Rocky was nearly incoherent and my interpreter could not obtain any information from him. He continued to rant about the Taliban, but made little sense.

  By this time, it was late into the evening and darkness had fallen. The base commander, who had been briefed on the situation, wanted Rocky off the base immediately. In addition, he wanted Rocky written up as a threat and placed on the Watch List (placement on the Watch List means the person will never be able to obtain employment on a Coalition base again). I disagreed with this course of action and explained to the commander Rocky’s background and possible head injury. He agreed to allow Rocky to be evaluated by the base medical staff the next day, seeing as Rocky had been injured while working directly for U.S. forces. However, we did not want to release Rocky off the base during hours of darkness. It was too dangerous for him to travel around at night and we felt he was not in a proper state of mind anyhow. We considered him to be a danger to himself and possibly others. But, the base commander would not allow him to stay overnight on the base unattended.

  The best solution we could come up with was to take him to the Detention Facility, not as a prisoner, but simply to remain under someone’s watch. The commander of the Detention Facility assured me Rocky would be properly cared for and rendered medical aid, if necessary. He promised a full mental evaluation and subsequent treatment, if necessary.

  Imagine my surprise and fury when, the next day, Rocky was escorted out the front gate and placed on the Watch List, disallowing him entrance to any Coalition Facility again. In addition, his placement on the list barred him from joining the Afghan Army or police. His service and sacrifice to his, and our, country had cost him his job and the possibility of any future law enforcement job. I was angry that we would treat a local national with such disregard after he nearly lost his life working for U.S. forces.

  I saw Rocky many times after that, when he showed up at the front gate, attempting to remove himself from the Watch List and obtain a job. He told me he had seen a local Afghan doctor, who had prescribed some (unknown) medication that had settled him down. He said he was willing to do any job, for anyone. He even offered to “hunt Taliban” and report his findings to anyone who would listen. Unfortunately, with the supporting statements of his previous claims to be a member of the Taliban, his removal from the Watch List was near impossible. No commander was going to be willing to take that risk.

  I do not personally feel Rocky was affiliated with the Taliban, or any insurgent group, in any way. I believe he suffered a traumatic brain injury, as many of our American soldiers have, that changed him neurologically. As I noted above, my interpreter had known Rocky for quite a while, both before and after the IED incident. He was insistent that Rocky’s personality changed drastically after the event. Without proper treatment, rest and counseling, Rocky was easily confused and agitated. It was rumored that he
often smoked hashish to calm his nerves and help him sleep. The embarrassment of his reprimand, something he had never experienced before, or even the hashish, may have sent him over the edge, leading to his rant about the Taliban that particular night. It is hard to ignore the stark similarities between Rocky’s behavior and that of countless American soldiers after returning from war. However, Rocky’s involvement with Coalition Forces was not yet over, as readers will find out later.

  I recall another unfortunate situation that arose with a different local Afghan interpreter, who worked for one of the U.S. military units on our base. Like the man I spoke of above, this one, too, had an American nickname that he went by. For purposes of this story, I will call him Sonny. Sonny was often tasked to accompany U.S. soldiers off base, to patrol the local area. When he did so, he would always cover his face with a bandana, so no local villagers would recognize him. Sonny lived in the local area and feared word would spread to insurgents that he was working for the Americans. The covering of one’s face was quite common among the local interpreters, who went on patrols off base. It made me sad, however, that these men felt it was necessary to hide their face. It was evidence of how much control the Taliban, and other insurgent groups, still had over the local populace.

  One day, Sonny was given an order to accompany soldiers from his unit, to the local jail. A few men had been arrested the previous day for trying to plant an IED alongside the road. The soldiers planned to question the men and wanted Sonny to translate for them. He went along with the group, but forgot his bandana. Sonny was forced to interpret conversations between the jailed insurgents and the American soldiers, with his face in full view. To make circumstances worse, the men lived in the village adjacent to Sonny’s, and recognized him.