British govt asked to save Afghan interpreters

KABUL (Pajhwok): The British government has been urged to save interpreters who put their lives at risk for UK troops in Afghanistan.

As a result of working with the UK troops, the interpreters now live in constant fear of executions at the hands of the Taliban. Reports the Sunday Mirror.

Figures from the military indicate about 2,500 Afghans helped British troops in the war on terror from 2001 to 2013. At least 20 of them are said to have lost their lives.

Fatalities could mount after the departure of 750 British and 2,500 US security soldiers from the country by September 11 this year, campaigners fear.

One interpreter was quoted as saying he spent his days hiding amid concerns he and his family would be hounded and executed by the Taliban.

Jahir Ban, 28, told the daily targeted killings of interpreters were happening on a daily basis.

Nasir, another interpreter who spent four months working for the British in 2009, claimed he was being hunted by the insurgents.

Haunted by fears of rebel attacks, he had had to go to Kabul. “My mother then called and told me the Taliban had killed my father.”

Yet another translator was told by British officials in Kabul he must wait 12 to 18 months for his relocation application to be processed.

About 450 interpreters and their families have been relocated so far, according to the Ministry of Defence. But many have been rejected.

Ex-army chief General Sir Richard Dannatt said: “It is a point of principle that we must stand beside those who stood beside us. If this means bringing a large number to the UK, then so be it.”

He commented: “The government is planning to accept hundreds of thousands from Hong Kong, so accepting up to 10,000 from Afghanistan is the right thing to do.”

As many as 30,000 Afghans needed the UK’s help, reckons Col Diggins, who has also served as military attaché at the British Embassy in Kabul.

“There are British soldiers alive today thanks to the bravery of Afghan interpreters. The way they have been treated by the government is a disgrace,” remarked Ex-Sgt Trevor Coult, who did three tours of duty in Afghanistan

The Commons Defence Committee chair, Tobias Ellwood, opined the UK’s inability to relocate interpreters in fear of their lives might imperil future operations.

PAN Monitor/mud