Samiullah Omari (far right) with Australian and US soldiers in Afghanistan.
Supplied
He says he regularly spent nights in the desert with the Australians, interpreting between villagers and the diggers as well Afghan soldiers in training near the capital.
“We were just soldiers without guns and we helped them out in the fields,” he says.
The 29-year-old has spent more than a decade helping foreign forces in Afghanistan - and that s made him a prime target for militant and terrorist groups hostile to the presence of the ‘invaders’.
To the Taliban and other groups, Afghans like Samiullah are considered traitors and spies.
Scott Morrison bows to pressure to launch royal commission into defence and veteran suicides theguardian.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from theguardian.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Mother of soldier killed in action and an Afghan interpreter reflect on troops leaving Afghanistan
AprApril 2021 at 6:49am
Private Benjamin Chuck and two other commandos died in a helicopter crash in Afghanistan in 2010.
(
Print text only
Cancel
Australia s remaining troops in Afghanistan will join their US allies later this year in withdrawing from the country, almost 20 years after the start of the war.
Key points:
There are fears the Taliban will seize power again when foreign forces leave Afghanistan
The mother of one digger who died there says it s time for the troops to come home, but she fears for the country s future
Premium Content
Subscriber only A Fraser Coast ex-serviceman has spoken with a the young men involved in damaging a war memorial in Maryborough, saying it is something the teens greatly regret . Former captain Jason Scanes said he was particularly impressed with the mother who had recognised the boys, including her own son, and told police, hoping to get them back on the right track. The damage to the memorial, which happened last month, left the statue of Lieutenant Duncan Chapman damaged and the military trail story panels at the Gallipoli to Armistice Memorial smashed. I would like to acknowledge the efforts of Detective Chief Inspector, Gary Pettiford and the Maryborough Police in pursuing the vandalism to Maryborough s Queens Park Gallipoli to Armistice Memorial, Mr Scanes said.
Premium Content The young offenders who allegedly vandalised the Duncan Chapman Memorial in Maryborough have been caught. Detective Inspector Gary Pettiford said police had spent hours and hours, trawling through CCTV footage provided by Fraser Coast Regional Council of the incident. As a result of that, Detective Senior Constable Simon Webb identified when the incident occurred and the images clearly showed four young people, juveniles being in the vicinity at the time. We put out an appeal to the public to see if they recognised those juveniles. On the weekend, we had a member of the public come forward indicating one of the children was her son.