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Safi Rauf
Portrait of Safi Rauf from the waist up, wearing a blue shirt.
Born
Safiullah Rauf

1994 (age 28)
Pakistan
NationalityAfghan-American
EducationGeorgetown University (BS)
Occupation(s)Humanitarian, soldier
AwardsTillman Scholar, Washingtonian of the Year (2021), Ted Fellow

Safi Rauf (Safiullah Rauf) is an Afghan-American humanitarian and Navy reservist. Rauf was born in 1994 in an Afghan refugee camp in Pakistan; immigrating to the United States during his teenage years. Rauf would go on to join the United States Navy, serving as a linguist, cultural advisor, and hospital corpsman. Following his graduation from Georgetown University, he founded the Human First Coalition; functioning as part of a larger effort to evacuate refugees from Afghanistan.

In December 2021, while providing humanitarian aid in Kabul, Rauf was detained by the Taliban and held for 105 days; he was subsequently released in early April 2022, following negotiations between the Taliban and the Biden Administration.

Personal life

Safi Rauf was born in 1994 in an Afghan refugee camp in Pakistan. In his teenage years, Rauf immigrated to Omaha, Nebraska in the United States where he attended and later graduated from Millard South High School.[1] In 2017, Rauf enlisted in the United States Navy Reserve and has served as a hospital corpsman. He was assigned to Joint Base Andrews in Maryland.[2] Rauf also served as a linguist and cultural advisor with Special Operations Forces in Afghanistan, participating in Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Freedom’s Sentinel.[3][4] Aside from English, Rauf is fluent in Persian, Dari, Pashto, and Urdu.[3]

In 2019, Rauf attended Georgetown University with a pre-med track. Following this, he was admitted to University of Nebraska Medical Center before deferring his acceptance to co-found the Human First Coalition.[5][4]

Afghan Adjustment Act

A group of Afghan-Americans supported by Veterans started a 24/7 fire watch outside the U.S. Capitol on 15 September 2022 to advocate for the passage of the Afghan Adjustment Act.[6][7] The group maintained a 24/7 presence in the Capitol's Upper Senate Park and received visitors, including sitting US Senators and Representatives, celebrities, and reporters. The Afghan Adjustment Act includes thorough security vetting of evacuated Afghans, with the prospects of permanent legal status upon conclusion of background checks. It also expands the Special Immigrant Visa program to include Afghans that supported the US mission abroad, but have previously not been included, along with a Task Force to oversee implementation of the process.[8][9]

On 30 September 2022, Congress went on recess so the FireWatch Team decided to follow congressional members into their home States, to further emphasize the urgency of AAA. The team took FireWatch on the road to keep the movement going until seven additional Republican senators realize that Veterans need this bill to find closure and heal the moral injury that our chaotic withdrawal, and abandonment of our Allies, has caused. The Fire Watch on the road was an incredible success with overwhelming support from local media, veterans, Afghan-Americans, congressional members and staffers.[10]

Jon Stewart and Safi Rauf at the Afghan Adjustment Act Fire Watch

Fire Watch on the road will conclude on12 November 2022 and return to the U.S. Capitol to continue the 24/7 presence right outside the offices of the political representatives.

Human First Coalition

In 2021, Rauf co-founded the Human First Coalition alongside his brothers Zabih Rauf and Anees Khalil. Human First is an ad hoc organization designed to help aid those fleeing from Afghanistan following the United States' withdrawal from the country. Human First, along with similar organizations, was formed as part of the Digital Dunkirk movement, a movement that was founded to help evacuate Afgan individuals who had aided the United States during their 20 year conflict with the Taliban. These organizations use messaging services, such as WhatsApp, to communicate with individuals seeking to flee Afghanistan. The Human First Coalition is estimated to have rescued over 6,000 people from Afghanistan, including 1,000 Americans and their families.[11][4]

Following the efforts by Human First, in conjunction with the U.S. State Department, Aman Khalili was successful evacuated from Afghanistan in October 2021. Khalili was credited with having rescued the then-Senator Joe Biden from a down helicopter in 2008 and served as a Pashto interpreter during the U.S. war in Afghanistan.[12][13]

Safi Rauf was named 2021 Washingtonian of the Year for his humanitarian work that year.[14]

Following his captivity, in April 2022, Rauf announced plans for he and Human First Coalition to begin work in Poland and the U.K., assisting with the 2022 Ukrainian Refugee Crisis.[12]

Taliban captivity

In November 2021, following approval from the Taliban and United States government, Safi Rauf and his brother Anees Khalil began humanitarian work in Kabul, helping evacuate Afghans from the country.[12]

On December 18, senior officials from General Directorate of Intelligence approached the brothers and requested they provide an interview, claiming that all foreigners were required to provide such. Following this interview, Safi, Anees, and three British nationals were taken captive on suspicion of espionage and were placed "in rooms that were 8 feet by 8 feet, with no phones, blankets, mattresses or sunlight."[12] The brothers described that during their captivity, both were tortured by their captors, and both brothers attempted a hunger strike in a bid to be released.[15] In mid-March, both captees' families were permitted 15 minutes by the Taliban to speak with Safi and Anees.[15]

The U.S. State Department and Biden Administration conducted a months-long negotiation effort to secure the release of both brothers.[2] This included the collective work of the U.S., Qatari, and British governments, along with efforts by Political Officer JP Feldmayer, Special Representative Tom West, Sen. Richard Blumenthal, former New York Democratic Rep. Nita Lowey, national security adviser Jake Sullivan, and Lt. Col. Jason Hock.[4][16] On March 31, the brothers were informed they were going to be released and told their captivity was "a misunderstanding".[12] In total, both were held captive for 105 days and were released into U.S. custody on April 1, 2022.[15] The brothers were flown to a U.S. military base in Qatar before returning to the United States.[4]

Following the release of both brothers, the U.S. began in inquiry into also obtaining the release of Mark Frerichs, a Navy veteran who has been held in Taliban custody since February 2020.[17][2] Rauf would later be featured in a Ted Talk and give a presentation on his experience.[18]

Gallery

See also

External Links

References

  1. ^ Weber, Brent. "Human First Coalition driven by Omaha brothers". www.wowt.com. Retrieved 2022-05-16.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  2. ^ a b c Hudson, John (April 1, 2022). "Taliban releases Navy reservist and brother detained in Afghanistan".
  3. ^ a b "Scholars - Meet our Scholars". Pat Tillman Foundation. Retrieved 2022-08-21.
  4. ^ a b c d e Correspondent, Jake Tapper, Anchor and Chief Washington. "Exclusive: Biden administration secures release of Afghan-American Naval reservist who was held by Taliban". CNN. Retrieved 2022-05-16.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  5. ^ "Our Team". Human First. Retrieved 2022-05-16.
  6. ^ III, Leo Shane (2022-09-20). "Vets hold vigil at Capitol again, this time to aid Afghan allies". Military Times. Retrieved 2022-11-15.
  7. ^ "Afghans still waiting for path to remain in U.S." www.cbsnews.com. Retrieved 2022-11-15.
  8. ^ "Behind the headlines: What is the Afghan Adjustment Act? | International Rescue Committee (IRC)". www.rescue.org. Retrieved 2022-11-15.
  9. ^ "US withdrawal from Afghanistan prompted talk of 'moral injury' in veterans. What is it?". The Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved 2022-11-15.
  10. ^ "War Veterans Are Traveling To Red States To Advocate For Afghans". HuffPost. 2022-10-31. Retrieved 2022-11-15.
  11. ^ Altman, Howard; Press, The Associated (2021-10-04). "WhatsApp outage 'a nightmare' for group working to rescue Afghans, American citizens". Military Times. Retrieved 2022-05-16.
  12. ^ a b c d e Basu, Zachary (2022-04-08). "American released by Taliban recounts months-long nightmare in detention". Axios. Retrieved 2022-05-16.
  13. ^ Correspondent, Jake Tapper,Anchor,Chief Washington (2021-10-11). "Afghan interpreter who helped rescue Biden in 2008 gets out of Afghanistan | CNN Politics". CNN. Retrieved 2022-05-16.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  14. ^ "Meet Our 2021 Washingtonians of the Year - Washingtonian". 2021-12-22. Retrieved 2022-05-17.
  15. ^ a b c Weber, Brent. "Nebraskans released after 105 days in Taliban custody". www.wowt.com. Retrieved 2022-05-16.
  16. ^ Patteson, Callie (2022-04-01). "American aid worker, brother released by Taliban from Afghan hell". New York Post. Retrieved 2022-05-16.
  17. ^ Tapper, Jake; Anchor; Correspondent, Chief Washington (2022-04-03). "Biden administration secures release of Afghan-American Naval reservist held by Taliban". ABC7 Chicago. Retrieved 2022-05-16.
  18. ^ "TED2022". tedlive.ted.com. Retrieved 2022-05-16.
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