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Safi Rauf (Safiullah Rauf) is an Afghan-American, a former Afghan refugee, humanitarian, 2021 Washingtonian of the Year, TED fellow, Tillman scholar, Georgetown graduate, medical student, Navy reservist, and the founder of Human First Coalition, an organization dedicated to providing critically needed aid to Afghanistan. Safi has worked to provide food, medical care, and resettlement services to Afghans in need. In December, Safi was unlawfully detained and held by the Taliban for 105 days and was subsequently released in early April following negotiations between the Taliban and the Biden Administration.

Safi Rauf at the Kabul International Airport with WFP after the fall of Kabul

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.[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.[4][3]

Human First Coalition

Safi Rauf at the US Embassy Kabul Afghanistan

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.[5][3]

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.[6][7]

Safi Rauf at the TED Conference 2022

Safi Rauf was named Washingtonian of the Year for his works for the year 2021.[8]

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.[6]

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.[6]

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."[6] 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.[9] In mid-March, both captees' families were permitted 15 minutes by the Taliban to speak with Safi and Anees.[9]

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.[3][10] On March 31, the brothers were informed they were going to be released and told their captivity was "a misunderstanding".[6] In total, both were held captive for 105 days and were released into U.S. custody on April 1, 2022.[9] The brothers were flown to a U.S. military base in Qatar before returning to the United States.[3]

Following the release of both brothers, the U.S. began in inquiry into also obtaining the release of Mark Frerichs, a navy-veteran who had been held in Taliban custody since February 2020.[11][2]

Rauf would later be featured in a Ted Talk and give a presentation on his experience.[12]

See also

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 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}}: |last= has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  4. ^ "Our Team". Human First. Retrieved 2022-05-16.
  5. ^ 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.
  6. ^ 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.
  7. ^ 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}}: |last= has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  8. ^ "Meet Our 2021 Washingtonians of the Year - Washingtonian". 2021-12-22. Retrieved 2022-05-17.
  9. ^ a b c Weber, Brent. "Nebraskans released after 105 days in Taliban custody". www.wowt.com. Retrieved 2022-05-16.
  10. ^ Patteson, Callie (2022-04-01). "American aid worker, brother released by Taliban from Afghan hell". New York Post. Retrieved 2022-05-16.
  11. ^ 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. {{cite web}}: |last3= has generic name (help)
  12. ^ "TED2022". tedlive.ted.com. Retrieved 2022-05-16.

[1]

  1. ^ "Meet Our 2021 Washingtonians of the Year - Washingtonian". 2021-12-22. Retrieved 2022-05-17.
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