An Afghan interpreter has begged President Joe Biden to rescue him and his family from the country following the Taliban's rapid takeover and warned that if they are found they will be beheaded.
The translator, identified only as Abdul, spoke to CNN's Kate Bolduan by phone on Thursday. He had worked as a translator for U.S. special forces for five years and now fears for his family's life.
He has reportedly applied for a visa to leave the country.
Before speaking to Abdul, Bolduan played a recording he had submitted to a human rights attorney where he asked: "Why are the American soldiers forgetting about us after everything we did, the sacrifices we made? Why are they leaving us behind?"
"I don't want to be killed by the Taliban. They're going to cut our heads off if they find my location. Please help," he said in the recording.
Bolduan then spoke to Abdul, saying: "Abdul, you said that you and your family need to get out of the country immediately."
"Have you been threatened by the Taliban?" she asked.
Abdul said he been threatened and described going to a store to get supplies and being followed by two or three members of the Taliban. He escaped that encounter but stressed the need to get out of the country.
"I don't know how much more I should handle this," he told Bolduan. "I have a wife and two young kids. We will all be killed if the Taliban find us."
"We live in fear every day," he went on, adding that the Americans "have signed our death sentence."
Bolduan asked: "At this point, do you think it's now a matter of days before something tragic happens to you and your family?"
"It is not just a matter of days, it is a matter of seconds, you know, minutes, hours, you know," Abdul said. "Anything can happen to me."
The translator said he had not heard from U.S. officials and had tried to travel to Kabul airport but was unable to get there.
"I tried many times, but, you know, everybody is shooting at us," Abdul said.
"I need something, you know, to happen soon. I need somebody to take action soon, you know, to get me out of here," he added.
Bolduan asked Abdul what message he would give to President Biden.
"I'm appealing to the U.S. government, to President Biden, to please save me and my family, and the Afghan interpreters who worked for your country," Abdul said as he appeared to start crying.
"Are you going to leave us here to die? Please, I am begging you. I am begging him [...] I'm begging America, please help us," he said.
Newsweek has asked the White House for comment.
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Darragh Roche is a U.S. News Reporter based in Limerick, Ireland. His focus is reporting on U.S. politics. He has ... Read more
