The widow of an Afghan interpreter who worked for the Dutch military is not allowed to come to the Netherlands. The woman tells NU.nl that she is in hiding and is threatened. What is going on here?
The name of the slain interpreter is Abdul Jabar. In the photo above, he jumps into a homemade swimming pool full of Dutch soldiers at Camp Hadrian in Uruzgan.
Abdul Jabar has worked for Defense since 2008. In recognition of his “excellent work” he received a certificate of Defense in February 2010 – three months before his death.
“Abdul Jabar wanted to have you as an interpreter when you went outside the gate,” says former sergeant Thijmen Koomen, now an English teacher. “He was a quiet boy, he spoke good English. When we came to villages, he gave his food and drink to children who came to us. ‘They need it more than we do,’ he would say.”
Certificate awarded to interpreter Abdul Jabar.
Certificate awarded to interpreter Abdul Jabar. Photo: NU.nl
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Dutch soldiers at Camp Hadrian nicknamed Abdul Jabar ‘Snoop Dog’ because they thought he resembled the American rapper. The fellow interpreters called him Tuur Khan (“black gentleman”) because he had a dark complexion.
Jabar had ended up with the Dutch military through an interpreter who had been nicknamed ‘Grandpa’ by the military because he was a bit older than the rest. They belonged to the same tribe (important in Afghanistan), knew each other’s family. They came from the same district, a province not far from Uruzgan (real names and exact locations are not mentioned for security reasons).
“When I was already an interpreter, Abdul Jabar kept calling me, and I also arranged a job for him,” says ‘Grandpa’. After the takeover by the Taliban, he and his family were transferred to the Netherlands.
Interpreter Abdul Jabar (‘Snoop Dog’) in the homemade swimming pool at Camp Hadrian.
Interpreter Abdul Jabar (‘Snoop Dog’) in the homemade swimming pool at Camp Hadrian. Photo: NU.nl
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On May 22, 2010, Abdul Jabar went on a patrol of the Quick Reaction Force. They went out after a report that a roadside bomb had been found that had to be defused. When the job was done, the jeep in which Abdul Jabar was riding ended up on an undiscovered roadside bomb. In addition to Abdul Jabar, 25-year-old corporal Luc Janzen and French captain Barek Deligny were also killed. Several Dutch soldiers were seriously injured. It was one of the most serious incidents during the Dutch mission in Urzugan.
Veteran Koomen spoke at Camp Hadrian on behalf of the Dutch military with Abdul Jabar’s widow Soraya. “She was of course devastated about the death of her husband. She said that she had already lost other relatives, Soraya had had it up to her. It is not easy to lose your husband in such an area. The interpreters at the time collected an amount of money that we gave to her,” Koomen told NU.nl. “I think it’s silly that the Ministry of Defense is not transferring her to the Netherlands. If anyone deserves it, it’s her.”
‘The Taliban know who I am’
Soraya was pregnant when her husband died. Not long after, their daughter was born, now a girl of twelve. Soraya has since remarried and has four children with her new husband.
Soraya tells NU.nl via WhatsApp that she provides for her livelihood by adjusting and making clothing. Since the Taliban took power in the country last August, they have been moving from one place to another. “They know who I am,” says Soraya. “They know that my dead husband worked for the foreign troops. I’m afraid they will take my children and do bad things with them.”
Before the fall of the Taliban, Soraya tried several times to contact the Dutch embassy in Kabul, but they forwarded her to the United Nations refugee agency. Even after mid-August 2021 (when Afghanistan comes under control of the Taliban), she says she makes attempts to make contact, but they do not lead to results.
Last year she came into contact with ‘Opa’, the somewhat older interpreter who helped Abdul Jabar find his job with the Dutch troops. Together with his former colleagues who have also been transferred here, ‘Grandpa’ has been committed to Soraya recently, but without result. Veteran Roy Grinwis, who organized the evacuations of interpreters at the ministry between June and December last year, also received no response.
Various interpreters who spoke to NU.nl this week say that more widows of killed Afghans are currently staying in the Netherlands. One of them is the widow of a police chief from Deh Rawod. “Why are those widows and their families welcome, and why not Soraya?” the interpreter ‘Grandpa’ wonders.
Abdul Jabar with a Dutch soldier in Camp Hadrian.
Abdul Jabar with a Dutch soldier in Camp Hadrian. Photo: NU.nl
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‘The time is right to deal with this case quickly’
At the end of June, former chairman of the union for military personnel Anne-Marie Snels wrote an email to the Ministry of Defense. She asks “kindly but urgently to open up things quickly.” Snels believes that Soraya and her family “should be eligible for transfer to the Netherlands”.
According to Snels, there is reason to hurry. Pakistan has made agreements with the Dutch authorities on the basis of which Afghans without a passport can also be transferred to the Netherlands via Pakistani territory. This is an important development for Soraya, because she and her family, like most Afghans, do not have a passport. “Given the agreement that has been concluded with Pakistan, the time is now right to conclude this file quickly,” writes Snels.
Interpreters and Dutch soldiers pose in Uruzgan, Abdul Jabar second from the left.
Interpreters and Dutch soldiers pose in Uruzgan, Abdul Jabar second from the left. Photo: NU.nl
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Ministry: Soraya does not meet the conditions
On July 7, Snels receives a reply from the project director Afghan Interpreters of the Ministry of Defence. He reports that Soroya’s case does not meet the criteria agreed by the House of Representatives and the cabinet. On the basis of these agreements, a group of five hundred Afghans (including family members) has been identified who are still eligible for transfer to the Netherlands. In addition, only interpreters who can conclusively prove that they were active in the Dutch army can still report.
In October last year, the then Minister of Foreign Affairs Ben Knapen said in the House of Representatives that leniency should be exercised in “dire cases”. According to Snels, the Soraya case is a textbook example of “a distressing case”. MP Kati Piri (PvdA) speaks of a “duty of honour” that the Netherlands has to help Soraya.
To questions from NU.nl, a Defense spokesperson reiterated the position that “Madam does not meet the criteria agreed in October last year”.
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