Killing of Dilawar

Dilawar
Born	circa 1979 Yakubi village, Khost Province, Afghanistan
Died	December 10, 2002(2002-12-10) (aged 23)
Occupation(s)	Farmer, taxi driver
Known for	Death resulting from torture by US Army personnel at Bagram detention facility

Dilawar (circa 1979 – December 10, 2002), also referred to as Dilawar of Yakubi, was an Afghan farmer and taxi operator who died as a result of torture inflicted by US Army personnel at the Parwan Detention Facility in Afghanistan. He was detained on December 5, 2002, and passed away five days afterward. His death was officially classified as a homicide, triggering an extensive US Army inquiry into misconduct at the detention center. The incident became a central focus in the investigations related to prisoner abuse and torture at Bagram, although no convictions were secured. His story is the subject of the Academy Award-winning documentary Taxi to the Dark Side (2007).

Dilawar

Dilawar was a 22-year-old Pashtun farmer and taxi driver originating from Yakubi village in Khost Province, Afghanistan. He measured tall and weighed . While transporting three passengers, he was stopped at a militia checkpoint and detained alongside them. All four individuals were handed over to US military forces and subsequently moved to the Bagram Theater Internment Facility. Two of his passengers, Abdul Rahim and Zakim Shah, experienced similar treatment but survived and were later transferred to Guantanamo Bay.

During his confinement at Bagram, Dilawar was suspended by his wrists from the ceiling for four consecutive days, which resulted in dislocated arms that hung uselessly during interrogations. His legs endured such brutal beatings that amputation would have been necessary. He died on December 10, 2002. He left behind his wife and daughter, Bibi Rashida.

Arrest

On May 20, 2005, The New York Times reported:

Torture

Dilawar suffered severe mistreatment including:

• Wearing a black hood that restricted breathing
• Multiple knee strikes to the stomach
• Receiving over 100 blows to the peroneal nerve located behind the kneecap
• Being pushed against walls and having his beard pulled
• Having his bare feet stepped upon and groin kicked
• Being chained to the ceiling for extended hours causing sleep deprivation
• Having his chest slammed onto a table

The New York Times described:

On the day he died, Dilawar spent much of four days chained by his wrists to the top of his cell. Guards attempted to make him kneel, but his severely damaged legs could no longer bend. An interrogator promised medical attention after questioning; however, upon returning him to custody, guards were ordered to "Leave him up," reattaching him to the ceiling. Hours later, an emergency room physician discovered him deceased with rigor mortis beginning to set in. Months after his death, Army investigators found that most interrogators believed Dilawar was innocent and had merely passed through the base at an unfortunate time.

Moazzam Begg reported witnessing parts of Dilawar’s torture during his own detention at the Bagram Theater Internment Facility.

Death

The autopsy results were unequivocal. Confidential US Army documents leaked later—including a death certificate dated December 12, 2002—attributed Dilawar’s demise directly to physical assaults by interrogators from the 519th Military Intelligence Battalion while he was held at Bagram Air Base. The certificate, signed by Lt. Col. Elizabeth A. Rouse of the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology, classified the "mode of death" as "homicide," ruling out natural causes, accident, or suicide. The cause was blunt trauma injuries to the lower limbs exacerbated by coronary artery disease.

A further autopsy revealed that Dilawar’s legs had been crushed so extensively—described as "pulpified"—that even survival would have necessitated amputation.

In Taxi to the Dark Side, the death certificate listing homicide as cause of death is displayed. Initially, military officials asserted that Dilawar died from natural causes. The death certificate came to light when New York Times journalist Carlotta Gall located Dilawar’s family in Yakubi; there, his brother Shahpoor disclosed receiving a folded document alongside Dilawar’s body—the untranslated death certificate.

Responsibility

In August 2005, Specialist Glendale C. Walls, a U.S. Army interrogator, admitted in a military tribunal to pushing Dilawar against a wall and neglecting to stop fellow soldiers from mistreating him. Walls was sentenced to two months in a military prison, whereas two other soldiers found guilty in connection with the incident did not receive incarceration. These relatively mild penalties were met with disapproval by human rights advocates.

A March 2006 "60 Minutes" report by CBS News examined the fatalities of Afghan detainees, including Dilawar, uncovering that authorization for the abuses stemmed from high-ranking officials within the U.S. government. Retired Army Colonel Lawrence Wilkerson, who formerly served as chief of staff to Secretary of State Colin Powell, expressed concern upon discovering indications that torture had been approved at senior levels. Soldiers Willie V. Brand and Captain Christopher Beiring, both convicted in related proceedings, acknowledged that multiple commanders witnessed and were aware of the abusive conduct.

Charges of dereliction of duty against Beiring were eventually dismissed, while Brand was found guilty but received a reduced punishment instead of the originally sought 16-year sentence. Both individuals displayed minimal contrition during their court statements.

In the same month of August 2005, Sergeant Selena M. Salcedo from the 519th Military Intelligence Battalion confessed to abusing Dilawar, pleading guilty to assault and dereliction of duty for actions such as kicking him and forcing him against a wall. Although Salcedo was demoted, formally reprimanded, and had pay withheld, she avoided imprisonment despite facing more severe potential consequences.

2007 Civil Court Investigation

In July 2007, a federal grand jury commenced a civil investigation into the abuse incidents involving detainees at Bagram. Alicia A. Caldwell of the Huffington Post referenced military defense attorney Michael Waddington, who observed that prosecutions like these were unprecedented before 2006, citing the prosecution of former Private First Class Steven D. Green for offenses committed in Iraq as a prior example.

Soldiers Duane M. Grubb, Darin Broady, Christopher Greatorex, and Christopher Beiring, all stationed at Bagram during the detainee deaths, confirmed they were summoned before the grand jury and reportedly waived their immunity rights.

External links

• Amnesty International 16 July 2003 Analysis on interrogation methods and detainee fatalities at Bagram Air Base.
• Karzai Shock at US Afghan 'Abuse' BBC News, May 21, 2005.
• Army Faltered in Investigating Detainee Abuse, The New York Times, May 22, 2005.
• Editorial: Patterns of Abuse, The New York Times, May 23, 2005.
• U.S. 'Thumbs Its Nose' at Rights, Amnesty Says, The New York Times, May 26, 2005.
• Failures of Imagination, Columbia Journalism Review, 2005.
• US Soldier Jailed in Afghan Abuse BBC News, August 24, 2005.
• Washington Post – Down a Dark Road, Richard Leiby, April 27, 2007