Samoud Khan
Samoud Khan | |
|---|---|
| Born | Logar Province, Afghanistan |
| Other names | Sammoud Khan, Commander Sammoud |
| Occupation | Militia leader |
| Known for | Former militia leader; commander supportive of American interests; associated with Mousauwal Compound |
Samoud Khan—also known as Sammoud Khan or Commander Sammoud—is a former militia leader originating from Logar Province in Afghanistan.[1][2] He has been characterized as a commander supportive of American interests.[3]
Mousauwal Compound
The Mousauwal Compound, controlled by Samoud, became infamous for the detention, mistreatment, and exploitation of young males:
- Asadullah Rahman, recognized as the youngest individual detained at Guantanamo, was apprehended during a raid on Samoud’s compound. He recounted being sold into servitude around age ten, tasked with kitchen duties by day and subjected to sexual exploitation at night.[1]
- Naqib Ullah was abducted at 14 years old and subsequently suffered sexual abuse and enslavement within the compound.[4]
- During his Combatant Status Review Tribunal, detainee Habib Rahman admitted to serving as a cook for Samoud and mentioned that Samoud remained incarcerated in Bagram.
- Detainee Mohabet Khan reported being forcibly recruited into Samoud’s militia prior to the seizure of the compound.
- Shardar Khan, another detainee, served as a bodyguard for Samoud and testified that Samoud’s adversary, militia chief Abdul Ali, was responsible for the death of Samoud’s son.[2]
According to local police officer Mohammed Sabir, "Commander Samoud" was not aligned with the Taliban but was instead a criminal figure who intimidated surrounding villages with a group of approximately thirty men.[1]
In 2003, Mohammed Khan was taken into custody at Guantanamo due to his knowledge regarding Samoud Khan’s whereabouts.
Bibliography
- Anand Gopal, No Good Men Among the Living: America, the Taliban, and the War through Afghan Eyes, Henry Holt and Company, 2014
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedSFChronicle2004-02-13 - ↑ 2.0 2.1 Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedJamaicaObserver2005-03-05 - ↑ (Gopal 2014, p. 138)
- ↑ Heidi Blake, Tim Ross, Conrad Quilty Harper, WikiLeaks: children among the innocent captured and sent to Guantanamo, Telegraph.co.uk, 26 April 2011