Welcome to Episode 36 of The Afghanistan Project Podcast,

Our guest today is Parwani, a former Colonel in the

Parwani discusses his evacuation to the U.S., including the

Find AUF on:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/afgunitedfront

Website, https://www.afghanistanunitedfront.org/

About the hosts:

Mikael Cook was an Army non-commissioned officer and veteran

Beth Bailey worked in support of Afghanistan operations

For listeners in Afghanistan:

If you would like to have your story considered for a future

Welcome to Episode 35 of The Afghanistan Project Podcast, where hosts Mikael Cook and Beth Bailey highlight the struggles of Afghans living under Taliban rule, and the efforts of individuals from a variety of backgrounds and political affiliations who have stepped up to provide support to the people of Afghanistan in the chaos that followed the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan.

Our guests today are representatives from resettlement support agency REACT DC, which has been working to support Afghan refugees who arrived in the D.C. metro area in the aftermath of Operation Allies Welcome.

Sarah Cady, the Chief Executive Officer of REACT DC, discussed how the nonprofit stood up in September 2021 with prodigious support from Afghans and advocates throughout the area. She also talked about many of the specific programs that REACT DC has developed to address the ongoing needs of the refugee population, including initiatives to support Afghan women, and to provide legal help for refugees still navigating asylum requests, the special immigrant visa program, and the re-parole process.

Hasib Dellawar, the director of REACT DC’s Career Pathways

Now, Hasib helps Afghans find employment through the Career

At the end of the show, Sarah and Hasib discussed how Afghans have been mentally impacted by decades of war and trauma, and the need to provide mental health support to refugee populations.

Find REACT DC via:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/reactdcorg

Website, https://www.reactdc.org/

LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/resettlement-action-dc-react-dc/

About the hosts:

Mikael Cook was an Army non-commissioned officer and veteran

Beth Bailey worked in support of Afghanistan operations

For Afghan listeners:

If you would like to have your story considered for a future

Welcome to Episode 34 of The Afghanistan Project Podcast,

Our guest, Joan Barker, is a former Peace Corps volunteer

Our story this week comes from an Afghan whom we are calling

About Joan Barker:

Follow Joan on Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/joan__barker/)

You can find Joan’s opinion pieces by following her linktree

About the hosts:

Mikael Cook was an Army non-commissioned officer and veteran

Beth Bailey worked in support of Afghanistan operations

For listeners in Afghanistan:

If you would like to have your story considered for a future

Welcome to Episode 33 of The Afghanistan Project Podcast, where hosts Mikael Cook and Beth Bailey highlight the struggles of Afghans living under Taliban rule, and the efforts of individuals from a variety of backgrounds and political affiliations who have stepped up to provide support to the people of Afghanistan in the chaos that followed the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan.

Our guest, Jason Howk, is a veteran of the U.S. Army who was involved firsthand in key periods of our twenty-year effort to bring peace and stability to Afghanistan. Jason talks about his efforts in supporting the creation of the Afghan National Army in 2002, his work as Gen. McChrystal’s aide-de-camp in 2009, and his work on creating an enduring peace process for Afghanistan leading

Jason also outlined his goals in creating Global Friends of

About Jason Howk and Global Friends of Afghanistan:

Find Jason on Twitter: https://twitter.com/jason_c_howk

Find Global Friends of Afghanistan at their website, https://www.globalfriendsofafghanistan.org/.

Follow GFA on Twitter https://twitter.com/GFAfghanistan

Mentioned in this episode:

Support Afghans through Aseel App here: https://aseelapp.com/

About the hosts:

Mikael Cook was an Army non-commissioned officer and veteran of the war in Afghanistan. He was an active member of the #DigitalDunkirk movement to evacuate our Afghan allies in August of 2021. You can follow his Instagram @Mikaelcook89.

Beth Bailey worked in support of Afghanistan operations

For listeners in Afghanistan:

If you would like to have your story considered for a future

Welcome to Episode 32 of The Afghanistan Project Podcast,

Today’s guest, Shawn VanDiver, is president and founder of

Shawn dove into the difficulties facing Afghan refugees who have

Finally, Shawn addressed the importance of passing the Afghan

Today’s episode concludes with an emotional letter sent to

About Shawn VanDiver and #AfghanEvac:

Follow Shawn on Twitter :https://twitter.com/shawnjvandiver.

Follow #AfghanEvac on Twitter https://twitter.com/afghanevac or LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/afghanevac/. Their website can be found here: https://afghanevac.org/

About the hosts:

Mikael Cook was an Army non-commissioned officer and veteran

Beth Bailey worked in support of Afghanistan operations

For listeners in Afghanistan:

If you would like to have your story considered for a future

Welcome to Episode 31 of The Afghanistan Project Podcast, where hosts Mikael Cook and Beth Bailey highlight the struggles of Afghans living under Taliban rule, and the efforts of individuals from a variety of backgrounds and political affiliations who have stepped up to provide support to the people of Afghanistan in the chaos that followed the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan.

Our guest, Kevin Rardin, tells listeners about his experience as a Command Judge Advocate in Afghanistan as an Army JAG Corps officer, and the affection he developed for his Afghan counterparts and especially his interpreter, whom we are calling Abdul-Hadi. Kevin and Abdul-Hadi grew especially close in the years after Kevin left the country, and when Abdul-Hadi asked Kevin to help him escape Kabul in August 2021, Kevin details the epic journey that the two underwent to find safety for his endangered interpreter and his wife and eight children.

Kevin also discusses his continued work supporting Afghan prosecutors who are at risk for promoting democracy and rule of law through the Association of Prosecuting Attorneys.

Today’s episode concludes with a story from a stranded Afghan interpreter who calls himself Zee. Zee expressed his sadness that the Taliban had named August 15 Mujahideen Victory Day, considering that the only such day that many Afghans celebrate is the day when the pro-Russian government collapsed in 1992. Zee says he hopes that the international community never recognizes the Taliban.

About the Association of Prosecuting Attorneys:

Follow APA on Twitter: https://twitter.com/APAinc

About the hosts:

Mikael Cook was an Army non-commissioned officer and veteran

Beth Bailey worked in support of Afghanistan operations as a civilian intelligence analyst for the Department of the Army between 2010 and 2013. She is a freelance contributor to Fox News Digital and the Washington Examiner. Follow her on Instagram @BWBailey85 or Twitter @BWBailey85.

For listeners in Afghanistan:

If you would like to have your story considered for a future episode, please send us a letter about your experiences to our show e-mail address, [email protected]. Please include as much detail as possible, and let us know if you would like us to give you a pseudonym to protect your identity.

Welcome to Episode 30 of The Afghanistan Project Podcast,

Our guest, Patrick Wargo, joined the contractor workforce in

Today’s episode concludes with a story from a young Afghan teen

About the hosts:

Mikael Cook was an Army non-commissioned officer and veteran

Beth Bailey worked in support of Afghanistan operations

For listeners in Afghanistan:

If you would like to have your story considered for a future

Welcome to Episode 29 of The Afghanistan Project Podcast,

Our guest, Timothy ‘Tito’ Torres, has served with the U.S. Army Rangers since 2005 and currently works as the executive director and vice president of the Moral Compass Federation. The Moral Compass Federation consists of more than 30 nonprofit groups, each with their own unique missions. Some groups help Afghan allies in need of humanitarian aid, while others support evacuation, or resettlement aid. Still other groups support veterans and Gold and Blue Star families who have borne the nation’s battles. Under the Moral Compass Federation umbrella, each unique group can sign on to advocacy work or special projects that give each organization more of a voice than they might have on their own.

Today’s episode concludes with a story from a young Afghan man whose brother died after he attempted to flee the country by clinging to the body of a military cargo plane departing from Hamid Karzai International Airport.

About the Moral Compass Federation:

You can follow the efforts of the Moral Compass Federation

About the hosts:

Mikael Cook was an Army non-commissioned officer and veteran

Beth Bailey worked in support of Afghanistan operations

For listeners in Afghanistan:

If you would like to have your story considered for a future

Welcome to Episode 28 of The Afghanistan Project Podcast, where hosts Mikael Cook and Beth Bailey highlight the struggles of Afghans living under Taliban rule, and the efforts of individuals from a variety of backgrounds and political affiliations who have stepped up to provide support to the people of Afghanistan in the chaos that followed the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan.

Our guest, Mariam Atash, is a Afghan American attorney, human right activist, and adjunct law professor who has been supporting Afghans through her practice since before the U.S. withdrawal in August 2021. Mariam talked about specifics of the Priority-1 and Priority-2 programs within the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program, and the immigration consequences that have arisen from the processing delays within programs.

Today’s episode concludes with a story from a young Afghan woman currently living in Tajikistan. Directly following the Taliban’s takeover, a local Talib began pursuing her for marriage, but she was desperate to avoid becoming a wife and wanted to pursue a law career. U.S. Army soldier and Vets4NRF founder “Legend” advised the girl’s family to pretend that she had died, and brought her across the border to Tajikistan, where she now is studying to be a lawyer.

About the hosts:

Mikael Cook was an Army non-commissioned officer and veteran of the war in Afghanistan. He was an active member of the #DigitalDunkirk movement to evacuate our Afghan allies in August of 2021. You can follow his Instagram @Mikaelcook89.

Beth Bailey worked in support of Afghanistan operations as a civilian intelligence analyst for the Department of the Army between 2010 and 2013. She is a freelance contributor to Fox News Digital and the Washington Examiner. Follow her on Instagram @BWBailey85 or Twitter @BWBailey85.

For listeners in Afghanistan:

If you would like to have your story considered for a future episode, please send us a letter about your experiences to our show e-mail address, [email protected]. Please include as much detail as possible, and let us know if you would like us to give you a pseudonym to protect your identity.

Welcome to Episode 27 of The Afghanistan Project Podcast, where hosts Mikael Cook and Beth Bailey highlight the struggles of Afghans living under Taliban rule, and the efforts of individuals from a variety of backgrounds and political affiliations who have stepped up to provide support to the people of Afghanistan in the chaos that followed the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan.

For this installment of our series exploring the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, we chatted with volunteers Anna Segur and Val Simich about their work supporting our allies who were attempting to escape Afghanistan in the months leading up to the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan. We also spoke with Afzil and Sayed, two former interpreters who were able to escape during the evacuation thanks to the support of Anna and Val. Their stories truly highlight the incredible strain our withdrawal created for Afghans seeking to escape the country after the Taliban’s takeover.

About the hosts:

Mikael Cook was an Army non-commissioned officer and veteran of the war in Afghanistan. He was an active member of the #DigitalDunkirk movement to evacuate our Afghan allies in August of 2021. You can follow his Instagram @Mikaelcook89.

Beth Bailey worked in support of Afghanistan operations as a civilian intelligence analyst for the Department of the Army between 2010 and 2013. She is a freelance contributor to Fox News Digital and the Washington Examiner. Follow her on Instagram @BWBailey85 or Twitter @BWBailey85.

For listeners in Afghanistan:

If you would like to have your story considered for a future episode, please send us a letter about your experiences to our show e-mail address, [email protected]. Please include as much detail as possible, and let us know if you would like us to give you a pseudonym to protect your identity.