An investigation, involving the death of an Afghan commando, is being carried out after he was allegedly beaten to death while in Resolute Support custody in the west of Afghanistan.
Wahidullah Khan, an Afghan army commando, was arrested last month after allegedly opening fire on Czech troops in Shindand military airbase in Herat. At least one Czech soldier was killed and two others wounded in the apparent insider attack.
In reference to the shooting, Afghan officials told New York Times that the Afghan commando was beaten by foreign forces.
Col. Dave Butler, a spokesman for the American-led mission in Afghanistan, confirmed the investigation but declined to provide details, The Times reported.
The American military “will investigate to determine whether any potential misconduct occurred, and we will hold individuals accountable, as appropriate,’’ Colonel Butler said in a statement on Monday.
Meanwhile, Herat provincial council has asked the Afghan government to thoroughly investigate the death of the Afghan commando.
“He was arrested alive, they tortured him which is against the law and he died under torture, we call on government to pursue the case seriously and the law must prevail,” Kamran Alizayee, head of Herat provincial council said.
“If someone commits a crime, principally he should be brought to trial in a fair manner, if someone is killed under torture, then there is no difference between this act and the brutal acts we witness during the war,” said Mohammad Rafiq, political analyst.
According to the New York Times, one American official said a team from the US Army’s 7th Special Forces Unit, which helped in the transfer of Khan to Czech soldiers, has been withdrawn from Afghanistan. It is not clear, however, if any American soldiers participated in the beating of Khan.
A picture of Khan after his death was given to The New York Times by his family. It shows extensive blunt force trauma to Khan’s face and head, according to James Gill, the chief medical examiner for the state of Connecticut, whom The Times asked to examine the photo.
“When we washed him, he had no bullet wounds but his entire body was bruised,” Khan’s father Sayed Rahman told the New York Times.
Officials from the Afghan Special Forces unit at 207 Zafar Army Corps were not prepared to comment. But The Times reported that Afghan officials have confirmed that the soldier was killed after being tortured.
But the Czech Ministry of Defense rejected the allegations, The Times reported.
Khan joined the ranks of Afghan Special Forces thirteen months ago after Daesh attacked his village in Kot district of eastern Nangarhar province.