Afghan Interpreter Refused UK Asylum Shot By Taliban

An interpreter who was serving along UK forces during war, and was denied asylum in UK even though he pleaded that he had faced danger, speaks out after he was shot by the Taliban, according to rt.

Nicknamed Chris by the British army troops, the interpreter, was shot in the leg when an assassination was attempted near his home in Khost Province in east Afghanistan.

The 26-year-old's infant son was also wounded when the insurgents tried to kill or capture him, as the insurgents see him as collaborating with the US-led occupation of the country.

Even though he faces risks due to his work with British forces, he claims that the UK government did not permit him to resettle there. He explains that he showed some evidence to the UK of the 10 attempts to kill him, even though they were all of no use.

In 2012, another interpreter called Mohammad applied and won asylum as the British finally saw that the Taliban threatened his life if he returned to Afghanistan.

Although the UK Border Agency refused his request earlier this month, it reversed it decision as more information about him was revealed, according to bbc.

But now 'Chris' is still being denied asylu. As he said to Daily Mail: "I worked outside military bases with UK forces where I took huge personal risk on a daily basis - I served with distinction, placing myself in mortal danger to save my British colleagues. My family and I have experienced a serious threat to life as a consequence of working for the British, resulting - most recently - in me being shot on December 26 when the Taliban came to my village looking for me."

"My son was hit too. This only happened because of my work with the British. The government has totally forgotten its allies who helped them during the worst of times here. I have seen British soldiers die in front of me and I have collected soldiers' remains - now I think I am being abandoned," he said.

Though there were 300 interpreters who helped the UK forces, they gave asylum to just one. According to Chris, he was not able to fulfill a legal stipulation that permitted resettlement rights only to those who served the UK for a year after December 2011. He served between 2008 and 2011.

In January, a British appeal court said that MPs should offer a response to claims that the government did not give equal treatment to Afghani as well as Iraqi interpreters.

The allegations were thrown due to contrasting resettlement schemes to each group.

When UK forces came out of Iraq, some provincial interpreters that had joined the British forces were given a special assistance program.

The scheme permitted them to go in for a "one-off financial payment", as well as get an open-ended invitation to enter Britain, or long-term resettlement in the UK. The Afghan redundancy scheme was highly inferior, according to lawyers.