Battle of Qala-i-Jangi
Encyclopedia
The Battle of Qala-i-Jangi (Also wrongly referred to as the Battle of Mazar-i-Sharif) took place between November 25 and December 1, 2001, in Northern Afghanistan. It began with the uprising of foreign Taliban prisoners held at Qala-i-Jangi
fortress, and escalated into one of the bloodiest engagements of the War in Afghanistan
. Northern Alliance
fighters, assisted by British and American Special Forces
, took seven days to finally quell the revolt, leaving only 86 prisoners alive out of an original 300-500. Among the survivors were two American citizens fighting with the Taliban, Yaser Esam Hamdi
and John Walker Lindh
.
. Between 300 to 500 foreign fighters (mostly Arab
s and Pakistan
is), under the impression that they would later be set free, drove to Mazar-i-Sharif and laid down their weapons. However, they were not freed, as the Americans wanted to question them about possible links with the Al Qaeda network. Instead they were transferred to Qala-i-Jangi (the war fortress in Persian
), a 19th century fortress that Dostum used as his headquarters and ammunition depot. Dostum claimed the surrender was a "great victory" for the Alliance, a bloodless success that would allow the future reconciliation of Afghanistan. But these claims were short-lived.
On the 25th, two CIA
officers, one from the highly secretive Special Activities Division
, Johnny "Mike" Spann
, a retired Marine
, and another, Dave Tyson, an Uzbek
speaker and area expert, arrived at Qala-i-Jangi to carry out the interrogations. These CIA officers questioned the prisoners, especially an American captured fighting with the Taliban, John Walker Lindh
. At that time they only recognized that Lindh was a western-looking prisoner and different from the others, so he was singled out. Part of the interview is shown on British Television (Channel 4 news), Spann asked "are you a member of the IRA?" (This question was asked because Lindh was told to claim he was Irish to "avoid problems.")
Approximately two hours after the interviews began, the prisoners attacked Spann, Tyson and the few Northern Alliance Guards.
The prisoners over-ran Spann and some of the other guards as well as capturing the southern half of the Qala-i-Jangi fortress, including the fort's armory. The prisoners helped themselves to a large store of AK-47
s, RPG
rocket launchers, mortars
and ammunition.
Spann was missing and Tyson managed to escape to the northern and more secure part of the fortress where he found himself trapped with a television crew from the German ARD
network. He borrowed their satellite phone
, and called the US embassy in Uzbekistan
, requesting reinforcements. Tyson specifically requested no air support, due to the proximity of allied Afghan forces. The Afghans also brought reinforcements: personnel and a T-55
tank entered the compound and started firing into the prisoner-controlled area. Several other television crews arrived on the scene of the battle, ensuring it got one of the widest media coverages of the whole war. The successive stages of the fighting were filmed extensively, providing rare footage of special forces units in combat.
At 2:00 pm a mixed Special Ops team, formed with nine U.S. Special Forces
and six British Special Boat Service
operators, arrived and joined the Afghans firing at the prisoners from the northern part of the fort. Starting at 4:00 pm until nightfall, they directed nine airstrikes against the entrenched prisoners, who continued to put up a fierce resistance. Despite Tyson's requests, several 500-pound precision-guided bombs were dropped in an attempt to destroy the armory, which was now serving as a firebase for the prisoners.
The next day, the Alliance soldiers set up a command post near the Northern gate, to direct their tank and mortar fire. By mid morning they were joined by US forces divided into three teams, a close air support team designated CAS1 that went inside the fortress along the bottom of the northeast tower to direct bombing strikes into the southern courtyard, a second close air support team designated CAS2 that positioned itself near the main gate of the fortress and a QRF or Quick Reaction Force consisting of four more Special Forces soldiers, a Navy surgeon, and eight men of the 10th Mountain Division.
At 11:00 pm, a GBU-32
guided bomb, weighing 2,000 pounds (957 kg), directed by the Air Force combat controller on the CAS-1 team, mistakenly hit his own position, killing four (some sources say 30) Northern Alliance soldiers on the northeast tower above the CAS-1 team, destroying a tank and injuring all members of the CAS-1 team, including five U.S. and two British Operators.
That night two AC-130
Spectre gunships circled over the fortress (callsigns GRIM 11 and GRIM 14), firing thousands of rounds at the uprising prisoners. The main ammunition depot was hit, creating a huge explosion which continued to burn throughout the night.
By the morning of the 27th the prisoner resistance had slackened, and the Alliance soldiers were able to mount an attack supported by tanks and APCs and by the end of the day they had recaptured most of the fort. The Americans recovered Spann's body, which the prisoners had booby trap
ped with a grenade.
The original holding cell in the basement of a central building still held Taliban fighters who refused to surrender. In the attempts to finish the battle, Northern Alliance fighters shot rifles into, threw grenades into, and finally poured oil into the basement and lit it afire. This still failed to either kill all Taliban survivors or force them to surrender.
On the 28th General Dostum arrived on the scene of the battle, and tried to persuade the last prisoners still holding out in the basement to surrender. His entreaties had no effect. The basement was subsequently flooded with frigid irrigation water on November 29. The final Taliban fighters surrendered on the 1st of December. 86 of the estimated 300-600 prisoners who were brought to the fortress emerged from the flooded basement. Survivors included the "American Taliban" John Walker Lindh.
Of the 86 prisoners who survived the battle, one was found to be American citizen John Walker Lindh
, who had moved to Afghanistan to help the Taliban battle the Northern Alliance
. Shortly after the battle, a journalist working for CNN
, Robert Young Pelton
, managed to interview Lindh. Lindh was later repatriated to the United States to face charges of treason
.
The other surviving prisoners were transferred to Camp X-Ray
at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba
.
For his actions during the battle, Major
Mark Mitchell, a U.S. Army Special Forces officer, was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross
, the first such decoration to be awarded since the Vietnam War
. Additionally Chief Petty Officer
Stephen Bass was awarded the Navy Cross
to for his actions while attached to the British Special Boat Service
.
For his "extraordinary heroism" in fighting off the prisoners long enough to allow his colleagues to escape, Spann was awarded the CIA's rare Intelligence Star
. Because the Intelligence Star is considered analogous to the Silver Star
, he was allowed burial at Arlington National Cemetery
.
At Spann's memorial at the Arlington National Cemetery they stated that after being attacked, Spann "fought with his AK-47
until it ran out of ammunition, then drew his pistol and emptied it, before turning to hand to hand combat which saw him shot". According to members of a German television crew who were later trapped in the fort with the other CIA officer named "Dave", Spann asked the prisoners who they were and why they joined the Taliban. They massed around him. "Why are you here?" Spann asked one. "To kill you," came the reply as the man lunged at Spann's neck. Mike Spann’s family visited the fortress after his death. Afghan doctors on site at the time of the riot gave the Spann family the following account. They said they "thought Mike might run and retreat, but he held his position and fought using his AK rifle until out of ammo, and then drew and began firing his pistol,” Spann’s father said. While watching Mike fight they were able to jump up and run to safety. They said the only reason that "they and several others were able to live was because Mike stood his position and fought off the prisoners while enabling them the time to run to safety".
, by using disproportionate means.
One of the prisoners, Abdulaziz al-Oshan, later summarised the incident telling American authorities at Guantanamo Bay, "They called it an uprising and it's not; it's some kind of massacre
". Amnesty International
called for an independent inquiry, but this was rejected by the U.S. and British governments, who argued that the fanatical resistance of the uprising fully justified the use of airpower and heavy weapons against them.
Another controversy surrounds the mismanagement of the prisoners that made the rebellion possible.
The Taliban were not properly searched after their capture, enabling them for instance to smuggle grenades into the fortress. Dostum himself later admitted this had been a mistake. Also, Qala-i-Jangi had been until recently a Taliban base, meaning that the prisoners knew the layout of the place and the location of the armory. It seems that Dostum had planned to hold them at a nearby airfield, but was denied this by the Americans, who were using the airfield to ferry in supplies.
By interrogating the prisoners in a group, rather than separately, protected by very few guards, they put themselves at the mercy of men who were known to be dangerous. George Tenet
, then director of the CIA, dismissed the accusations of mismanagement and incompetence, and instead described his agents as "heroes". In Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Bob Woodward
's book Bush at War, Spann is described as a hero whose actions saved the lives of many.
and Robert Young Pelton
provided a detailed account of these events. Interviews and footage from CNN, ARD, and elsewhere (Dodge Billingsley and recovered interrogation footage) show Mike Spann and Dave Tyson moments before the uprising.
Robert Young Pelton
's The World's Most Dangerous Places
one hour special "Inside Afghanistan" details his time with the US Special Forces team (ODA 595) working with Dostum's soldiers, and his part in the battle. It also covers how he discovered and interviewed Lindh, and later returned Lindh to his compound for protection.
A partly fictional but detailed account of the battle and of its context can be found in the second part of Frederick Forsyth
's novel The Afghan
.
Qala-i-Jangi
Qala-i-Jangi is a 19th century fortress located near Mazar-i-Sharif in northern Afghanistan. It is known for being the site of a bloody 2001 Taliban uprising named the Battle of Qala-i-Jangi, in which at least 470 people were killed including CIA agent Johnny "Mike" Spann...
fortress, and escalated into one of the bloodiest engagements of the War in Afghanistan
War in Afghanistan (2001–present)
The War in Afghanistan began on October 7, 2001, as the armed forces of the United States of America, the United Kingdom, Australia, and the Afghan United Front launched Operation Enduring Freedom...
. Northern Alliance
United Islamic Front for the Salvation of Afghanistan
The United Islamic Front , known in the West and Pakistan as the Northern Alliance, was a military-political umbrella organization created by the Islamic State of Afghanistan in 1996 under the leadership of Defense Minister Ahmad Shah Massoud...
fighters, assisted by British and American Special Forces
Special forces
Special forces, or special operations forces are terms used to describe elite military tactical teams trained to perform high-risk dangerous missions that conventional units cannot perform...
, took seven days to finally quell the revolt, leaving only 86 prisoners alive out of an original 300-500. Among the survivors were two American citizens fighting with the Taliban, Yaser Esam Hamdi
Yaser Esam Hamdi
Yaser Esam Hamdi is a now-former American citizen who was captured in Afghanistan in 2001. It is claimed by the U.S. government that he was fighting against U.S. and Afghan Northern Alliance forces with the Taliban...
and John Walker Lindh
John Walker Lindh
John Phillip Walker Lindh is a United States citizen who was captured as an enemy combatant during the United States' 2001 invasion of Afghanistan. He is now serving a 20-year prison sentence in connection with his participation in Afghanistan's Taliban army...
.
The Taliban surrender
On November 24, with their military situation in Northern Afghanistan becoming critical, many Taliban commanders agreed to surrender to Northern Alliance General Abdul Rashid DostumAbdul Rashid Dostum
Abdul Rashid Dostum is a former pro-Soviet fighter during the Soviet war in Afghanistan and is considered by many to be the leader of Afghanistan's Uzbek community and the party Junbish-e Milli-yi Islami-yi Afghanistan...
. Between 300 to 500 foreign fighters (mostly Arab
Arab
Arab people, also known as Arabs , are a panethnicity primarily living in the Arab world, which is located in Western Asia and North Africa. They are identified as such on one or more of genealogical, linguistic, or cultural grounds, with tribal affiliations, and intra-tribal relationships playing...
s and Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
is), under the impression that they would later be set free, drove to Mazar-i-Sharif and laid down their weapons. However, they were not freed, as the Americans wanted to question them about possible links with the Al Qaeda network. Instead they were transferred to Qala-i-Jangi (the war fortress in Persian
Persian language
Persian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...
), a 19th century fortress that Dostum used as his headquarters and ammunition depot. Dostum claimed the surrender was a "great victory" for the Alliance, a bloodless success that would allow the future reconciliation of Afghanistan. But these claims were short-lived.
The Battle
On November 24 the foreign Taliban prisoners were transported to and then herded inside the fortress, now turned prison. The prisoners had not been searched and it soon became evident that they had concealed weapons during the surrender. On the very day of the surrender, at the make-shift prison, two of Dostum's commanders were killed by prisoners with grenades in two separate suicide-grenade incidents. Despite these incidents, security at the prison was not reinforced.On the 25th, two CIA
Central Intelligence Agency
The Central Intelligence Agency is a civilian intelligence agency of the United States government. It is an executive agency and reports directly to the Director of National Intelligence, responsible for providing national security intelligence assessment to senior United States policymakers...
officers, one from the highly secretive Special Activities Division
Special Activities Division
The Special Activities Division is a division in the United States Central Intelligence Agency's National Clandestine Service responsible for covert operations known as "special activities"...
, Johnny "Mike" Spann
Johnny Micheal Spann
Johnny Micheal "Mike" Spann was a paramilitary operations officer in the Central Intelligence Agency's Special Activities Division. Spann was the first American killed in combat during the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan in 2001.-Early life:Johnny Micheal Spann was originally from the small town of...
, a retired Marine
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
, and another, Dave Tyson, an Uzbek
Uzbek language
Uzbek is a Turkic language and the official language of Uzbekistan. It has about 25.5 million native speakers, and it is spoken by the Uzbeks in Uzbekistan and elsewhere in Central Asia...
speaker and area expert, arrived at Qala-i-Jangi to carry out the interrogations. These CIA officers questioned the prisoners, especially an American captured fighting with the Taliban, John Walker Lindh
John Walker Lindh
John Phillip Walker Lindh is a United States citizen who was captured as an enemy combatant during the United States' 2001 invasion of Afghanistan. He is now serving a 20-year prison sentence in connection with his participation in Afghanistan's Taliban army...
. At that time they only recognized that Lindh was a western-looking prisoner and different from the others, so he was singled out. Part of the interview is shown on British Television (Channel 4 news), Spann asked "are you a member of the IRA?" (This question was asked because Lindh was told to claim he was Irish to "avoid problems.")
Approximately two hours after the interviews began, the prisoners attacked Spann, Tyson and the few Northern Alliance Guards.
The prisoners over-ran Spann and some of the other guards as well as capturing the southern half of the Qala-i-Jangi fortress, including the fort's armory. The prisoners helped themselves to a large store of AK-47
AK-47
The AK-47 is a selective-fire, gas-operated 7.62×39mm assault rifle, first developed in the Soviet Union by Mikhail Kalashnikov. It is officially known as Avtomat Kalashnikova . It is also known as a Kalashnikov, an "AK", or in Russian slang, Kalash.Design work on the AK-47 began in the last year...
s, RPG
Rocket propelled grenade
A rocket-propelled grenade is a shoulder-fired, anti-tank weapon system which fires rockets equipped with an explosive warhead. These warheads are affixed to a rocket motor and stabilized in flight with fins. Some types of RPG are reloadable while others are single-use. RPGs, with the exception of...
rocket launchers, mortars
Mortar (weapon)
A mortar is an indirect fire weapon that fires explosive projectiles known as bombs at low velocities, short ranges, and high-arcing ballistic trajectories. It is typically muzzle-loading and has a barrel length less than 15 times its caliber....
and ammunition.
Spann was missing and Tyson managed to escape to the northern and more secure part of the fortress where he found himself trapped with a television crew from the German ARD
ARD (broadcaster)
ARD is a joint organization of Germany's regional public-service broadcasters...
network. He borrowed their satellite phone
Satellite phone
A satellite telephone, satellite phone, or satphone is a type of mobile phone that connects to orbiting satellites instead of terrestrial cell sites...
, and called the US embassy in Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan , officially the Republic of Uzbekistan is a doubly landlocked country in Central Asia and one of the six independent Turkic states. It shares borders with Kazakhstan to the west and to the north, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to the east, and Afghanistan and Turkmenistan to the south....
, requesting reinforcements. Tyson specifically requested no air support, due to the proximity of allied Afghan forces. The Afghans also brought reinforcements: personnel and a T-55
T-55
The T-54 and T-55 tanks were a series of main battle tanks designed in the Soviet Union. The first T-54 prototype appeared in March 1945, just before the end of the Second World War. The T-54 entered full production in 1947 and became the main tank for armored units of the Soviet Army, armies of...
tank entered the compound and started firing into the prisoner-controlled area. Several other television crews arrived on the scene of the battle, ensuring it got one of the widest media coverages of the whole war. The successive stages of the fighting were filmed extensively, providing rare footage of special forces units in combat.
At 2:00 pm a mixed Special Ops team, formed with nine U.S. Special Forces
United States Army Special Forces
The United States Army Special Forces, also known as the Green Berets because of their distinctive service headgear, are a special operations force tasked with six primary missions: unconventional warfare, foreign internal defense, special reconnaissance, direct action, hostage rescue, and...
and six British Special Boat Service
Special Boat Service
The Special Boat Service is the special forces unit of the British Royal Navy. Together with the Special Air Service, Special Reconnaissance Regiment and the Special Forces Support Group they form the United Kingdom Special Forces and come under joint control of the same Director Special...
operators, arrived and joined the Afghans firing at the prisoners from the northern part of the fort. Starting at 4:00 pm until nightfall, they directed nine airstrikes against the entrenched prisoners, who continued to put up a fierce resistance. Despite Tyson's requests, several 500-pound precision-guided bombs were dropped in an attempt to destroy the armory, which was now serving as a firebase for the prisoners.
The next day, the Alliance soldiers set up a command post near the Northern gate, to direct their tank and mortar fire. By mid morning they were joined by US forces divided into three teams, a close air support team designated CAS1 that went inside the fortress along the bottom of the northeast tower to direct bombing strikes into the southern courtyard, a second close air support team designated CAS2 that positioned itself near the main gate of the fortress and a QRF or Quick Reaction Force consisting of four more Special Forces soldiers, a Navy surgeon, and eight men of the 10th Mountain Division.
At 11:00 pm, a GBU-32
Joint Direct Attack Munition
The Joint Direct Attack Munition is a guidance kit that converts unguided bombs, or "dumb bombs" into all-weather "smart" munitions. JDAM-equipped bombs are guided by an integrated inertial guidance system coupled to a Global Positioning System receiver, giving them a published range of up to...
guided bomb, weighing 2,000 pounds (957 kg), directed by the Air Force combat controller on the CAS-1 team, mistakenly hit his own position, killing four (some sources say 30) Northern Alliance soldiers on the northeast tower above the CAS-1 team, destroying a tank and injuring all members of the CAS-1 team, including five U.S. and two British Operators.
That night two AC-130
Lockheed AC-130
The Lockheed AC-130 gunship is a heavily-armed ground-attack aircraft variant of the C-130 Hercules transport plane. The basic airframe is manufactured by Lockheed, while Boeing is responsible for the conversion into a gunship and for aircraft support...
Spectre gunships circled over the fortress (callsigns GRIM 11 and GRIM 14), firing thousands of rounds at the uprising prisoners. The main ammunition depot was hit, creating a huge explosion which continued to burn throughout the night.
By the morning of the 27th the prisoner resistance had slackened, and the Alliance soldiers were able to mount an attack supported by tanks and APCs and by the end of the day they had recaptured most of the fort. The Americans recovered Spann's body, which the prisoners had booby trap
Booby trap
A booby trap is a device designed to harm or surprise a person, unknowingly triggered by the presence or actions of the victim. As the word trap implies, they often have some form of bait designed to lure the victim towards it. However, in other cases the device is placed on busy roads or is...
ped with a grenade.
The original holding cell in the basement of a central building still held Taliban fighters who refused to surrender. In the attempts to finish the battle, Northern Alliance fighters shot rifles into, threw grenades into, and finally poured oil into the basement and lit it afire. This still failed to either kill all Taliban survivors or force them to surrender.
On the 28th General Dostum arrived on the scene of the battle, and tried to persuade the last prisoners still holding out in the basement to surrender. His entreaties had no effect. The basement was subsequently flooded with frigid irrigation water on November 29. The final Taliban fighters surrendered on the 1st of December. 86 of the estimated 300-600 prisoners who were brought to the fortress emerged from the flooded basement. Survivors included the "American Taliban" John Walker Lindh.
Aftermath
Afghan soldiers looted the bodies, even extracting gold teeth. At least two wounded prisoners were executed. A number of the dead were found to have been killed with their arms tied behind their back.Of the 86 prisoners who survived the battle, one was found to be American citizen John Walker Lindh
John Walker Lindh
John Phillip Walker Lindh is a United States citizen who was captured as an enemy combatant during the United States' 2001 invasion of Afghanistan. He is now serving a 20-year prison sentence in connection with his participation in Afghanistan's Taliban army...
, who had moved to Afghanistan to help the Taliban battle the Northern Alliance
Northern Alliance
The Afghan Northern Alliance is a military-political umbrella organization created by the Islamic State of Afghanistan in 1996.Northern Alliance may also refer to:*Northern Alliance , a Canadian white supremacist group...
. Shortly after the battle, a journalist working for CNN
CNN
Cable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
, Robert Young Pelton
Robert Young Pelton
Robert Young Pelton , is an author, journalist and documentary filmmaker. Pelton is considered an adventurer and a "witness" to conflict. Pelton is known for overcoming extraordinary obstacles in his search for the truth...
, managed to interview Lindh. Lindh was later repatriated to the United States to face charges of treason
Treason
In law, treason is the crime that covers some of the more extreme acts against one's sovereign or nation. Historically, treason also covered the murder of specific social superiors, such as the murder of a husband by his wife. Treason against the king was known as high treason and treason against a...
.
The other surviving prisoners were transferred to Camp X-Ray
Camp X-Ray
Camp X-Ray was a temporary detention facility at the Guantanamo Bay detention camp of Joint Task Force Guantanamo on the U.S. Naval Base in Guantánamo Bay, Cuba.The first twenty detainees arrived at Guantanamo on January 11, 2002....
at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
.
For his actions during the battle, Major
Major (United States)
In the United States Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps, major is a field grade military officer rank just above the rank of captain and just below the rank of lieutenant colonel...
Mark Mitchell, a U.S. Army Special Forces officer, was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross
Distinguished Service Cross (United States)
The Distinguished Service Cross is the second highest military decoration that can be awarded to a member of the United States Army, for extreme gallantry and risk of life in actual combat with an armed enemy force. Actions that merit the Distinguished Service Cross must be of such a high degree...
, the first such decoration to be awarded since the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
. Additionally Chief Petty Officer
Chief Petty Officer
A chief petty officer is a senior non-commissioned officer in many navies and coast guards.-Canada:"Chief Petty Officer" refers to two ranks in the Canadian Navy...
Stephen Bass was awarded the Navy Cross
Navy Cross
The Navy Cross is the highest decoration that may be bestowed by the Department of the Navy and the second highest decoration given for valor. It is normally only awarded to members of the United States Navy, United States Marine Corps and United States Coast Guard, but can be awarded to all...
to for his actions while attached to the British Special Boat Service
Special Boat Service
The Special Boat Service is the special forces unit of the British Royal Navy. Together with the Special Air Service, Special Reconnaissance Regiment and the Special Forces Support Group they form the United Kingdom Special Forces and come under joint control of the same Director Special...
.
For his "extraordinary heroism" in fighting off the prisoners long enough to allow his colleagues to escape, Spann was awarded the CIA's rare Intelligence Star
Intelligence Star
The Intelligence Star is an award given by the Central Intelligence Agency for a "voluntary act or acts of courage performed under hazardous conditions or for outstanding achievements or services rendered with distinction under conditions of grave risk." The award citation is from the Director...
. Because the Intelligence Star is considered analogous to the Silver Star
Silver Star
The Silver Star is the third-highest combat military decoration that can be awarded to a member of any branch of the United States armed forces for valor in the face of the enemy....
, he was allowed burial at Arlington National Cemetery
Arlington National Cemetery
Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington County, Virginia, is a military cemetery in the United States of America, established during the American Civil War on the grounds of Arlington House, formerly the estate of the family of Confederate general Robert E. Lee's wife Mary Anna Lee, a great...
.
At Spann's memorial at the Arlington National Cemetery they stated that after being attacked, Spann "fought with his AK-47
AK-47
The AK-47 is a selective-fire, gas-operated 7.62×39mm assault rifle, first developed in the Soviet Union by Mikhail Kalashnikov. It is officially known as Avtomat Kalashnikova . It is also known as a Kalashnikov, an "AK", or in Russian slang, Kalash.Design work on the AK-47 began in the last year...
until it ran out of ammunition, then drew his pistol and emptied it, before turning to hand to hand combat which saw him shot". According to members of a German television crew who were later trapped in the fort with the other CIA officer named "Dave", Spann asked the prisoners who they were and why they joined the Taliban. They massed around him. "Why are you here?" Spann asked one. "To kill you," came the reply as the man lunged at Spann's neck. Mike Spann’s family visited the fortress after his death. Afghan doctors on site at the time of the riot gave the Spann family the following account. They said they "thought Mike might run and retreat, but he held his position and fought using his AK rifle until out of ammo, and then drew and began firing his pistol,” Spann’s father said. While watching Mike fight they were able to jump up and run to safety. They said the only reason that "they and several others were able to live was because Mike stood his position and fought off the prisoners while enabling them the time to run to safety".
Those involved
- John Walker LindhJohn Walker LindhJohn Phillip Walker Lindh is a United States citizen who was captured as an enemy combatant during the United States' 2001 invasion of Afghanistan. He is now serving a 20-year prison sentence in connection with his participation in Afghanistan's Taliban army...
- Abdul Jabar (Qala-i-Jangi captive)Abdul Jabar (Qala-i-Jangi captive)Abdul Jabar was a captive who survived the Qala-i-Jangi prison riot.An article published in the New York Times described Abdul Jabar as a 26-year-old citizen of Uzbekistan, from Tashkent....
- Yaser Esam HamdiYaser Esam HamdiYaser Esam Hamdi is a now-former American citizen who was captured in Afghanistan in 2001. It is claimed by the U.S. government that he was fighting against U.S. and Afghan Northern Alliance forces with the Taliban...
Controversy
Due to the high number of prisoner casualties, and the heavy weaponry used to subdue them, the Northern Alliance and the coalition were accused of breaking the Geneva ConventionsGeneva Conventions
The Geneva Conventions comprise four treaties, and three additional protocols, that establish the standards of international law for the humanitarian treatment of the victims of war...
, by using disproportionate means.
One of the prisoners, Abdulaziz al-Oshan, later summarised the incident telling American authorities at Guantanamo Bay, "They called it an uprising and it's not; it's some kind of massacre
Massacre
A massacre is an event with a heavy death toll.Massacre may also refer to:-Entertainment:*Massacre , a DC Comics villain*Massacre , a 1932 drama film starring Richard Barthelmess*Massacre, a 1956 Western starring Dane Clark...
". Amnesty International
Amnesty International
Amnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
called for an independent inquiry, but this was rejected by the U.S. and British governments, who argued that the fanatical resistance of the uprising fully justified the use of airpower and heavy weapons against them.
Another controversy surrounds the mismanagement of the prisoners that made the rebellion possible.
The Taliban were not properly searched after their capture, enabling them for instance to smuggle grenades into the fortress. Dostum himself later admitted this had been a mistake. Also, Qala-i-Jangi had been until recently a Taliban base, meaning that the prisoners knew the layout of the place and the location of the armory. It seems that Dostum had planned to hold them at a nearby airfield, but was denied this by the Americans, who were using the airfield to ferry in supplies.
By interrogating the prisoners in a group, rather than separately, protected by very few guards, they put themselves at the mercy of men who were known to be dangerous. George Tenet
George Tenet
George John Tenet was the Director of Central Intelligence for the United States Central Intelligence Agency, and is Distinguished Professor in the Practice of Diplomacy at Georgetown University....
, then director of the CIA, dismissed the accusations of mismanagement and incompetence, and instead described his agents as "heroes". In Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Bob Woodward
Bob Woodward
Robert Upshur Woodward is an American investigative journalist and non-fiction author. He has worked for The Washington Post since 1971 as a reporter, and is currently an associate editor of the Post....
's book Bush at War, Spann is described as a hero whose actions saved the lives of many.
See also
In the documentary "The House of War" film maker Paul YulePaul Yule
Paul Harris Yule is a photographer and film maker.Born in South Africa his family emigrated to England when he was 8 years old. After studying at Aldenham School and Oxford University he became an acclaimed photojournalist and documentary film maker, founding Berwick Universal Pictures in London in...
and Robert Young Pelton
Robert Young Pelton
Robert Young Pelton , is an author, journalist and documentary filmmaker. Pelton is considered an adventurer and a "witness" to conflict. Pelton is known for overcoming extraordinary obstacles in his search for the truth...
provided a detailed account of these events. Interviews and footage from CNN, ARD, and elsewhere (Dodge Billingsley and recovered interrogation footage) show Mike Spann and Dave Tyson moments before the uprising.
Robert Young Pelton
Robert Young Pelton
Robert Young Pelton , is an author, journalist and documentary filmmaker. Pelton is considered an adventurer and a "witness" to conflict. Pelton is known for overcoming extraordinary obstacles in his search for the truth...
's The World's Most Dangerous Places
The World's Most Dangerous Places
Robert Young Pelton's The World's Most Dangerous Places is a frequently updated handbook written by Pelton and an unusual crew of contributors. Although it is not meant to be used as an actual travel guide, like Frommer's, the book's advice to staying alive and the facts about the world's most...
one hour special "Inside Afghanistan" details his time with the US Special Forces team (ODA 595) working with Dostum's soldiers, and his part in the battle. It also covers how he discovered and interviewed Lindh, and later returned Lindh to his compound for protection.
A partly fictional but detailed account of the battle and of its context can be found in the second part of Frederick Forsyth
Frederick Forsyth
Frederick Forsyth, CBE is an English author and occasional political commentator. He is best known for thrillers such as The Day of the Jackal, The Odessa File, The Fourth Protocol, The Dogs of War, The Devil's Alternative, The Fist of God, Icon, The Veteran, Avenger, The Afghan and The Cobra.-...
's novel The Afghan
The Afghan
The Afghan is a 2006 thriller novel by Frederick Forsyth, and concerns a planned Al Qaeda terrorist attack to take place against an unspecified target. As with other Forsyth novels, the full details of the plot are not revealed until the end...
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External links
- Photo gallery of the uprising
- Robert Young Pelton's account of the battle
- "The Truth About John Walker Lindh" by Journalist Robert Young Pelton, Tuesday, January 24, 2006
- Video footage of American and British Special Forces at Qala-i-Jangi