Rozi Khan
Encyclopedia
Rozi Khan was a Pashtun
Barakzai tribal leader in the Afghanistan
province of Orūzgān. In the 1980s he was a Mujahideen
commander fighting against the Soviets
. In 2001 he was appointed police chief of Orūzgān province by President Karzai
, a position he held until 2006. He was made governor of Oruzgan's Chora District
in mid 2008.
Khan's loyalties were suspect, and he often changed sides in political and military struggles. Nevertheless, he was considered a hero in the Netherlands after coming to the assistance of a Dutch unit.
Rozi Khan was killed by friendly fire
on 17 September 2008 in the town of Chora
in firefight involving Australian SAS
soldiers (part of the NATO-backed ISAF
). Rozi received a phone call from a friend who said his home was surrounded by armed men and he feared the Taliban had come to kill him. Rozi then grabbed his gun and, with two of his armed men, ran through the darkness towards his friend's home. There were several armed groups out that night, including Afghan National Police and an Australian special forces patrol. Seeing Rozi and his men heading towards them, the Australians thought they were insurgents and shot Rozi and his two men dead.
Pashtun people
Pashtuns or Pathans , also known as ethnic Afghans , are an Eastern Iranic ethnic group with populations primarily between the Hindu Kush mountains in Afghanistan and the Indus River in Pakistan...
Barakzai tribal leader in the Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
province of Orūzgān. In the 1980s he was a Mujahideen
Mujahideen
Mujahideen are Muslims who struggle in the path of God. The word is from the same Arabic triliteral as jihad .Mujahideen is also transliterated from Arabic as mujahedin, mujahedeen, mudžahedin, mudžahidin, mujahidīn, mujaheddīn and more.-Origin of the concept:The beginnings of Jihad are traced...
commander fighting against the Soviets
Soviet war in Afghanistan
The Soviet war in Afghanistan was a nine-year conflict involving the Soviet Union, supporting the Marxist-Leninist government of the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan against the Afghan Mujahideen and foreign "Arab–Afghan" volunteers...
. In 2001 he was appointed police chief of Orūzgān province by President Karzai
Hamid Karzai
Hamid Karzai, GCMG is the 12th and current President of Afghanistan, taking office on 7 December 2004. He became a dominant political figure after the removal of the Taliban regime in late 2001...
, a position he held until 2006. He was made governor of Oruzgan's Chora District
Chora District
Chora District is a district of Oruzgan Province, Afghanistan. The district center is the town of Chora, with a population of about 3,000. It is a rural town with no industry beyond livestock, agriculture, and small merchants....
in mid 2008.
Khan's loyalties were suspect, and he often changed sides in political and military struggles. Nevertheless, he was considered a hero in the Netherlands after coming to the assistance of a Dutch unit.
Rozi Khan was killed by friendly fire
Friendly fire
Friendly fire is inadvertent firing towards one's own or otherwise friendly forces while attempting to engage enemy forces, particularly where this results in injury or death. A death resulting from a negligent discharge is not considered friendly fire...
on 17 September 2008 in the town of Chora
Chora District
Chora District is a district of Oruzgan Province, Afghanistan. The district center is the town of Chora, with a population of about 3,000. It is a rural town with no industry beyond livestock, agriculture, and small merchants....
in firefight involving Australian SAS
Australian Special Air Service Regiment
The Special Air Service Regiment, officially abbreviated SASR but commonly known as the SAS, is a special forces unit of the Australian Army...
soldiers (part of the NATO-backed ISAF
International Security Assistance Force
The International Security Assistance Force is a NATO-led security mission in Afghanistan established by the United Nations Security Council on 20 December 2001 by Resolution 1386 as envisaged by the Bonn Agreement...
). Rozi received a phone call from a friend who said his home was surrounded by armed men and he feared the Taliban had come to kill him. Rozi then grabbed his gun and, with two of his armed men, ran through the darkness towards his friend's home. There were several armed groups out that night, including Afghan National Police and an Australian special forces patrol. Seeing Rozi and his men heading towards them, the Australians thought they were insurgents and shot Rozi and his two men dead.