How the Pineapple Express saved 1,000 Afghans from the Taliban
The withdrawal of the remaining U.S. armed forces from Afghanistan last year ended America’s longest war and ignited a frenzied evacuation as the Taliban reclaimed power. Hundreds of thousands of Afghans – civilians, government officials, members of the security forces – converged on the airport in Kabul in a desperate attempt to flee.
Scott Mann watched the wrenching scenes on TV at his home in Tampa, Florida, with a mix of despair and frustration. The retired Green Beret, who ended his 23-year Army career as a lieutenant colonel in 2012, had trained Afghan special forces commandos during multiple deployments to the country. When one of them, Nezamuddin Nezami, known to friends as Nezam, asked for his help to get out, Mr. Mann chose to funnel his despair into action.
