A Taliban fighter stands guard at Kabul airport on September 11. The former Afghan commando was reportedly flown out from the capital in August. AFP
A Taliban fighter stands guard at Kabul airport on September 11. The former Afghan commando was reportedly flown out from the capital in August. AFP
A Taliban fighter stands guard at Kabul airport on September 11. The former Afghan commando was reportedly flown out from the capital in August. AFP
A Taliban fighter stands guard at Kabul airport on September 11. The former Afghan commando was reportedly flown out from the capital in August. AFP

UK police arrest Afghan special forces commando rescued from Kabul


Nicky Harley
  • English
  • Arabic

British police have arrested an Afghan special forces commando who was flown to the UK from Kabul.

The married father, in his 30s, was arrested by armed police in Manchester under the Immigration Act on behalf of the Home Office.

He had been staying at a hotel in the city with his family while in quarantine. Police raided his room last week.

According to The Times, he had served alongside Norwegian special forces during the Afghan conflict and had been allowed into the UK in August under the government's Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy scheme.

The scheme offers relocation or other assistance to current and former locally employed staff in Afghanistan.

Police are allowed to detain him for up to 96 hours without charge if he is suspected of a serious crime. If a person is suspected of terrorism they can be detained for 14 days.

It is believed the man has now been held for longer than 96 hours.

Military sources told The Times that he had not served with British special forces and that they had no knowledge of him committing any offences or having links with the Taliban.

A Home Office representative declined to comment on the case.

The UK has flown more than 15,000 people from Afghanistan.

Last month it was revealed that a man on the UK's banned flight list had been flown into Birmingham.

The specs

Engine: 5.0-litre supercharged V8

Transmission: Eight-speed auto

Power: 575bhp

Torque: 700Nm

Price: Dh554,000

On sale: now

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%3Cp%3ECompany%20name%3A%20EduPloyment%3Cbr%3EDate%20started%3A%20March%202020%3Cbr%3ECo-Founders%3A%20Mazen%20Omair%20and%20Rana%20Batterjee%3Cbr%3EBase%3A%20Dubai%2C%20UAE%3Cbr%3ESector%3A%20Recruitment%3Cbr%3ESize%3A%2030%20employees%3Cbr%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%20Pre-Seed%3Cbr%3EInvestors%3A%20Angel%20investors%20(investment%20amount%20undisclosed)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The specS: 2018 Toyota Camry

Price: base / as tested: Dh91,000 / Dh114,000

Engine: 3.5-litre V6

Gearbox: Eight-speed automatic

Power: 298hp @ 6,600rpm

Torque: 356Nm @ 4,700rpm

Fuel economy, combined: 7.0L / 100km

Why it pays to compare

A comparison of sending Dh20,000 from the UAE using two different routes at the same time - the first direct from a UAE bank to a bank in Germany, and the second from the same UAE bank via an online platform to Germany - found key differences in cost and speed. The transfers were both initiated on January 30.

Route 1: bank transfer

The UAE bank charged Dh152.25 for the Dh20,000 transfer. On top of that, their exchange rate margin added a difference of around Dh415, compared with the mid-market rate.

Total cost: Dh567.25 - around 2.9 per cent of the total amount

Total received: €4,670.30 

Route 2: online platform

The UAE bank’s charge for sending Dh20,000 to a UK dirham-denominated account was Dh2.10. The exchange rate margin cost was Dh60, plus a Dh12 fee.

Total cost: Dh74.10, around 0.4 per cent of the transaction

Total received: €4,756

The UAE bank transfer was far quicker – around two to three working days, while the online platform took around four to five days, but was considerably cheaper. In the online platform transfer, the funds were also exposed to currency risk during the period it took for them to arrive.

What went into the film

25 visual effects (VFX) studios

2,150 VFX shots in a film with 2,500 shots

1,000 VFX artists

3,000 technicians

10 Concept artists, 25 3D designers

New sound technology, named 4D SRL

 

While you're here
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Updated: September 11, 2021, 5:32 PM