"I want you to help my family and friends" SOS from "Senior" August 25, 17:57

On the 15th of this month, news that the Taliban, an armed group that had intensified its offensive in Afghanistan, had conquered the capital Kabul, ran around the world.

I remembered my school days.

An ordinary school where talented people do not gather and rich people do not gather.

The only thing that should be noted is that there was a senior who was a little eye-catching.

A deeply carved face with crisp hair.

The senior was an international student from Afghanistan.

(Director of "International News 2021")

Over 30 messages “I saw the tragedy with my own eyes”

Is my senior safe?

Because of the different grades, I didn't meet after my senior returned to Japan, and I didn't know the contact information.

Search for his name on the SNS of teachers and seniors.

Then, I noticed a nostalgic name written in hiragana.

The picture on the profile screen was a fine old man, but he was definitely a senior.

The last post was on August 10th, 5 days ago.

It ended with a request to save the rapidly increasing number of refugees in Afghanistan.

I never decided to send a message.

I said,

"

I

'm sorry to contact you suddenly. I used to go to the same school. I learned about what was happening in Afghanistan and remembered you. Are you and your family safe?"

A few minutes later, I received a reply.

Senior

"I and my family are safe. Thank you for remembering. I am a witness to what is happening in this country right now. It's a dire situation and everything is in turmoil. People are in danger. Exposed and in dire straits. "

Know what's happening in Afghanistan, but all domestic press say they're staying at home for fear of an attack from the Taliban.

I told him I was the director of a news program on a Japanese TV station and asked him to tell me what was going on, saying it might help.

Senior

"Taliban have already killed the soldiers and citizens in several cities. Now also seems to be looking for collaborators to government officials and international organizations",

"chased a house, to live in the park and the street and that people will have also "

" in addition, because an increasing number of people who try to steal things by using this confusion, must protect the home armed. "

One hour to continue the exchange while making full use of AI translation.

More than 30 messages were sent, and the imminent situation in the area was disgusting.

At dawn, he will take pictures and videos of the town and send it to you.

When asked, "Isn't it dangerous?", The senior replied:

"Of course it's dangerous, but I want you to know this situation more than that."

We promised to stay in touch again and ended the exchange.

“I can't reveal my name and face”

In the program "International News 2021" that I am in charge of, a meeting will be held on the day of the broadcast to discuss the lineup and production method of the day.

Therefore, it was decided to report the exchange with the seniors the day before and cover it in the top news.

When I contacted my senior, photos and videos were sent one after another.

Photos of people rushing to the airport in search of deportation.

A Taliban combatant holding a gun and keeping an eye out for surveillance throughout the city.

Some of them seemed to be corpses thrown to the ground.

I felt that

"more than I imagined must have happened

," and I wondered if I could talk about this situation in the words of my seniors.

I

"Would you like to have an interview online?"

Senior

"I'll tell you as much as I can. I'm sorry, but I can't give you my name and face. I might be targeted by the Taliban."

It has been conveyed that he is still trying to disseminate local information in an environment that is right next to danger.

Never identify who your seniors are.

After consulting with the producer, I decided to process the voice with a machine.

And there was one more thing I had to worry about.

It means that no one should be identified as "I".

When the interviewee cannot show his face, a common technique is to photograph the face or hand of a listener such as a director or reporter.

However, this time, there was a risk that my image would reveal the approximate age of my seniors and, in some cases, my school of origin.

For the same reason, I wrote this article anonymously, but in that sense it may have been the first interview to be so nerve-wracking.

Local reality spoken by seniors

4:30 pm on the 16th (local noon).

The interview has begun.

What surprised me was that the voice of my seniors heard from the other side of the phone was extremely calm.

He says he doesn't want to be upset and worried because he has a young son nearby.

First of all, I decided to listen step by step from the time when the Taliban advanced to Kabul.

I

"Tell me about yesterday"

Senior

"I knew that the Taliban had arrived in Kabul and I went to the airport with my family and friends because I thought I had to leave here anyway. At the airport, many people were crying in horror. I didn't have a visa, but I just wanted to leave here. "

However, the situation does not move even after several hours.

He said he decided to go back once because he was worried about his home.

It seems that I first contacted him just when I got home.

After that, the senior who arrived in the morning without being able to sleep was headed to the hospital where he worked.

Senior

"Around 8 o'clock, I went to the hospital where I was working. I thought there might be an injured person. There was no police or army on the road, and the Taliban was occupying it, and I was doing cross-examination. They were insistently asking people what their jobs were, what their names were, where they were going, and where they lived, in order to find government officials. , Detained on the spot and made a judgment. "

Upon arriving at the hospital, no one was injured and he stroked his chest.

On the other hand, a friend at the airport revealed that he had sent a terrible sight.

Senior

"US military has been sent a video that opened fire towards the people. The first will was a warning shot to avoid confusion.

However," their even me put "and when people flock It seems they started shooting guns at them. You might have thought that American soldiers would be killed by them, but it's too terrible. "

In fact, the Pentagon later admitted that several men were killed in the shootings of the U.S. military at that time.

The question I wanted to ask

The end of a 40-minute interview.

I had something to ask.

It was, "What do my seniors want now?"

I was worried whether it would really help them just by giving them local information.

I

"What do you want from the international community now?"

Senior

"We are not looking for military support. We do not want the Taliban to be attacked. Rather, we are looking for humanitarian support, such as accepting refugees.

" Women are scared. My mother, sisters, and wife were crying all night. No matter how much I'm okay, I'm scared because I know the nightmare of 20 years ago.

Now all women in Afghanistan are threatened. The future of all women is threatened. Help your family and friends. "

What's happening in a continuous world

After the broadcast, I received an e-mail with impressions from teachers and seniors who had a close relationship with my seniors.

What was spelled out was the words, "Please be safe," and the calm memories of the days I spent with my seniors.

What I learned by arranging the desks side by side.

Playing around during breaks.

I went on an excursion together.

And,

"scared at this moment also fear, the Afghan people have spent a day-to-day likely crushed anxiety is, by no means distant world of human beings, lost the words to the fact that our friends of the I"

that was.

The fact that a human who must have seen the same scenery that day is now living in a city where gunshots are ringing, weighs heavily on us who know our former seniors.

I'm still in touch with my seniors as I write this article.

Locally, the airport is still flooded with people seeking evacuation.

When asked, "What are you going to do now?", The senior confessed his determination, saying, "There is no change in the situation where the lives of myself and my family are at risk."

Senior

"I don't know when I can escape to a safe place, but as long as I'm here I want to work for people. I'm a healthcare professional. Many people should need me now."

Director of News Program Department In

charge of international news 2021 etc.