US friends try to rescue brother in arms in Afghanistan

By ALEX SANZ and TAMMY WEBBER
Associated Press

American friends of a high-profile national police officer in Afghanistan are trying to help him and his family escape almost certain death at the hands of the Taliban. Mohammad Khalid Wardak worked alongside American special forces for many years and even went on television to challenge the Taliban to a fight. He had planned to defend his homeland after U.S. forces were gone. But then the government collapsed, and now he’s in hiding. He desperately hopes that American officials will repay his loyalty by helping him and his family escape to another country. One U.S. official says the Taliban are shouting the officer’s name in the streets as they hunt for him.