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Taliban Cut Off My Nose, Ears for Voting: Farmer

Kabul hospital turned him away due to overcrowding

By Neal Colgrass, Newser Staff

Posted Aug 30, 2009 7:50 PM CDT

(Newser) – An Afghan farmer who dared walk to a polling place for the presidential election 10 days ago paid a bitter price, losing his nose and both ears in a Taliban attack, the Independent reports. In the first account by a victim of election retribution, Lal Mohammed, 40, says three militants beat him to the ground, where one sat on his chest and sliced off his ears and nose. Mohammed's assailants left him lying on the road, perhaps as an example to others.

Drifting in and out of consciousness, Mohammed rode a donkey to a taxi that drove him to a Kabul hospital—which turned him away due to overcrowding. He borrowed about $400 to buy medicine and is trying to recover at home, where he sobs when describing his ordeal: "Poor people suffer in this country, I do not know whether the elections will change that," he says. "I do not think I will try to vote again, I am now very frightened."

[Images (1)]

[Quotes (1)]

An Afghan farmer winnows paddy at a farm in Narang district near Pakistani border in Kunar province eastern Afghanistan, Sunday, Nov. 2, 2008. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool)

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I am not involved in the war and I do not have anything to do with foreigners. Look at my hands, I am only a farmer, I only work on the land. - Lal Mohammed, Afghan farmer

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COMMENTS

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Showing 3 of 11 comments

Spudsy

Sep 2, 2009 3:30 AM CDT

A country that has religion in its government is doomed. If only the wingnuts here would realize that. To quote the father of our country - “The government of the United States is not in any sense founded on the Christian Religion” George Washington.

jagerhans

Sep 1, 2009 8:26 AM CDT

talibans are what we all know but definitely not cowards. i'd like to see you all fighting against the most powerful army in the world in the middle of the crappiest desert ever where you can barely wipe your ass with a rock shard, and have the guts to attack and encircle troops sustaining every time extremely heavy losses . what is the ratio of KIA personnel in comparison between the Allied Army and the goat sheperds? 1-20 ? 1-50 ? Yet they don't give up, because it is their god damned country. you never learn shit, and i always respect courage.

jagerhans

Aug 31, 2009 9:54 AM CDT

come on. stop pretending that this war is being fought for human rights. in years of war the opium fields are still there, women still wear burqas (we did not forget the fake shots of afghani women throwing burqas away) and Kharzai still signs laws that allow to exploit and oppress women. the Soviet did way, way, way more to force Afghanistan into XX century. they forced them goat fuckers with bayonets to let women and children go school and promote culture and progress because they also acted truly driven by a high moral imperative - bringing the light of Communism to oppressed people. You are not but birds of prey ridiculously disguised as doves. And with your great idea of causing the URSS to invade Afghanistan you destabilized that area swelling the power and influence of religious radicals. you hypocrisy is loathsome and your bloody claws lurk through those ridiculous white feathers you wear.

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Taliban Cut Off My Nose, Ears for Voting: Farmer