Exclusive
TRUE HERO
Heartwarming moment interpreter & family facing death by Taliban are reunited with hero who help them escape Afghanistan
“DO you remember me?” British soldier Adam Croucher asks as he kneels beside a little boy.
Unsure at first, eight-year-old Afghan refugee Sepehr Vesal nods — before giving him a fist bump.
6
6
Their initial meeting, two years ago, had been fleeting but would prove to be life-saving for the young lad and his parents, Burhan, 36, and Narcis, 32.
The young Afghan family feared for their lives when the Taliban swept to power in 2021.
As a former interpreter and translator for the British Army, Burhan faced almost certain death if he stayed in Afghanistan.
But they were rescued from the jaws of hell by 40-year-old Adam, a Company Sergeant Major with 2Para, who was deployed to the war-torn country as part of Operation Pitting, the biggest evacuation since the end of World War Two.
READ MORE ARMY NEWS
Thanks to Adam, the family have now started a new life in Aberdeen.
And on the second anniversary of their rescue, The Sun brought Adam and the Vesal family together for an emotional reunion.
Burhan immediately steps forward to hug Adam and says: “Finally, my dream has come true.
For so long, I have wanted to find him, to hug him, and to thank him for his service and hard work on behalf of all Afghans.
Most read in The Sun
“I feared I may lose my life if I stayed in Afghanistan. God sent him to help me, I will never forget it.
“Adam is an angel for what he did. He saved our lives.”
Narcis adds: “After the evacuation, we were always looking to meet Adam once again. I am really happy.”
Can of Irn Bru
An embarrassed Adam admits: “It’s not often I get called an angel. It makes me feel a bit uncomfortable. This is a special occasion for me.”
Burhan worked for the British Army in Helmand Province from 2008 until 2011.
It made him and his family an immediate target.
They went into hiding when the country fell to the Taliban on August 15, 2021, in what Burhan described as “the blink of an eye”.
He says: “I had worked shoulder to shoulder with the British Army. We were the first target for the Taliban.
“Their orders were, ‘First, shoot the interpreters because they are the eyes and ears of the British Army’ — because we were translating their communications.
“There were two options if we stayed. I probably would have faced a life sentence or been murdered by the Taliban seeking revenge on those who worked with foreign agencies.”
Those workers with connections to the UK, like Burhan, were given the paperwork allowing them to come here.
And in a desperate bid to escape the hellhole, they risked their lives to make their way to a canal near the Baron Hotel, where evacuees were being processed.
Burhan recalls: “I was exhausted. We were standing there from morning until evening. I put Sepehr on my shoulders, as I feared that he would get crushed.
“The people were pushing and shoving. I had to protect him from going under the feet of others.
“Narcis was behind me, holding on to me so I didn’t fall into the filthy canal.”
It was here that Adam — who was on his third deployment to Afghanistan — plucked them out of the crowd of thousands.
Burhan is still in disbelief that Adam spotted them in the mayhem.
Just ten days earlier, the day after the Taliban took control of Kabul, around 60,000 civilians had flooded the city’s airport in a bid to escape, almost thwarting the mass evacuation.
Dad-of-two Adam, who has since been promoted to Regimental Quartermaster Sergeant with 3Para, explains: “We were trained to identify certain things and Burhan met all the criteria for me — his qualifying paperwork, his son on his shoulders, all the key things . . .
“We helped a lot of families while there. The reason this one stuck out for me was the fact they’re a family unit just like my family. My son is a couple of years younger than Sepehr.”
The Vesals flew out on August 24, in the final days of the mass airlift.
Just over 1,000 members of the British military helped save 15,000 civilians from almost certain death, in just two weeks.
6
6
Once he had fled Afghanistan, former battlefield interpreter Burhan used his Army contacts to try to track down Adam, but to no avail.
After The Sun interviewed Adam in June ahead of critically acclaimed Channel 4 series Evacuation, which he featured in, he candidly admitted: “I would love to meet them again.”
So we flew the family from Aberdeen to meet Adam, who lives in Colchester with wife Ali, 35, a corporal with the Adjutant General’s Corps, and their sons Oliver, 15, and six-year-old Max, at our London studios.
As the Vesals hand over a bag of gifts, the soldier laughs as he pulls out a can of Irn Bru.
He says: “I’ve not had one of these for a while.”
There is also a book — Journeys To Impossible Places: In Life And Every Adventure, by Simon Reeve — as well as two mugs, one with a map of Scotland and the other a Highland cow, and a red Hot Wheels car.
Burhan says to Adam: “That’s for your youngest son. Sepehr chose it.”
He thanks the boy, before proudly exclaiming: “You’re a proper lad. The presents were fantastic. A lot of thought had gone into them.”
Adam is also full of questions for the trio, such as asking where they now live, whether they miss home and how they are settling into their new life in the UK.
The Vesal family spent five months living in “bridging hotels” before moving to Aberdeen after a member of the public, Helga MacFarlane, heard about them and offered them use of a flat she owns.
‘I’m very excited’
Now working as a security guard, Burhan plans to study to become a mechanic.
Narcis is due to attend college to improve her English.
In Kabul, she worked as a hospital gynaecologist, but she must complete a language certificate and further medical training before she can work as a doctor in the UK.
She says: “I’m very excited to start work again.”
Sepehr impresses us all with his knowledge of eagles, prompting Adam to say to his parents: “He’s clever. Is he doing well at school?”
Narcis nods, with Sepehr adding that his favourite subject is maths.
Sepehr says: “I remember the evacuation and Adam but I couldn’t exactly picture him in my head.”
Adam also recalls the brief conversation he had with the family near the canal.
He says to Narcis: “I’m pretty sure you told me not to smoke.”
She nods, a little embar-rassed. After saving their lives, he offered them a cigarette but Narcis snatched it and stamped it out, telling him: “I’m a doctor and smoking is bad for you.”
Laughing at the memory, Adam says incredulously: “The world was falling around all of us and I was not allowed to smoke!”
Burhan says the family have been overwhelmed by the kindness of strangers.
Helga, whose own mother Helene was a refugee during World War Two and an interpreter for the British Army, is letting them live rent-free while they get back on their feet.
Burhan says: “She is an amazing woman. If there were more people like her, the world would be such a beautiful place.”
The Vesals fled Afghanistan with just a few bags of belongings but local families have donated items, including toys, for Sepehr.
And last October they were introduced to King Charles, who was in Aberdeen to speak to families from Afghanistan, Ukraine and Syria who have been resettled in the city.
Burhan says: “It was an honour to meet the King. He knew a lot about Afghanistan.”
Narcis’s parents and sister also managed to escape Afghanistan and now live in Australia but Burhan’s wider family are still trapped there.
He says: “My brother was in the army but has gone into hiding. My sister was a teacher but is now at home because she is not allowed to work, as she is a woman. There’s no future for them in Afghanistan. It’s very hard for them.”
Burhan hopes to return to his home country one day, but feels it is not safe at the moment.
He says: “Even now, if they find me or any of my colleagues, I am sure we will face the worst kind of punishment.”
Adam joined the Paras in 2001 and was deployed to Afghanistan that same year.
He is now in talks with a production company who want to make a film about his role in Operation Pitting, which he looks back on as the most emotionally draining tour of his 22-year career.
He recalls how his troops witnessed innocent civilians being crushed, and were handed dead babies from the crowd.
Reflecting on the non-combative operation, he says: “Obviously, it was a difficult thing not being able to save more than what we wanted to save. We were there to do a job.
“We overachieved in what we were sent to do, already. However, quantifying that all together, the experience of meeting a specific family, which I saved, has been an absolute pleasure for me.
“Two years is a long time and I’m glad it’s come around.”
He adds: “The Sun has always been a great supporter of the British Army and from the bottom of my heart, thank you very much for making this happen.”
READ MORE SUN STORIES
And Burhan says: “I’m really grateful to the Sun for making this moment happen.”
- Evacuation is available to watch on .
6
6
Topics