In the last day of the Martyr Week which started on September 9, 2018, an ode of respect for those who sacrificed their lives to save and defend their homeland, many martyred leaders, as well as brave soldiers and security forces who lost their lives in the field or fighting, were reminded and appreciated for their services across Afghanistan.
Afghanistan has suffered most casualties in its security forces. Along with the attacks inside the cities, many Afghan National Army and security forces died at the borders of Afghanistan.
It was on August 25, 2018, when the head of an engineering and demining team at the border regiment No.2, was exploring the mine along the road to neutralize it in the center of Paktia province, which claimed his life.
Captain Matiullah Qudrat, the head of engineering and demining team at the border regiment No.2 of Gardez, was one of the Afghan border forces officers who worked in the field of mine detection and clearance.
Matiullah Qudrat
Captain Matiullah Qudrat, was the main resident of the center of Maidan Wardak province, born in 1987. He joined the ranks of the country’s border forces in 2010 after graduating from the Kabul National Police Academy and chose to work in the field of demining.
Matiullah was the eldest son of the family and, after his father’ death was leading his family affairs. But, he has left behind his mother, brothers, wife and his five children.
His older daughters, Zohra and Fahima, are still school-going girls. After the death of their father, they found that they were now devoid of their father’s care and support. However, their younger siblings Masihullah, Shukrullah and Mujibullah still expect their father to come home.
In the line of Services
Captain Qudrat had removed over 300 different types of mines since 2011 in various missions across Paktia, Paktika and Khost provinces; in 2016, on the route of the Jani Khel district of Paktia Province, he discovered and disabled more than 70 roadside mines. Colleagues and friends of Matiullah have said that with the discovery and disabling of these mines thanks to Captain Qudrat, the Afghan security forces managed to recapture the district of Jani Khel.
Matiullah eventually lost his life at the age of 31, while serving the country in the midst of removing a mine in one of the villages around the Gardez city, the provincial center of Pakita province.
Last Conversation
On the Second day of Eid-al-Adha in 2018, while calling his brother to talk to his uncle who had just returned from a trip, Captain Qudrat and his brother were not aware that this would be their last conversation, the last visit and the last word.
The following day, on a Saturday at 3 am in the morning, there was a knock on the door. One of Matiullah’s sons, opened the gate, to see his father’s friend calling for his uncle, Samiullah. Samiullah, to his absolute horror found out from the visitor that his brother Matiullah had been injured and was being taken to the 400-bed hospital in Kabul.
Samiullah rushed to the hospital. With great difficulty, he made it to the hospital just in time and waited for his brother’s arrival. As the ambulance arrived, Samiullah decided to talk to the one in charge.
“When I asked if they have brought the injured, they said that he was a martyr, I asked them with great concern about his identity. First they said “Samiullah Qudrat”, and I said no,maybe that is “Matilullah Qudrat”, and after seeing the identity sheet of my brother, I realized that is him “.
It was hard for Samiullah to take his brother’s corpse home, his impatient mother called him every second and asked about her son, and each time Samiullah told her that Matiullah was wounded. It was only when their mother called for the third time asked to go to the hospital and check herself that Samiullah told his mother to not come. He informed his mother that he is going to bring Matiullah home and this is when it dawned on his mother that she had lost her dear son Matiullah.
A Husband Who Will not Come Home Again
Matiullah’s mother understood the grave loss she and Captain Qudrat’s entire family just suffered, and shed tears as she could feel the pain of her son’s death. But at the same time, Matiullah’s wife was probably the one who was suffering the most In the tough and testing moments of her life, she always had her husband by her side, but now she came to the morose realization of her husband’s demise and suddenly felt helpless and weak.
After hearing of her husband’s demise, she remained silent for 10 days, as if her soul left her body. Mrs. Qudrat was depressed and did not speak to anyone. She did not eat and she missed her husband at home, and like any other wife, she wished for her husband to come back once more.
The family, who sacrificed their son Matiullah Qudrat, live together as a joint family. After the death of the his father, Matiullah was the head of the family and after him, his brother Samiullah who is a taxi driver, has to take the onus of being the head of the family. Samiullah himself works in the Ministry of Education in the reporting department; he got married just 8 months ago.
6 brothers, who have been staying together through all the thick and thins of life all these years, have now lost the eldest brother.
Samiullah, the younger brother of Matiallah, will be in charge of the major duty; he must raise his brother’s children. Samiullah also faces the hardest ordeal of having to tell his nephews that their father is no more.
After Him
“For most of these days, I don’t go to work so that I can take them out. They do not ask a lot about their father, but only a few days ago, one of my nephews, Hamid, told his brother Shukrollah that father will come home tomorrow. That’s when Shukrollah turned to ask me whether Hamid was right. I had a lump in my throat but I controlled myself, and replied, “Yes, dear!” Your father comes! But not soon, he will come home in a while. ”
Captain Matiullah Qudrat died for the sake of his homeland, Afghanistan. His mother has to take care of his children’s mental health. The Qudrat family live in average living conditions; two brothers are employed and after the death of Matiullah, they are in charge of the family expenses. Captain Qudrat’s brother has said that so far, the government has provided some financial assistance and after they handed Matiullah’s weapon and followed some other procedures, they hope to get the compensation that is entitled to a deceased Afghan warrior that their brother was.
