Some called him the Angel of Afghanistan but most knew him as ‘Canadian Dave.’
When innocent people were fleeing for their lives during the fall of Afghanistan, Dave Lavery was at the Kabul Airport saving as many people as he possibly could.
He was their key to freedom.
Now, it’s the Canadian Forces veteran who needs help slipping the grip of the Taliban.
At Kabul airport’s infamous Abbey Gate, Canadian Dave was personally responsible for getting more than 100 Afghans over the wall and onto flights to freedom in Canada. Now, it seems the fixer who helped fleeing Afghans escape during the fall of Kabul in August 2021 disappeared Nov. 11 in Afghanistan, where he had returned as part of his Raven Rae Consultancy Services business to help extract the hundreds left behind there.
“He is a Canadian hero,” said retired Canadian Forces General Dean Milner who was Canada’s final commander in Afghanistan when they ended their mission there in 2014.
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Now, Lavery is looking for a hero of his own. The problem is that Canada has no standing, nor any contacts, in the Taliban-run Afghanistan.
“Global Affairs Canada is aware of a Canadian detained in Afghanistan,” Global Affairs said in a statement Thursday. “Canadian officials continue to monitor the situation closely and are providing consular assistance.”
Global Affairs is keeping its cards close – common in war zones or hostile countries. Things move slow and information is scarce. People are on a need-to-know basis.
For example, while it is known that Lavery was taken at the Kabul airport, it is unclear if he was arrested, kidnapped, violently assaulted, killed or wounded.
“It’s a rough place,” Milner said. “And he is a well-known figure there.”
It’s believed Lavery had the proper visas to be there – as he was in the country from 2010 until 2021, prior to the Taliban takeover.
Lavery was on one of the last flights to take off from the airport in 2021. It’s unclear if his wife, Junping, and son, Brant, were with him in Afghanistan or are still in Canada.
What Canadian Dave would do in 2021 is stand at the airport and help lift evacuees over wall into rescue. My first understanding of his existence was around August 26, 2001, when retired Lt.-Col. Tony White and I contacted Milner, and then Immigration Minister Marco Mendicino, about including the interpreter from my 2012 trip to Afghanistan on the list to be evacuated.
The Taliban were hunting for Ahmad “Radar” Sadiqi, who worked with Matthew Fisher and Christie Blatchford there as well.
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Milner had arranged for Radar and his family to meet Dave at the airfield, so they dropped everything and went to the airport looking for Dave.
But then came the blast from a suicide bomb that blew up at the Abbey Gate, killing 13 young American soldiers and at least 69 innocent Afghan men, women and children.
They never did connect with Dave. He tried to find them. And they tried to find him. But it was chaotic there. Everything was different after that bomb went off. There would be no more airport rescues, Radar and family had to flee to Pakistan and Dave had to get on a flight out of there.
The next year, in 2022, we got a wounded Radar and family to safety in Canada. They now live in Ottawa and have had a new baby as part of their Canadian dream.
“We didn’t get out as many of our people as we would have liked, but Lavery was a big part of the people that we did manage to rescue,” said Milner. “I would say the number is more than 100, but if you count all the people he helped get out to other countries, the number he got out of harm’s way was more like 1,000.”
It is possible someone had a target on his back or that he’s being held for ransom since he would be considered a high-value kidnapping target.
“The Government of Canada’s first priority is always the safety and security of its citizens,” Global Affairs Canada said. “For this reason, in addition to privacy considerations, we will not comment on, or release any information on, specific cases. Doing so may compromise ongoing efforts or endanger the safety of Canadians.”
Whatever the demands are for Lavery, he’s worth rescuing. After doing so much for others, Canada owes it to help Canadian Dave get home.
What Canadian Dave would do in 2021 is stand at the airport and help lift evacuees over wall into rescue. My first understanding of his existence was around August 26, 2001, when retired Lt.-Col. Tony White and I contacted Milner, and then Immigration Minister Marco Mendicino, about including the interpreter from my 2012 trip to Afghanistan on the list to be evacuated.
The Taliban were hunting for Ahmad “Radar” Sadiqi, who worked with Matthew Fisher and Christie Blatchford there as well.
Milner had arranged for Radar and his family to meet Dave at the airfield, so they dropped everything and went to the airport looking for Dave.
But then came the blast from a suicide bomb that blew up at the Abbey Gate, killing 13 young American soldiers and at least 69 innocent Afghan men, women and children.
They never did connect with Dave. He tried to find them. And they tried to find him. But it was chaotic there. Everything was different after that bomb went off. There would be no more airport rescues, Radar and family had to flee to Pakistan and Dave had to get on a flight out of there.
The next year, in 2022, we got a wounded Radar and family to safety in Canada. They now live in Ottawa and have had a new baby as part of their Canadian dream.
“We didn’t get out as many of our people as we would have liked, but Lavery was a big part of the people that we did manage to rescue,” said Milner. “I would say the number is more than 100, but if you count all the people he helped get out to other countries, the number he got out of harm’s way was more like 1,000.”
It is possible someone had a target on his back or that he’s being held for ransom since he would be considered a high-value kidnapping target.
“The Government of Canada’s first priority is always the safety and security of its citizens,” Global Affairs Canada said. “For this reason, in addition to privacy considerations, we will not comment on, or release any information on, specific cases. Doing so may compromise ongoing efforts or endanger the safety of Canadians.”
Whatever the demands are for Lavery, he’s worth rescuing. After doing so much for others, Canada owes it to help Canadian Dave get home.
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