John Christopher Turner
John Christopher "Chris" Turner (born 1947) is an American citizen who is notable for his activities in Afghanistan.[1][2][3][4][5]
Biography
During the Soviet–Afghan War, Turner is reported to have served with the anti-Soviet Afghan Mujahideen. Turner is reported to have uploaded a YouTube video where he describes meeting Osama bin Laden, in 1984, when both men were foreign volunteers, helping to fight Afghanistan's Soviet occupiers.
Turner speaks Pashtun and wears a turban and a beard.[5]
On October 28, 2009, while Turner was working for an Afghan trucking firm, he was staying at the Bakhtar guest house when it was attacked by a suicide attack from a band of Taliban.[1][2][3][4][5] Turner described hearing the initial gunfire from the 6am attack, grabbing his AK-47, and waking as many of the other guests as he could, guiding them to the guest house's laundry room, and helping them escape. He said that he and a Nepalese man had held off the attackers while the guests he had roused escaped. Five guests, three attackers, and two of the guest house guards died during the attack.
References
- Sabrina Tavernise, Sangar Rahimi (2009-10-28). "Guarded Afghan Hotel Proved All Too Vulnerable". New York Times. Archived from the original on 2015-10-26.
- Woods, Allan (2009-10-28). "Taliban attacks UN guest house in Kabul". Toronto Star. Archived from the original on 2009-10-31. Retrieved 2010-05-06.
- Robert H. Reid, Heidi Vogt (2009-10-29). "UN workers scramble over roofs during Kabul attack". Yahoo News. Archived from the original on 2009-10-29.
- Hamza Hendawi (2009-10-28). "US contractor says he fights off attack in Kabul". WTOP. Archived from the original on 2011-06-11.
- "US contractor says he fights off attack in Kabul". Boston Herald. 2009-10-28. Archived from the original on 2009-10-29.