Exclusive: Former Gitmo Detainee Now Working for U.S.<snip>
Since Guantanamo, he has returned to his life as a farmer and calls himself a "business agent," buying and selling cows and sheep for villagers. His village of 30 people is not far from an American base, so he attended a veterinarian clinic held by Agribusiness Development Team from California National Guard 40th ID.
"He came up and talked to me in perfect English and I didn't recognize him as a translator," said Lt. Col. Max Velte. Then Mohammed explained how he knew English.
"I, of course, didn't believe him," Velte said.
Velte is the mission commander for the ADT. After researching Mohammed's story, Velte determined that Mohammed was a former detainee: Internment Serial Number: 902.
He knew that Mohammed's live stock skills were essential for the work his Agribusiness Development Team, which is helping to improve the local economy by providing agricultural support, including free veterinarian clinics which offer vaccinations and medicine for farm animals.
The team hired him to work at their clinics and he was allowed on the American base to meet with U.S. officials, but after two weeks he was refused clearance. Now, he works at U.S.-run clinics off the base several times a month.
Mohammed works as a translator when needed, and he is prized for his good humor, animal skills and understanding of American culture. He can be bluntly impatient, however. When asked the age of his cow by a reporter, he quickly said the question was "stupid." He later apologized.
Not everyone is a fan of Mohammed and there is some distrust among those who know his background.
"Who speaks seven languages and is a farmer?" asked one U.S. soldier.
Mohammed, however, professes to have little sympathy for the Taliban.
When asked recently if he supported the Taliban, the former detainee smirked and used the word "stupid" again, though it was directed elsewhere.
"The PRT guy
makes the building, the school, everything," said Mohammed. "The Taliban doesn't make anything for us. Stupid guy, the Taliban."
http://abcnews.go.com/International/Afghanistan/guantanamo-detainee-taj-mohammed-gitmo-now-works-americans-afghanistan/story?id=9908017&page=1