Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, June/July 2016, pp. 81
Obituaries
Compiled by Kevin A. Davis
Sahabzada Yaqub Khan, 95, a high-ranking Pakistani official, died Jan. 26 of unknown causes in Islamabad, Pakistan. Khan began his career serving with the British Indian Army in North Africa during World War II. He was captured by Axis powers and held prisoner for three years before his eventual release. After his military service, he was appointed ambassador to numerous countries, including France and the United States. Khan is perhaps most known for serving as Pakistan’s foreign minister from 1982 to 1997. Among his many accomplishments are his involvement in the Agha Khan University, his role in negotiating the Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan, and his diplomatic negotiations in the 1977 Hanafi siege in Washington, DC.
Wasil Ahmed, 10, an Afghan war hero, was assassinated by the Taliban in Tarinkot, Afghanistan on Feb. 3. During a 43-day government siege against the Taliban, Ahmed’s father died and the young boy took up arms to aid the Afghan government. He was controversially decorated as a war hero by the Afghan government, a ceremony which was well-publicized, making him an immediate target for the Taliban. As a result, he was shot while running errands in a local market. His death has come to symbolize the questionable role of children in both sides of the conflict and focuses attention on human rights abuses in Afghanistan.
Boutros Boutros-Ghali, 93, an Egyptian politician and former U.N. secretary-general, died Feb. 16 of a broken pelvis in Cairo. A Coptic Christian, he was born in Cairo in 1922. His grandfather, Boutros Ghali, was prime minister of Egypt when he was assassinated in 1910. Boutros-Ghali studied at Cairo University, The University of Paris and Sciences Po in Paris, earning a Ph.D. in international relations. He then taught at Cairo University, University of Paris, Columbia University and the Hague Academy of International Law. He served as Egypt’s foreign minister and deputy foreign minister under President Anwar Sadat, and played a key role in the negotiations between Egypt and Israel. Elected U.N. secretary-general in 1991, he dealt with such crises as the genocide in Rwanda, the Angolan civil war and the breakup of Yugoslavia. Although nominated for a second term, his election was vetoed by the United States.
Joe Lill, 95, a retired U.S. foreign service officer, died March 4 in Arlington, VA. A native of Kansas, Lill served in the Army from 1943-1946 before studying at the University of Kansas. In 1954, he accepted an appointment with the Foreign Service. In the ensuing 25 years he served in Palermo, Beirut, Baghdad and Vienna. Lill was a great friend and supporter of the Washington Report on Middle East Affairs.
Michael Ratner, 72, an attorney and former president of the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR), died May 11 of cancer. Most noted for the Rasul v. Bush case, which he filed on behalf of Guantanamo Bay prisoners against the U.S. government, he argued before the Supreme Court that detainees had a constitutional right to have their cases heard in U.S. courts. He also filed for Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld to be criminally prosecuted for his involvement in the Abu Ghraib scandal, sued the Bush administration in an attempt to end the Gulf war, and sued the Clinton administration to stop the bombing of Kosovo. Ratner was also the author of numerous books and articles on human rights.
