For love of country

TDT | Manama

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

Talk about patriotism, a Filipino-American soldier from US Navy gallantly “saved” a Philippine flag from being taken down, if not totally destroyed, by the Taliban forces in Kabul airport during their takeover two months ago.

US Naval Officer Lieutenant Commander Emiliano C. Rabor, who is currently stationed as Deputy Director Medical Planner of Task Force 51/5 with headquarters at the US Navy Central Command (NAVCENT) base in the Kingdom of Bahrain, handed over the flag to former Philippine Ambassador to Bahrain Alfonso A. Ver.

A short but meaningful ceremony for its turnover was held at the residence of Lt. Cmdr. Rabor during a farewell reception he and his wife, Fil-Am Lory Evanoso Edera-Rabor, hosted in honour of Ambassador Ver who left Bahrain at the conclusion his tour of duty on 30 September. Lt. Cmdr. Rabor, who like his wife is orginally from Butuan City in Mindanao, south of the Philippines, retrieved the flag at the Hamad Karzai International Airport (HKIA) in Afghanistan in August as hundreds tried to flee the Taliban who were poised to overrun the capital Kabul and take over the airport. Lt. Cmdr. Rabor, fondly called “Em” by his friends and fellow Filipinos in Bahrain, grew up in the Philippines before migrating to the US where he later joined the US Navy.

He was part of the US military contingent tasked to secure the HKIA to oversee the withdrawal of American citizens, Afghans and other nationals from the onslaught of the Islamic State-Khorasan Group (ISIS-K) who were threatening the airport with rocket fire and mobile explosives.

During the operation, Lt. Cmdr. Rabor saw the Philippine flag prominently at the airport, which he felt was most likely displayed to represent the hundreds of Filipinos who had worked in Afghanistan since the start of the 20-year US-led coalition.

He knew of the dedication and resilience of the Filipinos who were widely admired by the US and coalition forces.

He was sure that the flag would be unceremoniously taken down, if not totally destroyed, once the Taliban arrive, which was an eventuality that he would not, by any means, allow to happen.

 Upon finishing his mission in Afghanistan and returning to base in Bahrain, Lt. Cmdr. Rabor decided to turn over the flag to Ambassador Ver and hoped that the diplomat would be able to find the Filipino workers who originally displayed the flag at the HKIA.

Ambassador Ver praised the action of Lt. Cmdr. Rabor in “saving” the flag and vowed to locate the whereabouts of the workers and return the Philippine flag to them who had ably and honestly represented their home country in Afghanistan from 2011 until they had to leave 20 years later.