Canadian veteran released by Taliban after more than two months

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Retired Canadian soldier David Lavery, who made it his life’s work to help allies in Afghanistan escape Taliban rule only to be detained by that country’s government, has been released and is recuperating in Qatar.

This is according to both Canada’s Foreign Affairs Minister and the Veteran’s Transition Network (VTN), a Canadian charity Lavery partnered with to assist individuals fearing and fleeing persecution from the Taliban for having helped the Canadian Armed Forces in Afghanistan during the active conflict there.

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“I just spoke with David Lavery upon his safe arrival in Qatar from Afghanistan,” Mélanie Joly wrote on X late Sunday night. “He is in good spirits.”

She went on to thank Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani, also the nation’s minister of foreign affairs and part of the ruling royal family, for helping to facilitate his release.

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“We are immensely relieved to know that a friend, father, veteran and Canadian humanitarian is out of harm’s way,” VTN CEO Oliver Thorne was quoted in a statement that offers some new information on the “complex story.”

Who is ‘Canadian Dave’?

After his military service ended in 2000 and following a decade as a United Nations security advisor in Afghanistan and other countries in states of conflict, the veteran relocated to Kabul where he founded Raven Rae Afghanistan.

According to VTN, the company “offered holistic life services, secure accommodations, and strategic business support for clients navigating challenging environments.”

Lavery and VTN teamed up in the summer of 2021 after then-U.S. President Joe Biden began pulling troops out of the country and the Taliban began taking control of the government.

As they did so, Lavery and VTN were providing “safe houses, life support and evacuation services” to people fearing Taliban retribution.

“Dave bravely remained at the airport assisting Afghan allies until August 26, 2021, when he and his wife boarded one of the final German evacuation flights, departing as an Islamic State Khorasan suicide bombing attack targeted Afghan civilians waiting to enter the Kabul airport,” VTN recounted.

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During this time he earned the nickname Canadian Dave, the person Afghan refugees were instructed to look for at the airport in Kabul.

Since then, VTN and Lavery have continued the work — now funded by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada since 2023 — making repeated visits to secure “the safe passage of vetted Afghans.”

Remembrance Day detainment

On Nov. 11, 2024, VTN said Lavery was making one of those visits and also planned to lay a wreath at Afghanistan’s Canadian Memorial at the Sherpur Cantonment in Kabul in recognition of Remembrance Day.

But upon arrival, Lavery was stopped and held by Taliban’s General Directorate of Intelligence (GDI), in whose custody he remained for the next 76 days. It took VTN and his family “several weeks” to find out “through independent sources” that he was safe.

At the time, VTN said Lavery had all the appropriate documents from an Afghan government that was aware of his presence and the exact nature of his work.

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Fearing public and media speculation could “jeopardize” his return, VTN and the family said little about why he was detained at the time and they’ve chosen to say little about it now after his release, at least for the time being.

“While we recognize that people want to hear Dave’s story directly, we ask that the Canadian public and media allow him privacy and time with his family,” reads VTN’s statement, promising more information “in the near future.”

The National Post has contacted Global Affairs Canada for more information.

Qatar’s role in Lavery’s release

Like Joly, VTN thanked the Qatar Government for its role.

VTN extends its profound gratitude and thanks to all those who assisted in Dave’s release,

“The last 10 weeks have been a roller coaster of emotions for everyone involved, especially as we have had to navigate an incredibly complex situation while avoiding publicity,” stated Tim Laidler, VTN’s Afghan support director.

“We are incredibly thankful to everyone who helped formally and informally to bring home Canadian Dave — especially the Government of Qatar and our friends in Doha.”

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Last week, it was reported that Qatari officials were instrumental in the negotiations to secure the release of American citizens Ryan Corbett and William McKenty and the Middle East nation is also a key mediator in Israel-Hamas discussions.

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