Faisal Saeed Al Mutar watched in horror as Afghanistan fell to the Taliban this week.
As a refugee who fled Islamic fundamentalism in Iraq, the 30-year-old activist now lives in New York City and has spent his life trying to spur freedom in the Middle East.
Despite two decades of military support, he believes the US failed to fortify the Afghan people with a democratic ideology that would sustain their battle for freedom.
“People can’t fight for democratic values if they don’t know what democracy means,” said Faisal, the founder of the pro-liberty organization Ideas Beyond Borders, which spreads democratic ideas to the Middle East. “This was one of the biggest failures of the intervention.”
