A retired Canadian soldier who made headlines for helping around 100 people flee Kabul, Afghanistan when the city was taken over by the Taliban in 2021, has reportedly been captured by the Taliban. Known popularly as 'Canadian Dave,' David Larvey was among the few Canadians at Hamid Karzai International Airport after Kabul fell, and helped several people escape.
The report of Larvey's disappearance was published by CTV News citing multiple sources. The report says that since his retirement from the Canadian Army, Larvey has been humanitarian aid and support in Afghanistan. He also runs a company in Afghanistan, called Raven Rae Consulting Services, which is based out of Kabul.
As per the CTV News report, Larvey had traveled to the city on Monday (November 11) and was "picked up" by Taliban soldiers shortly after landing. The whereabouts of 'Canadian Dave' is currently unknown but the sources cited in the report said that they believed he was being held by the Taliban.
Global Affairs Canada, the office of the country's foreign ministry, said in an email to CTV News that they are “aware of an incident involving a Canadian in Afghanistan. " The email added: "Canadian officials continue to monitor the situation closely and are providing consular assistance.”
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Why Is He Known As 'Canadian Dave?'
According to reports, as the Taliban was on course to take over Kabul in August 2021, David Larvey was given a mission to extract more than 1000 people trying to seek refuge in Canada. There was a severe rush at the airport that day with people trying to flee the country en masse. And Larvey was tasked with identifying these people with valid documentation and putting them on a flight to Canada from the airport in Kabul.
The people who were supposed to be picked up by Larvey were told to look for a man named 'Canadian Dave.' That is how the retired soldier became popular in Afghanistan by that name.