Sayed Rahmatullah Hashemi ( ps, سيد رحمت الله هاشمى) is a former

envoy Envoy or Envoys may refer to: Diplomacy * Diplomacy, in general * Envoy (title) * Special envoy, a type of diplomatic rank Brands *Airspeed Envoy, a 1930s British light transport aircraft *Envoy (automobile), an automobile brand used to sell Bri ...

of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan. '

Sayed ''Sayyid'' (, ; ar, سيد ; ; meaning 'sir', 'Lord', 'Master'; Arabic plural: ; feminine: ; ) is a surname of people descending from the Islamic prophet Muhammad through his grandsons, Hasan ibn Ali and Husayn ibn Ali, sons of Muhammad ...

' is an

honorific An honorific is a title that conveys esteem, courtesy, or respect for position or rank when used in addressing or referring to a person. Sometimes, the term "honorific" is used in a more specific sense to refer to an honorary academic title. It ...

title that indicates lineage with the family of the Banu Hashem. He later attended

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Sta ...

as a non-degree student, but his application to the bachelor degree program was rejected after condemnation from American conservatives.

Biography

Rahmatullah was born in

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bord ...

, to

Pashtun Pashtuns (, , ; ps, پښتانه, ), also known as Pakhtuns or Pathans, are an Iranian ethnic group who are native to the geographic region of Pashtunistan in the present-day countries of Afghanistan and Pakistan. They were historically r ...

parents. In mid 1980s, his family moved to

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

. Rahmatullah grew up in Pakistan and was educated in the Pakistani school system. His schooling was fragmented, but he did emerge proficient in

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national id ...

as well as

Pashto Pashto (,; , ) is an Eastern Iranian language in the Indo-European language family. It is known in historical Persian literature as Afghani (). Spoken as a native language mostly by ethnic Pashtuns, it is one of the two official languag ...

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

, and

Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
''

. In 1994, Rahmatullah worked as a

computer operator A computer operator is a role in IT which oversees the running of computer systems, ensuring that the machines, and computers are running properly. The job of a computer operator as defined by the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics is to ...

and

translator Translation is the communication of the meaning of a source-language text by means of an equivalent target-language text. The English language draws a terminological distinction (which does not exist in every language) between ''transla ...

at the zonal sub-office of Afghanistan's

Ministry of Foreign Affairs In many countries, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is the government department responsible for the state's diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral relations affairs as well as for providing support for a country's citizens who are abroad. The enti ...

Kandahar Kandahar (; Kandahār, , Qandahār) is a city in Afghanistan, located in the south of the country on the Arghandab River, at an elevation of . It is Afghanistan's second largest city after Kabul, with a population of about 614,118. It is the ca ...

. He was appointed to the position of diplomat in the Afghan Embassy in

Islamabad Islamabad (; ur, , ) is the capital city of Pakistan. It is the country's ninth-most populous city, with a population of over 1.2 million people, and is federally administered by the Pakistani government as part of the Islamabad Capita ...

, Pakistan in 1998. In this capacity, he traveled around the world as an envoy of the Afghan Foreign Ministry of the

Taliban The Taliban (; ps, طالبان, ṭālibān, lit=students or 'seekers'), which also refers to itself by its state name, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a Deobandi Islamic fundamentalist, militant Islamist, jihadist, and Pas ...

regime. When top Taliban leaders were banned from foreign travel, Rahmatullah acted as representative of the regime on foreign visits.

Yale attendance controversy

In 2004, an American friend, Mike Hoover—a CBS cameraman who had sponsored his 2001 trip—suggested applying to college in the US. In 2005, Rahmatullah was admitted to

Yale Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...

as a non degree student. In 2006, conservative sentiment arose opposing Rahmatullah studying at Yale University and questioning outright his presence in the United States. As of April 2006, Yale has published the following comment on its website: : ''Yale has allowed Mr. Hashemi to take courses for college credit in a part-time program that does not award Yale degrees... We hope that his courses help him understand the broader context for the conflicts around the world... According to the State Department, Ramatullah Hashemi was issued U.S. visas in 2004 and 2005, first on a tourist visa and then in 2005 on a student visa. The mandatory procedures were followed, which, in his case, included vetting through an interagency security clearance process. He was cleared by all agencies."''University statement on Mr. Hashmi's enrollment as a part-time, non-degree student
''

Office of Public Affairs'', 29 March 2006 A recent non-scientific poll conducted by the

Yale Herald ''The Yale Herald'' is a newspaper run by undergraduate students at Yale University since 1986. A weekly, the paper aims to provide in-depth, investigative reporting, and includes personal essays, interviews, opinion pieces, culture articles, revi ...

—a student-run weekly newspaper—which was answered by 2,000 undergrads, concluded that 50% of Yale supported Hashmi's acceptance and about 25% opposed it. In July 2006, Rahmatullah was denied admission to the Eli Whitney Students Program, Yale's degree-granting program for non-traditional students.

References

External links

Transcript
* *
"You've Got Mail (It's From Yale): A university official calls Taliban critics "retarded" while the university maintains a stony silence"
''

Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' is an American business-focused, international daily newspaper based in New York City, with international editions also available in Chinese and Japanese. The ''Journal'', along with its Asian editions, is published ...

'', 13 March 2006
Ivory Tower Stonewall: A 9/11 survivor asks Yale to explain why it admitted the Taliban Man
''

'', 3 April 2006 {{DEFAULTSORT:Hashemi, Rahmatullah 1978 births Afghan diplomats Living people Pashtun people Taliban members Yale University alumni Afghan emigrants to Pakistan People from Quetta Hashemite people Afghan people of Arab descent