Our Mission
A Voice for Two Nations is a platform for stories that share a common soul, explore the fringes of combat and the devastation of war, and the deep bond between the people of the US and Afghanistan.
Timothy Torres, Founder
"I want to share stories from the fringes of combat, few Americans truly understand Afghanistan and its people. It is our goal to expose those to the truth of the last 20 years."
Timothy Torres spent the majority of his adult life in Afghanistan. First fighting from the mountains of Tora Bora to the sand of Kandahar and Helmand. Then as a diplomat trying to ensure the prosperity and security of Afghanistan. Tim has worked extensively with Afghans both in battle and across a desk. His love for the country and people are the reason he started this project and hopes to tell the stories of the last 20 years.
“All written material associated with Tim on this site or any other site are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Department of the Army, DoD, or U.S. Government.”
Jason Criss Howk, Senior Editor/VP
Jason is an award-winning book author and freelance writer of articles, commentary, monographs, and studies. His latest book details 30 years of leadership lessons he observed. He is a member of the Military Writers Guild, and his bylines include: CNN, Fast Company, Foreign Policy, The National Interest, ClearanceJobs News, Military Times, The Cipher Brief, USIP, The Global Observatory, SWJ, Divergent Options, FTGN, The Bridge, The Forge, The Foreign Service Journal, The FAOA Journal, Observer, Task&Purpose, Business Insider, RC Defense and Politics, USAWC, NPS, O-Dark-Thirty, and various Afghan newspapers.
In 2015 he retired from the U.S. Army after 23 years conducting defense, diplomacy, education and intelligence missions. Jason spent the majority of his career working on or in Afghanistan, and now enjoys helping Afghans and Veterans write and publish.
In Afghanistan he was involved in the creation of the Afghan National Army and establishing the Security Sector Reform (SSR) program as Aide De Camp to MG Eikenberry. Later, he served as ADC to GEN McChrystal during the US and NATO strategic assessment of the Afghan War campaign. Next he assisted LtGen (retired, UK Army) Sir Graeme Lamb to help the Afghan government create the Afghan Peace, Reintegration and Reconciliation policy. Later he led two teams that watched Afghanistan and Pakistan for DC policymakers.
Jason studied Dari (Afghan Farsi) and Arabic at the Defense Language Institute. He is a Malone Fellow in Arab and Islamic Studies, is an interfaith leader, and was a term-member of the Council on Foreign Relations. He earned his master's degree in South Asian and Middle Eastern Security Studies from the Naval Postgraduate School.
Nasirullah "John" Safi, Advisor/Associate Editor
Nasirullah "John" Safi was born and raised in the war-torn country of Afghanistan under the Taliban regime. While many schools were closed at that time due to radicalism and extremism, he had a desire to always learn more from a very young age. He began a path to acquire an education no matter how hard the road was. He bounced back and forth between Madrassas and homeschooling to fulfill the dream of becoming a medical doctor, a profession that Safi and his mother chose because she suffered from chronic illness and he wanted to help her. Unfortunately, attending Madrassas wouldn't help him achieve his goals. In 2001, a U.S.-led coalition began the war on terror that not only changed his life for better, it improved the lives of millions of Afghan men, women, and children as well.
Buy his new book “Get the Terp Up Here!” on our homepage.
Melanie Benson, Associate Editor
Melanie Benson served as the editor for "Get the Terp Up Here": War as an Interpreter to U.S. Forces in Kunar Province by Nasirullah "John" Safi (forthcoming, Tamarisk Press). She currently serves as the Senior Global Practice Area Coordinator for Social Impact at the Boston Consulting Group, based in Paris, France. Melanie has over a decade of program management and operations experience serving organizations within both the public and private sectors. She holds a M.A. in International Conflict Resolution from the George Washington University and a B.A. in International Affairs, Political Science and Spanish from Marquette University.
A. Rahman Rahmani, Associate Editor
Abdul Rahman Rahmani is a former Afghan Special Mission Wing Pilot and Afghan National Security Council staff member and policy writer. He is the author of Afghanistan: A Collection of Stories. Colonel Rahmani is an Expeditionary Warfare School graduate from Marine Corps University and is currently attending the Eisenhower School, National Defense University in Washington DC where he is pursuing his master’s degree in National Security and Resource Strategy. His U.S. bylines include CNN, Military Times, The Strategy Bridge, Small Wars Journal, Defense Once, and ClearanceJobs News.
Mike Karlson, Associate Editor
Mike Karlson is an Army Civil Affairs Major. He commissioned as a Transportation Officer through ROTC in 2008 from the Virginia Military Institute. He holds a Master of Arts in Strategic Security Studies from the National Defense University and a MA in Organizational Leadership from Brandman University. His operational experience extends across several countries throughout the Indo-Pacific region, as well as Afghanistan.
He writes on a broad range of topics including military leadership, US defense policy in the Indo-pacific region, humanitarian assistance, and the role of Civil Affairs in Great Power Competition. His work has been published in the Small Wars Journal, From the Green Notebook, Clearance Jobs ‘News & Career Advice’, the Center for Excellence for Disaster Management’s Liaison Journal, and the Civil Affairs Association’s Eunomia Journal. He served as a managing editor for the Eunomia Journal from 2019-2021. Recorded podcasts include episodes for the ‘One CA’ podcast and ‘The Spear’. Mike is a member of the Military Writers Guild.
Najibullah Sahak, Associate Editor
Dr. Najibullah Sahak came to the United States in October 2007. He worked as a Senior Advisor to Department of Culture and Counter Insurgency at Fort Riley until 2009. Dr. Najib is an Associate Professor at the Defense Language Institute in Monterey, CA, where he has taught for 11 years.
Prior to coming to the U.S. Doc Najib worked with US military forces in Afghanistan from 2001 until October 2007 as a translator at US Embassy in Kabul. He was assigned to assist the Commanding Generals of OMC-A, OSC-A, and later CSTC-A. “Doc” traveled to every province of Afghanistan, numerous times, to help the United States engage with senior Afghan officials and local elders. During these long years Dr Najib continued to provide medical care to citizens of Kabul in his off-time and often worked through the night without sleeping before he came back to work at the US Embassy.
Dr. Najib became a US Citizen and has continued to pursue academic and professional goals while raising his family. In 2016 he completed his Master of Arts in Organizational Leadership and later an MA in Education.
Jud Crane, Associate Editor
Jud Crane is a veteran of the intelligence community where he worked extensively on Afghanistan. He holds a Master of International Public Policy (Strategic Studies) from Johns Hopkins University, School of Advanced International Studies, and a Bachelor in International Affairs (Conflict and Security) from the George Washington University.