Jawed Wassel (1959 - October 3, 2001) was an Afghan-American film director who made the film FireDancer, which was the first Afghan film to be submitted for an Academy Award.
Wassel immigrated from Afghanistan and was living in New York City. He previously lived in Pakistan, Germany and France before entering the United States.[1] Wassel was murdered on October 3, 2001, by his American business partner, Nathan Chandler Powel.[2] His killer, Nathan Powel, pleaded guilty on August 18, 2003, and was sentenced to 25 years.[3][4]