Category: Middle East

UK’s Johnson Says G-7 Agreed That Taliban Must Allow Departures From Afghanistan After Aug. 31

Leaders of the powerful Group of Seven (G-7) nations agreed that the Taliban terrorist group must let people evacuate from Afghanistan past Aug. 31, United Kingdom Prime Minister Boris Johnson said. The group, which includes the United States, agreed in the meeting on “not just a joint approach to dealing with the evacuation but also…


Taliban Threaten Afghanistan’s Cultural Heritage: Film Maker

Brent E. Huffman, the director of “Saving Mes Aynak,” an acclaimed documentary about efforts to preserve a 5,000-year-old settlement containing Buddha statues, paintings, and other artifacts near Kabul, is concerned about the fate of Afghanistan’s cultural heritage under the Taliban. The archeological site of Mes Aynak sits on top of the world’s second-largest copper ore…


France: Afghan Refugee ‘Obviously Linked’ to Taliban Arrested in Paris

An Afghani man who was recently flown from Kabul to Paris has been detained by French police over suspected links to the Taliban and after failing to comply with a quarantine order, authorities confirmed. French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin announced on Tuesday that among five Afghan refugees who had been placed under strict surveillance by the…


Taliban Urges Afghans Not to Flee Afghanistan, Refuses to Budge on Deadline

The Taliban on Tuesday said Afghans should not leave Afghanistan and refused to agree to an extension of the looming U.S. withdrawal deadline. “We are sending a message to the Americans again to evacuate their citizens by [Aug. 31] because they have the means to do so, they have planes and the airport is with…


Women Soccer Players Leave Afghanistan on Evacuation Flight

KABUL, Afghanistan—Players from Afghanistan women’s national soccer team had an “important victory” on Tuesday when they were among a group of more than 75 people evacuated on a flight from Kabul. Global soccer players’ union FIFPRO thanked the Australian government for making the evacuation of players, team officials, and family members possible, with work continuing…


UK Defence Minister: Evacuation of Afghan on ‘No-Fly’ List Wasn’t Security Fail

The British defence minister has insisted that the security system was working as it should do when an Afghan who was on a “no-fly” watchlist landed in the UK on an evacuation flight. Defense Secretary Ben Wallace said that the term “no-fly” refers to a broader category of watchlists and requirements and doesn’t mean a…


Security-Focused EU Ramps up Humanitarian Aid for Afghans

The EU announced a ramped-up Afghan aid program that an official said it would seek safety guarantees on the ground and coordination with the United Nations to deliver, as the bloc’s executive and G7 leaders prepare to discuss the crisis in the country. European Commission head Ursula von der Leyen said the European Union would…


Afghan Envoy Tells UN That Millions Live in Fear Under Taliban

GENEVA—A senior Afghan diplomat from the deposed government on Tuesday called for accountability for Taliban actions, describing an “uncertain and dire” situation where millions of people fear for their lives amid reports of forced marriages and door-to-door searches. Addressing an emergency session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, Ambassador Nasir Ahmad Andisha called…


Extension to Evacuation Window in Afghanistan Unlikely, UK Warns

LONDON—The U.S. government is unlikely to extend the evacuation window to allow its citizens and Afghans more time to fly out of Kabul, British defence minister Ben Wallace said ahead of emergency talks by G7 leaders. U.S. President Joe Biden will face pressure to extend an Aug. 31 deadline to evacuate thousands seeking to flee…


More Than 7,000 Evacuated From Afghanistan by UK Military

The British military has so far evacuated 7,109 people out of Afghan capital Kabul, the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) has said. The figure includes embassy staff, British nationals, those eligible under the Afghan Relocation and Assistance Policy (ARAP) programme, and a number of nationals from partner nations, the MoD said late on Monday. Armed…