UAE moving Emirati and foreign diplomats out of Afghanistan


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Afghanistan latest: Live updates as Kabul airport rushed by people seeking flights out

The departure of UAE diplomats from Afghanistan was "well under way," the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation said on Monday.

Several nations provided aircraft to assist in the evacuation effort of the UAE's diplomatic mission.

The diplomats were expected to arrive in the UAE from Kabul on Monday night and on Tuesday.

"The ministry can also confirm that the UAE is currently working on facilitating a safe evacuation from Afghanistan through UAE airports, of diplomatic staff from France, the United Kingdom, the European Union, Canada, Australia, the Office of the United Nations Food Programme, the United States, Germany, and Egypt," said a statement released on Monday.

"This comprehensive evacuation of embassy personnel is due to the current security situation in Kabul, which requires immediate action."

Commercial flights in and out of Kabul were halted late on Sunday.

Special charter services and military transports from various countries were still in operation on Monday, as governments sought to retrieve diplomats and foreign workers who were in Kabul when the Taliban took the city on Sunday.



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Updated: August 16, 2021, 8:33 AM