Taliban forces secure the Hamid Karzai International Airport after the US withdrawal, in Kabul, Afghanistan. EPA
Taliban forces secure the Hamid Karzai International Airport after the US withdrawal, in Kabul, Afghanistan. EPA
Taliban forces secure the Hamid Karzai International Airport after the US withdrawal, in Kabul, Afghanistan. EPA
Taliban forces secure the Hamid Karzai International Airport after the US withdrawal, in Kabul, Afghanistan. EPA

Linda Norgrove Foundation's staff stuck in Kabul facing 'incessant gunfire'


Paul Carey
  • English
  • Arabic

A Scottish Afghan charity is still working to extricate its staff from Kabul.

The Linda Norgrove Foundation said its staff have been forced to return to their homes after a “relentless 46 hours” facing gunfire at the city’s airport.

UK Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said on Tuesday that diplomatic staff were dealing with the hundreds of cases of people left behind following the two-week airlift.

The US completed its evacuation mission from Kabul's airport late on Monday, bringing to an abrupt end its two-decade military intervention in Afghanistan and leaving the country once more in the hands of the Taliban.

The foundation was set up in memory of Linda Norgrove, who was killed after being kidnapped by the Taliban. AFP
The foundation was set up in memory of Linda Norgrove, who was killed after being kidnapped by the Taliban. AFP

The Linda Norgrove Foundation was set up in memory of a Scots aid worker who was killed after being kidnapped by the Taliban.

Ms Norgrove’s parents, John and Lorna, established the charity as a way of continuing their daughter’s work after she died in an attempted rescue by US forces in 2010.

The foundation previously said it has two staff, sisters aged 25 and 29, who were “holed up in their flat in Kabul” after the Taliban seized control of the city.

In a statement on Twitter, it said evacuation attempts had so far failed.

“After a relentless 46 hours at the airport entrance, either in a bus or a panicky crowd, with incessant gunfire and the constant, real threat of a terrorist bomb, our staff and their family returned home safely”, it said.

Earlier, the charity said the family members of staff that it had tried to evacuate included a 9-month-old baby.

The staff and their families were “just inches away” from evacuation, it said, but efforts were in vain.

It said it would not be giving up its support for women and children in Afghanistan and that it hoped the government would be able to arrange evacuation over the coming weeks.

Meanwhile, a former English language teacher stranded in Afghanistan said he regrets working with the UK mission in the country because of the grave danger he now faces.

The unnamed teacher said he has been targeted by the Taliban because his face is on billboards in Afghanistan advertising English classes.

  • A Taliban fighter stands near a vehicle that was used to fire rockets at the Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, Afghanistan. EPA
    A Taliban fighter stands near a vehicle that was used to fire rockets at the Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, Afghanistan. EPA
  • Multiple rockets fired from a car landed near the Kabul airport on Monday. EPA
    Multiple rockets fired from a car landed near the Kabul airport on Monday. EPA
  • People watch remnants of flames after rockets were fired towards Kabul's international airport and intercepted by a missile defence system. Reuters
    People watch remnants of flames after rockets were fired towards Kabul's international airport and intercepted by a missile defence system. Reuters
  • People stand by the shell of a vehicle damaged by a rocket attack. AP
    People stand by the shell of a vehicle damaged by a rocket attack. AP
  • Remnants of flames from cars where rockets were fired towards Kabul's international airport. Reuters
    Remnants of flames from cars where rockets were fired towards Kabul's international airport. Reuters
  • Taliban fighters stand guard outside the Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul. EPA
    Taliban fighters stand guard outside the Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul. EPA
  • Smoke billows at the scene following an explosion near the airport in Kabul. EPA
    Smoke billows at the scene following an explosion near the airport in Kabul. EPA
  • A fighter for anti-Taliban forces patrols along a road in Rah-e Tang, Panjshir province. AFP
    A fighter for anti-Taliban forces patrols along a road in Rah-e Tang, Panjshir province. AFP
  • Damage caused by the attack near the airport in Kabul. EPA
    Damage caused by the attack near the airport in Kabul. EPA
  • An Afghan resistance movement fighter stands guard on a road in Rah-e Tang. AFP
    An Afghan resistance movement fighter stands guard on a road in Rah-e Tang. AFP
  • A US Marine carries a baby as the family is processed through the Evacuation Control Centre at the airport in Kabul. AFP
    A US Marine carries a baby as the family is processed through the Evacuation Control Centre at the airport in Kabul. AFP
  • Families flown from Kabul, Afghanistan, arrive at Washington Dulles International Airport, in Chantilly, Virginia. AP
    Families flown from Kabul, Afghanistan, arrive at Washington Dulles International Airport, in Chantilly, Virginia. AP
  • A fighter for the anti-Taliban forces stands guard in Rah-e Tang, Panjshir province. AFP
    A fighter for the anti-Taliban forces stands guard in Rah-e Tang, Panjshir province. AFP
  • Mohammed Jan Sultani's father, Ali, right, looks at his son's Taekwondo championship certificates along with pictures of him in Kabul. Mr Sultani had clutched his national Taekwondo championship certificates as he waded through the multitudes pushing to get into Kabul airport late last week. AP
    Mohammed Jan Sultani's father, Ali, right, looks at his son's Taekwondo championship certificates along with pictures of him in Kabul. Mr Sultani had clutched his national Taekwondo championship certificates as he waded through the multitudes pushing to get into Kabul airport late last week. AP
  • Taliban fighters guard a checkpoint on the main street in Kabul. Reuters
    Taliban fighters guard a checkpoint on the main street in Kabul. Reuters
  • The Taliban's acting Higher Education Minister Abdul Baqi Haqqani gestures while speaking during a consultative meeting on higher education policies at the Loya Jirga Hall in Kabul. AFP
    The Taliban's acting Higher Education Minister Abdul Baqi Haqqani gestures while speaking during a consultative meeting on higher education policies at the Loya Jirga Hall in Kabul. AFP
  • Militiamen loyal to Ahmad Massoud, son of the late Ahmad Shah Massoud, take part in a training exercise, in Panjshir province, northeastern Afghanistan. AP
    Militiamen loyal to Ahmad Massoud, son of the late Ahmad Shah Massoud, take part in a training exercise, in Panjshir province, northeastern Afghanistan. AP
  • The Panjshir Valley is the last region not under Taliban control following their stunning blitz across Afghanistan. AP
    The Panjshir Valley is the last region not under Taliban control following their stunning blitz across Afghanistan. AP
  • People flown from Afghanistan walk to board a flight bound for the US, at the Naval Air Station Sigonella, in Italy, on Saturday. AP
    People flown from Afghanistan walk to board a flight bound for the US, at the Naval Air Station Sigonella, in Italy, on Saturday. AP
  • Caskets carrying the remains of soldiers killed at Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul are placed on board an aircraft for their return to the US. AP
    Caskets carrying the remains of soldiers killed at Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul are placed on board an aircraft for their return to the US. AP

Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, he said: “I regret working with the English. I regret helping people learn English. Why did I work for people who left me and fled and left me alone here? My background is hurting me nowadays.

“They are looking for me because I’ve got pictures in billboards advertised for classes. Also, I worked for the British Council. I worked for the UK for the past eight or nine years.”

The teacher said he tried to flee Afghanistan shortly after the Taliban took over, but found no way to escape.

He said he applied for the UK’s evacuation scheme but had received “no reply”. He said he was able to obtain a Pakistan visa but had been unable to leave safely.

“Last night was the worst,” he said. “It was, the whole night, guns while you’re sleeping. It damages your mind. My fate will be the same, like others.”

Updated: August 31, 2021, 12:39 PM