Airbnb to house 20,000 Afghan refugees globally for free; CEO Brian Chesky seeks hosts

Airbnb will be housing 20,000 Afghan refugees globally for free, company CEO Brian Chesky said on August 24. Amidst an exacerbating refugee crisis, Chesky put out a Twitter statement stating that Airbnb has partnered with multiple NGOs and partner organizations on the ground to “support the most pressing needs” of the Afghan residents. “The displacement and resettlement of Afghan refugees in the US and elsewhere are one of the biggest humanitarian crises of our time. We feel a responsibility to step up,” he said. 

In addendum, he also asked for people to step up as hosts for the internally displaced Afghans. In his tweet, Chesky reckoned that people who are willing to host a refugee family can reach out to the company, which will, in turn, connect them with the “right people”. While he did not specify the countries where Airbnb was particularly seeking hosts, he expressed hope that his actions will inspire other leaders to do the same. 

Australia's biggest evacuation

This comes as Australia's Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Tuesday said that Australia and New Zealand officials evacuated more than 650 people from Kabul Airport over Monday night. The Prime Minister also said that Tuesday five flights had left the airport on the busiest day of Australian involvement in evacuations since the Taliban took control of the country.

Fresh clashes 

Meanwhile, the German military on August 23 informed that a member of the Afghanistan security force was killed and three others were wounded in a firefight with unknown attackers at Kabul airport. According to AP, there is no further information on who the attackers were as of now. The shooting near the military side of the airport came as the Taliban sent fighters northward to face a nascent rebellion against the insurgents who seized the country over a week ago in a lightning offensive. 

As per reports, the gunfire that killed the Afghan officer early Monday broke out near the airport's northern gate. Who opened fire and the circumstances of the shooting around 6.45 am local time remained unclear. However, the German military said that one member of the Afghan security forces was killed and three others were wounded by “unknown attackers”. 

Image: AP