Canada: Chief of Defence announces end of country's Afghanistan evacuation efforts

As the clock ticks down on Western attempts to help people flee Taliban controlled Afghanistan ahead of a full American pullout from the country, a Canadian general announced on Thursday, 26 August, that evacuations from Kabul's airport have come to an end. All other countries must leave the airport before the Americans can complete their mission, General Wayne Eyre, the country's acting chief of defence staff, said. Almost 3,700 people have been evacuated on Canadian military planes.

Canada Ends Afghanistan Evacuation Operations

Saying that it was heartbreaking to not be able to evacuate all those who wanted to leave the war-torn country, General Eyre said that Canada was among the last countries to cease evacuation operations. 

"We stayed in Afghanistan for as long as we could. We were among the last to cease evacuation operations. We wish we could have stayed longer and rescued everyone who was so desperate to leave. That we could not is truly heartbreaking, but the circumstances on the ground rapidly deteriorated," Eyre said.

After the Taliban insisted the USA stick to the Doha agreement, US President Joe Biden said he will follow the 31 August deadline for completing the US pullout, putting further pressure on the already dangerous airlift from Kabul to evacuate as many people out as possible in the coming days.

Afghanistan Evacuation

Canada and its European partners pushed for more time but were unsuccessful, and they may be compelled to end their evacuations a few days before the last American troops leave. Several countries have not yet said as to when they plan to stop their operations, maybe in the hopes of avoiding yet another deadly situation at the Hamid Karzai International Airport that has become the country's only exit point.

Nearly 20 years after being ousted in a US-led invasion in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks, the Taliban reclaimed control of Afghanistan. Many Afghans have fled the nation, fearing retaliation from the fighters or a return to the cruel rule they established during their previous reign of the country.

Many countries participated in the evacuation of individuals fleeing Taliban retaliation from Kabul's airport. Currently, there are over 1,000 refugees in Canada. A total of 20,000 Afghan refugees will be resettled in Canada. 

(With inputs from AP)