UK to evacuate 1,500 personnel from Afghanistan over next two days: Defence Secretary

UK Defense secretary Ben Wallace has said that the Boris Johnson-led government plans to evacuate 1,500 more people from Afghanistan within the next two days as the Taliban takes control of the South Asian country. He said on August 16 that the first flight carrying British citizens had landed in the UK. Wallace’s remarks came as countries across the globe scrambled to evacuate their diplomats and Afghan employees from the chaotic Kabul airport.

The British defence secretary also expressed hope that the government would be able to evacuate around 1,000 people each day, including the Afghan citizens who helped the UK nationals. He told the BBC that the world is ongoing to “remove any bureaucratic barriers” to ensure that the people who pass the screenings can fly to the UK. 

Wallace also stated that the UK government has sent around 600 British troops over the weekend to Kabul to secure the airport and “to effectively process, manage and escort people onto our flights to get them out of Afghanistan.” UK defence secretary said that one of the “biggest regrets” with the swift takeover of the Taliban and Afghanistan government’s collapse is the timetable set for removing UK and US soldiers.

'Vast bulk' of UK citizens to be brought home: UK PM

Britain has said that it is deploying at least 600 troops to assist the evacuation of its roughly 3,000 nationals from Afghanistan. UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson had also said that the “vast bulk” of the remaining embassy staff in Kabul would also return home. He is also expected to hold fresh talks on the crisis on Wednesday while recalling the parliament from summer break. On the UK government’s website, Afghan's travel advisory, updated on August 15, stated, “The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) advise against all travel to Afghanistan. All British nationals in Afghanistan are advised to leave now by commercial means. We urge all British nationals in Afghanistan to leave now by commercial means. You should not rely on the FCDO to evacuate you from Afghanistan in an emergency. Due to the security situation, the British Embassy in Kabul is reducing the number of its staff."

Image Credit: AP