SAS mission to rescue British ambassador from Kabul as Taliban fighters approach

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Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab ordered the Special Unit to move Sir Laurie Bristow and other government employees from the Afghan capital on Sunday night.

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People cheer when the Taliban enter Jalalabad

A SAS rescue operation has been ordered to remove the UK ambassador and staff from the Afghan capital, Kabul, as Taliban fighters approach.

Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab gave the go-ahead to Sir Laurie Bristow’s Air Force crack unit and other government employees on Sunday evening.

The situation in Kabul has become increasingly unsafe with news of Raab warning that the Taliban may take over Kabul airport in the coming days.

The ambassador took up his post in June and was operating out of the heavily armed international airport near downtown.

Taliban fighters drive an Afghan National Army vehicle through the streets of Laghman Province (

picture:

AFP via Getty Images)

The Taliban advanced rapidly through Afghanistan as Western forces withdrew and fighters arrived in the Char Asyab district, just seven miles from the capital.

This means that Kabul is now in the crosshairs of Taliban artillery.

The urgent mission to rescue British Embassy staff is being led by the United Kingdom’s permanent joint headquarters in Northwood.

British military personnel board a flight while personnel from all three military services and civilians are deployed to Afghanistan (

picture:

Palestinian Authority)

It is reported that 600 soldiers including 150 paratroopers will assist the 500 employees while there are another 7,000 people working in roles such as interpreters and security personnel who can apply for safe passage.

Kabul airport is fortified with a “ring of steel” to prevent the detonation of car bombs, and about 500 soldiers from Turkey are being reinforced with 3,000 American soldiers on their way to arrive.

Foreign embassies in Kabul began burning sensitive documents as the United States provided incinerators for its staff to destroy the materials, according to documents seen by Reuters.

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The Defense Secretary, Ben Wallace, has warned against the “arrogance” of believing that the UK could unilaterally prevent Afghanistan from falling back into the hands of the Taliban.

As the militants approached the capital, Kabul, it was reported that arrangements were underway to fly British Ambassador Sir Laurie Bristow by Monday evening.

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office of Development (FCDO) had intended for Sir Lowry and a small team of officials to remain at the airport with other international diplomats.

Arrangements were underway for the transfer of British Ambassador Sir Laurie Bristow (

picture:

Mikhail Tereshchenko / TASS)

However, the Sunday Telegraph reported that the date of their departure had been brought forward amid fears that the airport could be overrun as the Taliban continue their lightning advance across the country. The FCDO declined to comment.

Six hundred British soldiers are deployed to the city to help evacuate the remaining nationals, as well as Afghans who worked with British forces and who face reprisals if they fall into the hands of the Taliban.

With indications that time is quickly running out, an RAF Hercules plane was reported to have flown out of the airport on Saturday with diplomats and civilians on board.

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