Afghanistan: The ordeal of the British family while fleeing the Taliban and securing their passage home | UK news

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Threats, detention at gunpoint and beatings by the Taliban; A family of thirteen people from London have spoken of their desperate attempt to get out of Kabul, now that they have reached safety.

Sky News exclusively followed their ordeal as they lived through the uncertainty and trauma of being trapped in the Afghan city.

Sabrullah Zahiri, from Hounslow, told Sky News: “We are so happy now that we are out and looking forward to returning to the UK. Everyone wants to escape this country. They all hate this country; in my opinion this country is over. It’s not going to be what it used to be. before “.

Mr. Zaheeri and twelve other family members are now safely at Kabul Airport and are waiting for an RAF flight home.

The group had flown to Kabul from Heathrow in late July for a double wedding in the Afghan capital in early August.

They traveled with children between the ages of two and eight. Their flight was due to return last Monday but was cancelled.

We first spoke to them on Tuesday when their world was collapsing after members of the Taliban crowded outside their apartment and confiscated their car.

Zahiri explains, “They told me you have to give me the key. I said ‘Why, it’s my private car and not the government’s car?'” ‘ And they said ‘We don’t care’ so they pointed a gun at my head and I said ‘Okay, take it’.

The family called the British Consulate and was asked to wait for a call to go to the airport.

They film the Taliban from their window and their family members can be heard growing increasingly alarmed as the militants climb over the fences in their direction.

Several Taliban gunmen entered the apartment on Wednesday and threatened the man who lived in them.

“The Taliban came to the house and said, ‘Why are you keeping these guys in your house?’ They came from the UK and ‘you should kick them out’,” says Zahiri.

Photo: This family from London traveled to Afghanistan for a wedding

The homeowner, Ajmal Habibi, Zahiri’s uncle, refused to evict them. He also reached the NATO-controlled complex safely, but the journey was full of dangers. Between his house and the airport there was a gauntlet of checkpoints.

The family watched videos of people being forced back from the fence around the airport by soldiers who fired shots over their heads. It was not a trip anyone would choose for a large family.

On Thursday, they received a phone call from the embassy to go and leave. The roads were blocked as others tried to reach the airport and the sound of traffic sometimes pierced with gunshots. On the way, they were stopped by the Taliban.

Mr. Al-Zahiri’s brother, Abdul Wajid, told Sky News: “We tried to go for the flight, but the Taliban attacked us, and they hit me with an AK47 pistol in the middle of my chest and I fell to the ground. My uncle was also hit.”

They returned to the apartment disappointed and afraid of what would happen next.

They knew even if they bypassed the Taliban, a stampede outside the airport posed another danger. But on Friday night, they risked another flight, this time bypassing the Taliban, reaching the concrete walls around the airport.

They spent hours overnight with weary and tearful children waiting in the dark, working amid crowds until they finally reached the front of the queue early on Saturday morning, relieved to be able to show their passports to members of the British military.

They had made the most dangerous journey of their lives – overwhelmed by the contrast between the appalling treatment of the Taliban and the kindness of the British soldiers who gave them food and water.

They came through a British army checkpoint just hours before several people were killed at the gates. Close the entrance behind them. For once luck was on their side – but many others are still waiting, still calculating how to succeed.

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