Afghanistan: British evacuation flights from Kabul may have to stop this week | world News

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British evacuation flights from Afghanistan may have to stop by the end of the week after Boris Johnson failed to secure an extension to the US deadline for the departure of all Western forces.

The Guardian reported late Tuesday that the last RAF plane to carry Afghans to safety from Kabul airport could be within the next “24 to 36 hours”.

But defense sources described the timetable as speculative and said it was not “fixed”.

However, a team of more than 1,000 British soldiers and diplomats running the British evacuation mission on the ground will need a period of time to pack their equipment and leave before the August 31 US exit deadline – next Tuesday.

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Afghanistan: Threats increase during eviction

This means that evacuation flights for Afghan civilians desperate to flee the country after the sudden Taliban takeover will have to stop at least a few days earlier.

Ministers made it clear that the UK could not stay at the airport without a 6,000-strong US force, which provides security and also operates the airport.

However, officials have also been careful not to speak publicly about the exact plans for the eventual withdrawal, fearing the risk of a new rush of men, women and children to the airport to try to get to the flights once they realize when they will do so. Stop.

Last weekend, several people were crushed to death in chaotic scenes outside the gates.

Then again, the British prime minister and other allies failed to persuade US President Joe Biden to delay the US exit deadline during a hypothetical meeting of the Group of Seven of world powers on Tuesday – so it is no secret to any Afghans wishing to evacuate that their time is limited. .

The Washington Post reported on Tuesday that US forces have already begun withdrawing from Kabul.

Even as the end of evacuation approaches, the rate of flights and the number of people airlifted to safety remains high.

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More than 9,200 people – British and Afghan nationals who have worked with British forces and diplomats over the past two decades but are now at risk – have been flown to safety in the UK since August 13 as part of what has been dubbed Operation Pitting. .

“The evacuation process will continue as long as the security situation allows for joint coordination with our American partners. No specific date has been set yet for the evacuation flights,” the Defense Department said in a statement about the mission.

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