Afghanistan: UK evacuation has ‘few hours’ – Defense Minister | world News

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British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace said Britain’s evacuation mission at Kabul airport had “a few hours” and no more people would be called.

Wallace told Sky News the effort was in the “final hours” after the main processing center in Kabul was closed at the Baron Hotel near the airport.

He said: “We closed at 4.30am this morning, UK time, the Baron Hotel, the processing center closed and the gates closed at Abbey Gate.

“We are going to process the people we brought with us, which is about 1,000 people at the airport now and we will look for a way to continue to find a few people in the crowds where we can, but overall the main processing is now closed and we have a matter of hours.

“The sad truth is that not everyone will come out.

“Obviously the threat will increase the closer we get to leaving.”

Photo: Military planes arriving and leaving in constant flow at Kabul airport

The Baron Hotel was closed just hours after an attack, claimed by the ISIS terrorist group, outside the airport that killed 13 US soldiers and 78 Afghans.

Wallace said he’s allowed numbers to be relaxed to “pack people” on recent trips abroad.

He also revealed that the UK shut down the processing center at the Baron Hotel “at about the appointed time – and we would have always closed it at that time”.

The defense minister said the night before the attack that the British army pushed the perimeter of the Barron’s Hotel about 300 metres.

“If they didn’t push this ocean any further, we would be in a worse place,” he added.

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Defense sources told Sky News that up to half of those huddled at the Baron Hotel yesterday for processing were not authorized under the Afghanistan Resettlement and Assistance Policy (ARAP) for Interpreters or the Immigration Base Departure Scheme (LOTR), making processing difficult.

About 1,000 British soldiers at the airport will start packing and leaving after the final evacuations are conducted today, the British Defense Secretary said.

He did not confirm whether they would remain in Kabul until the August 31 deadline set by the United States.

Wallace said people who were unable to process their applications should make their way to the land border and the UK would make sure visa processing facilities in neighboring countries were working hard to get Afghans to the UK.

After the United States warned of an imminent terrorist attack on Wednesday, most countries ended evacuation efforts on Thursday before the bombing.

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