Govt says 52 Kenyans evacuated from Afghanistan, 3 still stuck

Govt says 52 Kenyans evacuated from Afghanistan, 3 still stuck

Fifty two Kenyans were evacuated on Wednesday from Afghanistan according to a statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. 

Twelve Kenyans who were working for private contractors in the country were evacuated to Birmingham on Wednesday, while some 40 others were evacuated to Kazakhstan. 

According to the Ministry, there are some Kenyans who have been working in the security sector and others who were working for private companies who are yet to be evacuated. 

“Kenyan missions in the region continue to reach out to Kenyans employed in the security sector and others engaged by private companies who are yet to be evacuated by their employees,” the Foreign Affairs Ministry said on Wednesday. 

At the same time, the Ministry said that there are three Kenyans who are still holed up in Kabul- the capital city of Afghanistan- waiting to be rescued. 

“Three Kenyans are holed up in Kabul hoping to be evacuated soonest,” the Ministry added “The situation at Kabul airport continues to be a challenge for those who wish to be evacuated but the Kenyan Missions will continue to reach out to the private companies to ensure the safety and welfare of the Kenyan nationals,” 

On Thursday, the Kenyan government said plans to evacuate those stuck in Afghanistan were underway, despite not having a diplomatic presence of the country whose leadership has been overtaken by the Taliban. 

“Through diplomatic channels the Ministry of Foreign Affairs wrote to the concerned organizations with a clear request to evacuate stranded Kenyans as a matter of urgency,” the statement issued on Thursday says.

“One (1) working for the International Development Law Organization (IDLO) arrived back to Kenya on Wednesday, while (2) working for Action Contre la Faim (ACF) have been evacuated,”  the Ministry added. 

Meanwhile, military flights evacuating diplomats and civilians from Afghanistan resumed early on Tuesday after the runway at Kabul airport was cleared of thousands of people desperate to flee after the Taliban seized the capital.

The number of civilians at the airport had thinned out, a Western security official at the facility told Reuters, a day after chaotic scenes in which U.S. troops fired to disperse crowds and people clung to a U.S. military transport plane as it taxied for take-off.

U.S. forces took charge of the airport, their only way to fly out of the country, on Sunday, as the militants were winding up a dramatic week of advances across the country with their takeover of the capital without a fight.

Flights were suspended flights for much of Monday, when at least five people were killed, witnesses said, although it was unclear whether they had been shot or crushed in a stampede.

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