Taliban bans Afghans from evacuating
Feb 28, 2022
Kabul [Afghanistan], February 28 : The Taliban will not allow further evacuation of Afghans until the situation improves abroad for those who have already left, their spokesperson said on Sunday.
The Taliban has received reports that thousands of Afghans who have been evacuated are "living in very bad conditions" in Qatar and Turkey, reported Dawn.
Zabihullah Mujahid, Taliban spokesperson, in a press conference, said, "The government has the responsibility to protect the people so this will be stopped until we get the assurance that their lives will not be endangered."
Notably, more than 120,000 Afghans and dual nationals were evacuated up to August 31 when the last US-led troops withdrew, two weeks after the Taliban took over Kabul.
In the aftermath of the Afghanistan crisis in August 2021, hundreds more were allowed to leave on flights. The last official evacuation by air was on December 1, reported the newspaper.
Evacuations have also taken place by road via Pakistan until recently.