The White House-Taliban authorities
on Thursday cleared a Qatari charter flight from Kabul airport for Doha, the
first flight for evacuees to take off since the US military campaign in
Afghanistan ended on August 31. the departure of US citizens and lawful
permanent residents on a flight chartered by Qatar Airways from Hamid Karzai
International Airport. We can confirm that the flight landed safely in Qatar,
"National Security Council spokesperson Emily Horne said in a
statement." The Taliban have cooperated to facilitate the departure of US
citizens and permanent residents legal on charter flights from HKIA They have
shown flexibility and are enterprising and professional in our dealings with
them in this business. This is a positive first step.
A Qatar Airways aircraft takes off with foreigners from the airport in Kabul, Afghanistan, Sept. 9, 2021, in the first such large-scale departure since U.S. and foreign forces concluded their frantic withdrawal from the country late last month.
Horne added that the United States "will continue these efforts to facilitate the safe and orderly movement of American citizens, lawful permanent residents, and Afghans who have worked for us." me and wish to leave Afghanistan."
Both Reuters and AFP reported that
the flight was carrying 113 passengers, including 21 US citizens or legal
residents, 43 Canadians and 13 Dutch nationals, their foreign ministry said.
One of the evacuees seemed relieved
to leave Kabul behind.
"I didn`t even fall asleep and
we landed," said one Canadian passenger who gave her name only as Elaha,
according to AFP. "The situation in Kabul was unpredictable and very
uncomfortable."
Upon landing in Doha, the
passengers, including several children, boarded an airport bus, which took them
to a holding facility where they will wait for flights to their home countries,
AFP reported.
One of the passengers told the
Agence FrancePresse his family had little notice from the U.S. State Department
about the flight.
"We got in contact with the
State Department, they gave me a call this morning and said to go to the
airport," said the father, who asked not to be named.
Qatar`s special envoy Mutlaq bin
Majed alQahtani spoke to reporters at the Hamid Karzai International Airport
Thursday, stressing that it was not an evacuation flight but stating that
Americans and other Westerners were on board.
The Qatari envoy said there may be
another flight Friday and people should “feel that this is normal.”
Speaking alongside alQahtani,
Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid said that experts from Qatar and the United
Arab Emirates have been working to get airport systems back up and running for
commercial flights.
Mujahid said he expected the entire
airport operation to be in place soon, enabling both domestic as well as
international flights to resume.
In a statement, a State Department spokesperson declined to provide additional details regarding the Thursday flight out of Kabul.
“As we have said, our efforts to
assist U.S. citizens and others to whom we have a special commitment are
ongoing, but we aren`t in a position to share additional details at this time,”
the spokesperson said.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony
Blinken and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin met with Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim
bin Hamad alThani in Doha, earlier this week seeking support for the evacuation
of Americans and atrisk Afghans left behind in Afghanistan after the Taliban
takeover.
The administration said it also has
been working with the Qataris to get flights operational from Kabul.
“We`re working through all of these
components, and it`s the reason why the secretary of State is on the ground, in
the region, discussing and negotiating as we speak,” White House Press
Secretary Jen Psaki told.
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