Indonesia Evacuates 26 from Afghanistan
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20 August 2021 15:32 WIB
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Foreign Affairs Ministry confirmed that 26 Indonesian citizens in Kabul, Afghanistan had been evacuated using Indonesian Air Force aircraft.
“The plane is currently in Islamabad to continue flying to Indonesia,” said Foreign Affairs Minister Retno Marsudi via the ministry’s official Twitter account @Menlu_RI on Friday, August 20.
Retno said the evacuation team brought 26 Indonesian citizens including staff from the Indonesian Embassy (KBRI), five Filipinos, and two Afghan nationals who were the spouses of the citizens and the local staff of the Embassy.
The situation in Afghanistan is getting more precarious after radical Islamist group Taliban took control of the country. After claiming control over Kandahar and Herat on Thursday, August 12, the Taliban captured Lashkar Gah.
The fall of Lashkar Gah and Kandahar to the Taliban left 12 Afghan provincial capitals under the control of the militia. Afghan President Ashraf Ghani fled to Tajikistan.
As the situation in Afghanistan heats up, a number of countries evacuated their people, viz. the United States, Denmark, Britain, France, and Norway.
Read: Taliban Issue Forces Indonesian Intelligence to Keep Tabs on Terrorist Groups
EGI ADYATAMA