France and the US have admitted that their diplomats destroyed the passports of Sudanese citizens who had applied for visas, leaving them trapped in the war-torn country. The diplomats claim that they were following protocol to stop sensitive documents falling into the wrong hands. However, this has done nothing to assuage the anger of the stranded Sudanese citizens. The rush to evacuate embassies, because of the fighting erupted between the rival forces of Sudan’s top generals earlier this year, caused many documents to be left behind, including passports that had been submitted for visa applications.
Two Afghan military officers were killed after their MD-530 helicopter patrolling Kholim district in Samangan province crashed into a power line. It is unknown how many helicopters, including U.S. choppers, are in the hands of the Taliban-run government. After the Taliban took over the country, around 140 Afghan pilots and others were flown out of Tajikistan to Abu Dhabi as their final destination to the US. Afghan air force pilots played a significant role in the 20-year-long war against Taliban militants, and the US forces partnered with their Afghan counterparts, with heavy reliance on airpower, to halt the advancing militant group.
The late author Martin Amis, who left the UK for America in 2011, was known for his sharp views on English life and society. In his novels, he frequently depicted debased culture and class consciousness, such as the “rampant and… laughably undiscriminating enthusiasm” of the American audience. Amis saw the decline of civilisation as a result of losing the Empire and regretted the contraction in English literature. At a talk held in 2006, he asked an audience whether they felt morally superior to the Taliban – only around a third put their hands up. Before Amis’s death in September, he won planning permission to build a two-bedroom house and underground swimming pool at his London home amid opposition from “Nimby” neighbours who drew up a petition against him.
An Afghan colonel who fought alongside British troops has received a threat of deportation to Rwanda after fleeing to the UK on a small boat following the Taliban’s takeover of Kabul in August 2021. The veteran claims that he was not helped after leaving his family behind in Afghanistan to escape danger, and has now received the notice of intent from the Home Office after applying to the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (Arap). The colonel is being supported by Care4Calais and requires urgent assistance as regards his case, having gone through at least 11 countries before arriving in the UK.
The Afghan colonel is one of many veterans who served British interests in Afghanistan and are now being threatened with deportation or are forced to flee through illegal routes as a result of strict restrictions and delays in the UK’s evacuation schemes. Speaking to Care4Calais, he expressed concerns for his family in case he is deported to Rwanda and criticized the UK’s abandonment of Afghan military personnel when the Taliban gained power. Former heads of the Royal Navy and Army have stated that the UK has free moral obligations to Afghan military personnel to secure their safe migration to the country for a better life.
Afghanistan now lies at security risk as the Taliban fights to consolidate its grip on the country, with many civilians and former military personnel facing arrest and execution. The UK’s deadline of 31 August 2021 to evacuate Afghans who had supported coalition forces was met with criticism after only a select few were evacuated in time. The latest case involving the Afghan colonel joins a list of controversial immigration policy actions by the UK government that have been harshly criticized by NGOs and human rights activists.
