The Minister of Defense, Margarita Robles, has pointed out this Tuesday that international troops, including Spaniards, study an operation outside the perimeter of Kabul airport, in Afghanistan, to “pick up” people who have not been able to reach that point
and achieve evacuate them.
In an interview in the chain to be, collected by Europe Press, Robles has nuanced that although it is a possibility that is contemplating, it sees it “very difficult” and that it is now “impossible to” act outside the airport because the Taliban control “absolutely
Everything “in Kabul and in the vast majority of the country.
“You can try in a coordinated way, to see if something could be done in the next few days” to “pick up some person out, but today it is impossible today,” the minister explained when asked about whether they worked with troops from others.
Countries on a mission of this type.
Thus, Robles has confirmed that “this is working”, but that to carry out a mission so it is necessary to have “the approval” of the Taliban and as the departure date is approaching, fixed in principle for the
August 31, “nervousness” is increasing, so it prefers to be “realistic”.
The Government ordered the sending of a team of special operations to “reinforce” the 110 military already deployed within the operation to evacuate Afghan collaborators from Kabul Airport, government sources reported Monday.
On the other hand, Robles has recognized that even though they are doing everything possible to evacuate the greatest number of possible people, it assumes that there will be “people who will stay” and that those who at this moment have not managed to reach Kabul, is
“Very difficult” to achieve it, by the numerous Taliban controls.
In the same line he added that there are many interpreters who are in the lists of evacuees that “follow” in the country, where the situation is “dramatic” and every day that happens is “worse” because people are aware that they go
“Finishing the deadlines”, which makes the agglomerations increase around the airport.
In addition, the Taliban are “increasingly aggressive”, there is an “increasingly evident” violence and the controls are hardening.
So far, 20 people have passed away at the airport and its immediate vicinity from the beginning of the evacuation, according to the latest data confirmed by NATO sources to the Sky News chain.
ROBLES has also confirmed that several families who were not in the first lists of evacuated potentials have been included by their special link with Spain or by the special persecution they suffer, and that have given special priority to women “journalists, activists or who have had
A relevant role in public life “.
The Minister has detailed that the difficulty increases because among the evacuees there are newborn “babies” and older people, including a woman with his child of only 15 days, who was in a delicate state for the time he had passed to access
to the airport.
“The situation is very dramatic from the human point of view,” she lamented.
ROBLES has renewed the duration of the mission to the permanence of the United States, which controls the device at the airport.
“We are going to be evacuating until it can,” he has reiterated after insisting that the decision does not depend on the Spanish authorities.
The defense minister has pointed out that they are going to “hurry up to the end” but without putting the safety of Spanish staff at risk, and it has preferred not to speak of a definitive date for security reasons.
She has also insisted that it is a “risk” situation and even US President Joe Biden, described it as one of the “most difficult story” evacuations.
Finally, it has not given a specific date to begin with Afghan collaborators from the US mission to the bases of Morón de la Frontera (Seville) and Rota (Cádiz), after the agreement reached between the two countries, although it has highlighted that
The availability of Spain is “absolute”, as well as that of other countries such as Germany and Italy, which will also provide bases for them to be evacuated by Washington.