Pakistan government making room for evacuees from Afghanistan
From CNN’s Sophia Saifi in Islamabad
A Pakistani soldier stands guard as Afghans walk along fences after arriving in Pakistan through the Pakistan-Afghanistan border crossing point in Chaman on August 26. (AFP/Getty Images)
The government of Pakistan is asking hotels across Islamabad to close reservations and place all rooms at government disposal for at least three weeks starting Friday to accommodate thousands of foreigners being urgently evacuated from Afghanistan.
The directive comes in an official document from the office of the district magistrate, which was issued right after the deadly Kabul airport attacks.
Even before the attack, scores of people were lined up on a major Afghanistan-Pakistan border crossing, trying to make their way into Pakistan.
22 min ago
Spain ends evacuation mission in Afghanistan, says the Spanish government
From CNN’s Duarte Mendonca and Ingrid Formanek
Spain has ended its evacuation mission from Afghanistan, with the last remaining people expected to land at the Torrejon military airbase near Madrid later on Friday, the country’s Presidency said in a statement.
The statement released Friday said two military planes carrying the last 81 Spaniards remaining in Afghanistan -- "including military personnel and embassy personnel" -- arrived in Dubai from Kabul early on Friday morning local time.
The planes also carried four Portuguese soldiers and 85 Afghans and their families who had worked with NATO countries.
It added that the Spanish Armed Forces has "evacuated a total of 1,900, Afghans and their families," who had worked with Spain, other countries, and international bodies.
31 min ago
More than 18,700 evacuees have come through Ramstein Air Base in Germany
From CNN’s Atika Shubert at Ramstein Air Base in Germany
Evacuees from Afghanistan walk from a temporary tent to a bus at Ramstein Air Base on August 26, 2021 in Ramstein-Miesenbach, Germany. Andreas Rentz/Getty Images
More than 18,700 evacuees from Afghanistan have come through Ramstein US Air Base in southwestern Germany so far, according to the air base's Public Affairs Office (PAO).
As of 7:30 a.m. local time on Friday, approximately 76 US Air Force aircrafts have landed at air base during the evacuation mission.
A huge influx of more than 10,000 evacuees are expected to arrive at the air base over the coming hours.
Flight are expected to continue throughout the weekend.
More than 4,100 evacuees have departed Ramstein on approximately 18 flights to their resettlement locations, the vast majority of which are in the US.
1 hr 8 min ago
Republicans split on strategy to make Biden pay a political price for Afghanistan
From CNN's Melanie Zanona
The GOP is divided over how hard -- and how quickly -- to go after President Joe Biden in the wake of Thursday's deadly attack on US troops at the Kabul airport.
While a growing chorus of rank-and-file Republicans have called for Biden's resignation or impeachment over the administration's disastrous exit from Afghanistan, key leaders and others in the party have struck a more measured tone for the moment.
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy even pushed back against some of his members during a private conference call Thursday night, suggesting that the demands for Biden's immediate ouster are counterproductive and saying the focus right now needs to be on getting Americans out of Afghanistan safely. But he also promised to pressure the administration.
"Promise you there is going to be a reckoning," McCarthy, who spoke to Biden by phone on Thursday, told members on the GOP conference call, according to sources. "We are going to hold every single person accountable."
Countries are racing to evacuate people ahead of the Aug. 31 deadline. Here's where things stand
In this handout provided by U.S. Central Command Public Affairs, passengers are seen lining up to board a U.S. Air Force C-17 Globemaster III at Hamid Karzai International Airport on August 24. Master Sgt. Donald R. Allen/U.S. Air Forces/Getty Images
Keeping this deadline in mind, here are where other countries' evacuation operations stand.
Australia: Defense Minister Peter Dutton confirmed Australia has ended its evacuation flights from Kabul following Thursday's attacks. The Australian forces evacuated more than 4,000 people from Kabul.
"I’m pleased that we were able to lift our people out not too long before this attack," Dutton told a Sky News reporter.
New Zealand: The country's final evacuation flight from Afghanistan landed in the United Arab Emirates Thursday night local prior to the attacks at the Kabul Airport.
"Operational considerations have now dictated the necessity to end further flights into Kabul,” Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said in a press release Friday.
At least 276 New Zealand nationals and residents had been evacuated, the government added.
Germany: Troops are “all safely back from Kabul”, Germany’s Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer said in a tweet Friday. Germany’s armed forces have used Tashkent, Uzbekistan, as a staging post for evacuations from Afghanistan.
Spain: The country has ended its evacuation mission, the country’s Presidency said in a statement.
Two military planes carried out the last 81 Spaniards remaining in Afghanistan, along with four Portuguese soldiers and 85 Afghans and their families who had worked with NATO countries.
United Kingdom: While Thursday's attack "did not hasten" UK's departure, the country's evacuation efforts will end in a "matter of hours," Ben Wallace, the defense secretary, said Friday. UK's main processing center outside Kabul airport is now closed.
France: The country will see its evacuation mission “through to the end and will maintain its humanitarian and protection efforts for Afghans under threat,” despite Thursday’s deadly attack on Kabul’s international airport, the Élysée said in a statement.
1 hr 10 min ago
All German soldiers safely out of Kabul, defense minister says
From CNN's Sarah Dean
German troops are “all safely back from Kabul," Germany’s Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer said in a tweet Friday.
Kramp-Karrenbauer is on a visit to Tashkent, Uzbekistan, to thank the soldiers for their service, the minister said.
Germany’s armed forces have used Tashkent as a staging post for evacuations from Afghanistan.
“Your outstanding commitment makes us proud,” she added.
1 hr 17 min ago
The UK's evacuation effort in Afghanistan will end in a "matter of hours," says defense secretary
From CNN's Nick Paton Walsh in Doha and Niamh Kennedy in Dublin
British soldiers secure the perimeter outside the Baron Hotel in Kabul, Afghanistan on August 26. Marcus Yam/Los Angeles Times/Getty Images
The United Kingdom’s evacuation operation in Afghanistan will end in a "matter of hours," Ben Wallace, the UK defense secretary, said Friday.
That follows the closure of the UK's main processing center, the Baron Hotel, located outside Kabul airport. The country's defense ministry said in a statement Friday that it had closed the processing facilities to enable it to focus efforts on evacuating the British nationals and others it had already processed who were at the airport awaiting departure.
Wallace told Sky News that, following the decision to close the processing center at 4.30 a.m. UK time, the UK will now "process" the approximately 1,000 people in the airfield.
The operation has a "matter of hours" left, Wallace said, and the "sad fact" is that "not every single one will get out."
The move comes after two bomb attacks outside the airport on Thursday, local time.
Wallace stressed that the blast "did not hasten our departure."
“We closed the Baron Hotel, almost exactly on schedule. The explosion was horrendous. But it didn't hasten our departure, we were going last night,” he told Sky News.
In the statement Friday, Wallace said more than 13,000 people had been evacuated in 14 days.
“It is with deep regret that not everyone has been able to be evacuated during this process," he said in the statement. "We will continue to honor our debt to all those who have not yet been able to leave Afghanistan. We will do all that we can to ensure they reach safety."
1 hr 19 min ago
Kabul death toll increases to more than 90 Afghans killed, 150 wounded, according to the Afghan Health Ministry
Volunteers and medical staff unload bodies outside a hospital after the bomb blasts at the Kabul airport on August 26. (Wakil Kohsar/AFP/Getty Images)
The death toll from Thursday's blasts in Kabul has increased to more than 90 peoplekilled, an official with Afghanistan’s Ministry of Public Health told CNN Friday.
There are also more than 150 peoplewounded by the blasts, the official said.
According to initial reports, the dead and wounded in these counts were all Afghans, the official added.
5 hr 32 min ago
Australia and New Zealand end evacuation missions from Kabul
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern speaks during a press conference on Thursday, August 26, in Wellington, New Zealand. (Mark Mitchell/Pool/Getty Images)
Australia and New Zealand have both ended their evacuation flights from Kabul, as Afghanistan reels from the deadly bombing attacks.
New Zealand's final evacuation flight had landed in the United Arab Emirates on Thursday night local time, before the attacks took place. No members of the national defense force were in Kabul at the time of the attack, and no New Zealanders were left at the airport, the government said.
However, there are still New Zealand citizens in Afghanistan, who are in contact with the Foreign Ministry.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said there would be no more evacuation flights from Kabul.
“We strongly condemn what is a despicable attack on many innocent families and individuals who were simply seeking safety from the incredibly difficult and fragile situation in Afghanistan,” Ardern said.
Australian Defense Minister Peter Dutton also confirmed Australia has finished the country's evacuation mission.
He added on Friday that he was "grateful" for the work of Australian forces and commended their success of evacuating more than 4,000 people from Kabul.
He called the attack "horrific," and said it wasn't clear if there were any Australians caught up in the attacks, but added the country's Foreign Ministry had sent a message to all Australian citizens to steer clear of the airport.
For Australian citizens that might still be in Afghanistan, many will likely try to make their way to other borders, he said.