Leave Afghanistan now, Britain tells all UK nationals amid ‘worsening security situation’ as Taliban forces sweep across the country
- The Government has advised UK nationals in Afghanistan to leave the country
- The Foreign Office’s website was updated on Friday, advising against all travel
- The change in advice comes as Taliban forces continue to sweep the country
- It comes after the Taliban assassinated official Dawa Khan Menapal on Friday
The Government has advised all UK nationals in Afghanistan to leave the country immediately due to the ‘worsening security situation’.
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office’s website was updated on Friday, advising against all travel to Afghanistan.
The change in advice comes in the face of growing turmoil in Afghanistan, as Taliban forces sweep across the country.
The advice on the website states: ‘All British nationals in Afghanistan are advised to leave now by commercial means.
Government has advised UK nationals in Afghanistan to leave due to the ‘worsening security situation’. Pictured: Afghan militia support Afghanistan security forces against the Taliban
‘If you are still in Afghanistan, you are advised to leave now by commercial means because of the worsening security situation.
‘The level of consular assistance the British Embassy can provide in Afghanistan is extremely limited, including in a crisis. Do not rely on the FCDO being able to evacuate you from Afghanistan in an emergency.
‘In arranging your departure from Afghanistan, ensure your travel documents are up to date and that you have the necessary visas for onward travel.’
It added: ‘Terrorists are very likely to try to carry out attacks in Afghanistan. Specific methods of attack are evolving and increasing in sophistication.
‘You should note an overall increased threat to Western interests in Kabul. Follow the instructions of local authorities. There is a high threat of kidnapping throughout the country.’
Afghanistan was already on the Government’s travel red list amid of the country’s coronavirus situation, but fighting has also intensified in recent days.
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office’s website (pictured) was updated on Friday, advising against all travel to Afghanistan
The change in advice comes in the face of growing turmoil in Afghanistan, as Taliban forces sweep across the country. Pictured: Afghan security forces as site of car bomb blast in Kabul
On Friday, the Taliban assassinated a senior Afghan government official inside his car in the capital Kabul as it steps up its bloody drive to recapture the country.
Dawa Khan Menapal, head of the government’s media information centre, was shot dead near a mosque in the city on Friday, just a day after defence minister Bismillah Mohammadi escaped a bomb and gun attack.
Menapal’s assassination is the most high-profile killing the Taliban has carried out during the most-recent campaign, and shows it is able to operate within Kabul – one of the few cities that is not yet under direct attack.
‘He (Menapal) was a young man who stood like a mountain in the face of enemy propaganda, and who was always a major supporter of the (Afghan) regime,’ said Mirwais Stanikzai, a spokesperson of the interior ministry.
Late on Tuesday, the attack on Mohammadi in a heavily guarded upmarket Kabul neighbourhood killed at least eight people and wounded 20. The minister was unharmed.
Meanwhile, the group’s Islamist fighters captured their first regional capital – Zaranj, in Nimroz province near Iran – marking their most-significant battlefield victory against government forces to date.
Residents in Helmand’s contested provincial capital, Lashkar Gah, said airstrikes destroyed a market in the centre of the city — an area controlled by the Taliban. Afghan officials say the Taliban now control nine out of the 10 districts of the city.
Social media was also filled with videos of the devastating toll the fighting has taken in the southern city of Lashkar Gah, with posts showing a major market area in flames.
Dawa Khan Menapal was shot dead on Friday, after minister Bismillah Mohammadi escaped a bomb attack. Pictured: Afghan security at scene of bomb explosion in Kabul on August 4
The Taliban also captured its first regional capital – the city of Zaranj, in Nimroz province near the border with Iran, as it pushed to retake control of the country
Aid group Action Against Hunger said its offices had been hit by an ‘aerial bomb’ in the city earlier this week, according to a statement released by the organisation on Friday.
‘The building was marked from the street and roof as a non-governmental (NGO) organisation, and the office location has been communicated often to the parties involved in the conflict,’ said the group, adding that no staff had been harmed.
In the western city of Herat, a steady stream of people were leaving their homes in anticipation of a government assault on positions held by the Taliban.
‘We completely evacuated,’ said Ahmad Zia, who lived in the western part of the city.
‘We have nothing left and we do not know where to go,’ he told AFP.
American forces are now sending B-52 bombers, AC-130 gunships and Reaper drones to try and push the jihadists back from other capitals such as Lashkar Gah, Herat and Kandahar, which have come under heavy attack in recent days.
It appears America’s hand has been forced after the Afghan airforce all-but collapsed after Joe Biden ordered US forces out of the country earlier this year.
The troops took with them an army of contractors that were being used to maintain the helicopters and jets Afghan pilots were hoping to use to defend against the Taliban assault.
American forces are now sending B-52 bombers, AC-130 gunships and Reaper drones to try and push the jihadists back from Herat. Pictured Afghan government forces in Herat
Residents in Helmand’s contested provincial capital, Lashkar Gah, said airstrikes destroyed a market in the centre of the city – an area controlled by the Taliban
Afghan government forces in Herat, one of the few regional capitals holding out well against the Islamists who are attacking in force across the country
More than a third of the force’s 162 aircraft are thought to be out of action due to a repair blacklog and lack of spare parts.
Pilots – who have also been targeted for execution by the Taliban – are said to be exhausted and demoralised due to non-stop missions, while munitions are also running low.
The Taliban have quickly recaptured much of Afghanistan behind the backs of withdrawing US and NATO forces, who began departing the country earlier this year after two decades of fighting.
Due to be complete by the end of August, in fact sources on the ground say the withdrawal is in-effect complete already.
President Ashraf Ghani has put the Taliban’s rapid advance down to pulling his forces back into cities which are easier to defend and crucial for control of the country.
The Taliban already control large portions of the countryside, and are now challenging government forces in several provincial capitals.
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