Data of British Embassy Local Staff in Kabul ‘Left Behind’
A serious security threat against a number of Afghan citizens: The Times newspaper has reported that British Embassy staff in Kabul failed to destroy sensitive documents related to local colleagues as they hastily evacuated the premises.
The Times newspaper reported that staff from the British Foreign Office left behind documents related to contacts with local colleagues when evacuating the embassy in Kabul. A spokesman for the ministry told Reuters that conditions in Kabul were extremely dangerous and the embassy evacuation proceeded so rapidly that there was no opportunity to destroy sensitive documents.
James Heappey, Deputy Secretary of State for Defence of Britain, had previously stated that his country would assist in the evacuation of 2,275 Afghan citizens who had worked for British institutions.
Currently, approximately one thousand British military personnel, including staff of the 16 Air Assault Brigade, are stationed at Kabul Airport. Boris Johnson, the British Prime Minister, announced after the suicide bombings at Kabul Airport and following a special cabinet meeting that London would continue evacuation flights from Afghanistan.
Before the suicide bombings around Kabul Airport, the British government had asked its citizens in the vicinity to move to safe locations and await further instructions.
Earlier, Britain’s decision to evacuate 140 dogs, 60 cats, and 68 animal shelter staff members on a private chartered flight from Kabul had made headlines.
Source: DW
