1st int’l commercial flight lands in Kabul
A PIA aircraft from Islamabad arrived in the Afghan capital on Monday, marking a resumption of flights after the Taliban returned to power
Pakistan’s national carrier on Monday ran the first international commercial flight to Kabul on Monday – the first since Taliban retook power last month, offering some hope to Afghans still desperate to leave the country. The Boeing 777 departed from Islamabad, Pakistan, as a commercial flight chartered by the World Bank, carrying officials from the bank and journalists. It later returned to Islamabad with around 70 people on board. Most of them were Afghans who were relatives of staffers with international organisations such as the World Bank, according to airport ground staff. The resumption of commercial flights will be a key test for the hardline Islamist group, who have repeatedly promised to allow Afghans with the right documents to leave the country freely.
KABUL/GENEVA: An international commercial flight touched down in the Afghan capital on Monday, the first since the Taliban group retook power last month.
Kabul airport was left trashed after foreign forces completed their withdrawal on August 30, evacuating more than 120,000 people from the country. The Taliban have since been scrambling to get it operating again with assistance from Qatar and other nations.
“There was hardly anyone on the plane, around 10 people... maybe more staff than passengers,” said an AFP journalist aboard the Pakistan International Airways (PIA) flight from Islamabad. Later, the plane left Kabul, offering hope to Afghans who want to leave the country. Around 70 people were on the flight to the Pakistani capital, mostly Afghans who were relatives of staffers with international organisations.
The resumption of commercial flights will be a key test for the hardline group. A PIA spokesman said over the weekend that the airline was keen to
resume regular services, but it was too soon to say how frequently flights between the two capitals would operate.
Donors pledge $1 billion
Donors have pledged more than a billion dollars to help Afghanistan, where poverty and hunger have spiralled since the Taliban took power, raising the spectre of a mass exodus.
UN secretary-general Antonio Guterres said it was impossible to say how much of the money had been promised in response to an emergency UN appeal for $606 million to meet the pressing needs of a country in crisis.
China asks US, others to step up aid for Afghans
China has urged the US and other countries to take “active actions” to help ease the economic crisis in Afghanistan by providing aid. Also, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said, “The Afghan Taliban should stay true to its commitment and earnestly make a clean break with all terrorist forces.”