UAE to temporarily host 5,000 Afghans at US' request
U.S. Marines stand guard at an Evacuee Control Checkpoint at Hamid Karzai International Airport, Kabul, Afghanistan, in this photo taken on August 20, 2021. PHOTO: REUTERS
The United Arab Emirates has agreed to host 5,000 Afghan nationals to be evacuated from their country for 10 days on their way to a third country at the request of the United States, the Gulf Arab state's foreign ministry said on Friday (Aug 20).
"The evacuees will travel to the UAE from the Afghan capital of Kabul on US aircraft in the coming days," the ministry said in a statement carried by state news agency WAM.
The foreign ministry told Reuters they would be hosted for 10 days.
The UAE has so far facilitated the evacuation of 8,500 people from Afghanistan on its aircraft and through its airports, it said.
The announcement came after US officials told Reuters Washington was expected to announce that countries in Europe and the Middle East have agreed to temporarily shelter people evacuated from Kabul as its base in Qatar reached capacity.
A Qatari official told Reuters the Gulf Arab state was "continuing our efforts to evacuate people from Afghanistan. Additional flights are scheduled during the upcoming days."