Thousands of Afghans who helped UK forces fight against the Taliban are still stuck in Afghanistan, reported a UK-based newspaper on Saturday.
As per British Foreign Office Minister James Cleverly 167 Afghans are still trapped in Afghanistan, but former Defense Minister Johnny Mercer negated it and said that the numbers of Afghans left behind are in thousands, reported Sputnik.
Cleverly confirmed that of the 311 former UK staff and their family members left behind in Afghanistan, more than half (167) remain trapped in the country.
"We have left thousands behind, not 167. Those are simply the ones who had a response to the ARAP (Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy) programme. Those figures are simply the number who were called forward but didn't make it to the airport," said Mercer.
Interpreters and other local staff who had worked with British forces told the UK newspaper that they are in hiding in Afghanistan with their families because the Taliban is "searching" for them, reported Sputnik.
Mercer said that "the vast majority" of people who should have been evacuated from Afghanistan under the ARAP program were left behind, because the British scheme was ineffective and thousands didn't get a response.
"All the ministers know this, but they are determined to move on from our commitments to these people," Mercer said.
The Taliban took control of Afghanistan in mid-August and on September 7 announced the composition of an all-male interim government headed by Mohammad Hasan Akhund, who has been under UN sanctions since 2001.
( With inputs from ANI )
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