Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
July 13, 2022
A plane has arrived in the Netherlands with a 181 Afghans who had fled their war-torn country, the Dutch government said on July 13.
The refugees on the flight from Pakistan were the latest group of Afghans to fly to safety following the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan last year after the pullout of Western troops.
Most of the group left Afghanistan by crossing the land border into Pakistan, where Dutch diplomats and the International Organization for Migration helped them reach the capital, Islamabad.
Pakistani authorities allowed the Afghans, who did not have valid travel documents, into the South Asian nation so they could travel on to the Netherlands.
The Netherlands has pledged to evacuate Afghans who assisted Dutch diplomats and military personnel before the Taliban seized power.
The Dutch government said on July 13 that it hopes to evacuate “as many eligible people as possible” from Afghanistan who are able to make it to Pakistan.
The Dutch Foreign Affairs Ministry said earlier this year that it had brought 1,801 Afghans to the Netherlands since late August 2021.
Based on reporting by AP and Reuters