UAE welcomes 41 Afghans on humanitarian grounds

Abu Dhabi - The evacuees include members of the Afghan girls’ cycling and robotic teams

The United Arab Emirates has welcomed 41 Afghan evacuees, including members of the Afghan girls’ cycling and robotic teams, as well as at-risk human rights activists and their family members.

The evacuation operation was sponsored by and conducted in cooperation with the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs and IsraAID, which accompanied the group following their entry into Tajikistan from Kabul and onward departure to the UAE.

While in the UAE, the group of women, girls, and families will be hosted at the Emirates Humanitarian City in Abu Dhabi, where they will receive a comprehensive range of high-quality housing, sanitation, health, and food services to ensure their welfare.

The group is then slated to depart for Canada, where their immigration applications will be processed on a priority basis.

Commenting on the evacuation, Salem Mohammed Al Zaabi, Director of the International Security Cooperation Department at the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, stated, "The UAE is deeply honoured to work alongside its partners in the international community to assist the Afghan people on humanitarian grounds. Recognising the importance of aiding women, girls, and families in particular, the UAE is sparing no effort to ensure that those in need may reach safety in pursuit of a better future."

He added that the UAE would "continue to identify ways to assist Afghan nationals by welcoming them into the country until they depart for their final destinations".

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This latest operation comes as part of the UAE’s humanitarian efforts to host nearly 9,000 Afghan nationals evacuated from Afghanistan on their way to third countries.

The UAE has played a significant role in evacuation operations, with the number of Afghans and foreign nationals who have been evacuated since the beginning of August to date reaching almost 40,000.

• Abu Dhabi