Some 36 people are still in Kabul, in the hope of being evacuated from Afghanistan by Austria. Many of them are citizens with Afghan roots, or people in need of protection who have effectively fled the country.
They had left Austria to visit their families despite the travel warning from the government. These are Afghans who obtained Austrian residence permits by claiming that they had faced danger in their country of birth.
It sounds absurd and is completely incomprehensible to many Austrians
Many migrants who came to Austria as “refugees” from Afghanistan apparently went back there for a vacation. Many of them are now stranded in Kabul. For example, a 24-year-old HTL student from Vienna , travelled to his former country of origin, since his permanent residence permit allows him to do so. Now he is stuck in Afghanistan and hoping the Austrians will help him.
The question of why a person is able to travel to a country from where they have fled because they “fear for their life” remains unanswered. The Austrian mainstream media is not interested in an answer either.
Jagdkommando soldiers risked their lives in Kabul
“Some 76 Austrian citizens with Afghan roots or in need of protection, who had fled Afghanistan and were visiting their families in the country, were evacuated from Kabul by plane with the help of the Austrian Federal Army,” reported Michael Bauer of the Austrian Armed Forces.
In order to bring them safely to Kabul airport, those still remaining in Afghanistan had to avoid the Taliban, and highly trained Austrian elite commando soldiers were sent in to aid them. Staff from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs were also participating in the operation. The elite soldiers were on foot, risking their lives to bring back the “refugees” through the city under siege to the airport.
Foreign Minister explains his move
Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg (ÖVP) told the media: “We have an obligation to help.” But Austria imposed the highest travel warning level for Afghanistan years ago and advised everyone not to travel to the country. However, many “refugees” still visited their families.