Philippines, Indonesia evacuate citizens from Afghanistan

By Devina Halim

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AA) – The Philippines evacuated 32 of its citizens from Afghanistan, authorities said on Monday.

The Foreign Ministry said the 32 people were flown out of Afghanistan on Sunday and are now in Qatar’s capital Doha waiting for a flight back to the Philippines.

A group of 19 more Filipinos is also due to leave immediately, read a statement.

The ministry said an Alert Level 4 has recently been issued for the whole of Afghanistan due to the uncertain security situation, adding that it is “currently undertaking arrangements for the repatriation of Filipinos still left in Kabul.”

Indonesia is also working to bring back citizens from Afghanistan.

Teuku Faizasyah, a spokesman for the Indonesian Foreign Ministry, told Anadolu Agency that there were 15 Indonesian citizens in Afghanistan and some diplomatic staff.

“The repatriation of some of the non-essential embassy staff, as well as Indonesian citizens, will be done on time,” he said.

The Indonesian Embassy in Kabul is still operational and there are no plans to close it, the official said.

The Indonesian Foreign Ministry said in a statement that it was hopeful for a political settlement in Afghanistan.

Meanwhile, Vietnam’s Embassy in Kabul said it was making efforts to locate its citizens in Afghanistan.

*Writing by Rhany Chairunissa Rufinaldo with Anadolu Agency’s Indonesian language services in Jakarta