WaPo Evacuates Afghan Staffers, Family Members

A group of Washington Post employees, including Afghan journalists and their families, safely departed Kabul on Tuesday, ending some anxious hours in the wake of the Taliban’s swift takeover of Afghanistan.

The Washington Post reports the employees, along with their families, began gathering at Kabul’s airport beginning on Sunday amid growing uncertainty as Taliban fighters swept unopposed into the capital city, the last remaining sector under government control.

In all, some 13 people, including an American correspondent, were able to board a U.S. military transport for a flight to safe haven in Doha, Qatar. (The Post is withholding the names of the evacuees for security reasons.)

The Post group was part of a contingent of 204 people who have worked in Afghanistan for the New York Times, Wall Street Journal and The Post and have been seeking to flee the country since Sunday. The fate of most of this group was unknown as of Tuesday afternoon, Eastern time. A Times spokesman said, “This is an extremely fluid and sensitive situation so we are unable to comment on specifics at this time.” The Journal did not respond to requests for comment.

The 204 Afghans were among thousands of people who had rushed to Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul in hopes of securing a flight out of the country. They were met by scenes of chaos, as desperate people mobbed runways and even clung to the fuselages of departing planes. At least half a dozen Afghans were killed during the scramble, according to the Times, including several from falls from airplanes.

The White House said Tuesday that the airport had been secured by American troops, enabling some flights to depart and land. But with Taliban militiamen erecting checkpoints leading to the airport, it was unclear whether anyone who wasn’t already inside the airport could reach it.

The publishers of the three news organizations on Monday issued a joint plea to President Biden for help. “For the past 20 years, brave Afghan colleagues have worked tirelessly to help The New York Times, The Washington Post and The Wall Street Journal share news and information from the region with the global public,” they wrote. “Now those colleagues and their families are trapped in Kabul, their lives in peril.”

The evacuation of The Post’s employees and their families left uncertain the fate of other Afghan nationals who have acted as “fixers” for Western organizations, including news outlets and the military. Fixers provide local contacts and act as advisers and interpreters for foreigners.