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world news Diabierna 10 September 2021

About 200 Westerners, including Americans, fly out of Kabul

(AP) — An estimated several veterans groups have gers presented their docu-
200 foreigners, includ- said that that number is too ments for inspection and
ing Americans, left Af- low because many citizens dogs sniffed luggage laid out
ghanistan on a commer- never bothered to tell U.S. on the ground. Some vet-
cial flight out of Kabul on officials they were in the eran airport employees had
Thursday with the coop- country. And they said the returned to their jobs after
eration of the Taliban — figure overlooks green-card- fleeing during the harrowing
the first such large-scale carrying permanent U.S. res- chaos of the U.S.-led airlift.
departure since U.S. forc- idents living in Afghanistan
es completed their frantic who want to leave. Irfan Popalzai, 12, boarded
withdrawal over a week the flight with his mother
ago. Many thousands of Afghans and five brothers and sisters.
remain desperate to get out, He said his family lives in
The Qatar Airways flight to too, afraid of what Taliban Maryland.
Doha marked a breakthrough rule might hold. The Taliban
in the bumpy coordination have repeatedly said foreign- “I am an Afghan, but you
between the U.S. and Af- ers and Afghans with prop- know I am from America and
ghanistan’s new rulers. A er travel documents could I am so excited” to leave, he
dayslong standoff over char- leave. But their assurances said.
ter planes at another airport have been met with skepti-
has left hundreds of mostly cism, and many Afghans have The airport was extensively
Afghan people stranded, been unable to obtain certain damaged in the frenzied fi-
waiting for Taliban permis- paperwork. nal days of the U.S. airlift
sion to leave. that evacuated over 100,000
U.S. lawmakers, veterans people. But Qatari authori-
A senior U.S. official, speak- groups and others are press- ties announced that it had
ing on condition of anonym- ing the Biden administration been repaired with the help
ity because he wasn’t autho- to ensure that former Afghan of experts from Qatar and
rized to talk to the media, said military interpreters and oth- Turkey and was ready for the
the Taliban’s foreign minister ers in danger of Taliban re- resumption of international
and deputy prime minister prisals for working with the airline flights.
helped facilitate the flight. Americans are allowed to
Americans, U.S. green card leave. “I can clearly say that this is a
holders and other nation- historic day in the history of two-decade war. permission to board evacua-
alities, including Germans, In the U.S., National Se- Afghanistan as Kabul airport tion flights chartered by U.S.
Hungarians and Canadians, curity Council spokesper- is now operational,” al-Qa- The airport is no longer the supporters. Many are be-
were aboard, the official said. son Emily Horne said that htani said. He added: “Hope- Hamid Karzai International lieved not to have the neces-
Thursday’s flight was the fully, life is becoming normal Airport, but simply Kabul In- sary travel documents.
Qatari envoy Mutlaq bin result of “careful and hard in Afghanistan.” ternational Airport, with the
Majed al-Qahtani said anoth- diplomacy and engagement” name of the country’s former In Mazar-e-Sharif on Thurs-
er 200 passengers will leave and that the Taliban “have The flight was the first to president removed. Several day, an Afghan who worked
Afghanistan on Friday. shown flexibility, and they take off from the Kabul air- Taliban flags flew from the 15 years as an interpreter for
have been businesslike and port since American forces terminal, which was embla- the U.S. military was moving
It was not immediately clear professional in our dealings left the country at the end zoned “The Islamic Emirate from hotel to hotel and run-
how many Americans were with them in this effort.” of August. The accompany- seeks peaceful and positive ning out of money as he, his
on board Thursday and how “This is a positive first step,” ing scenes of chaos, includ- relations with the world.” eight children and his wife
many were still in Afghani- she said, adding that the U.S. ing Afghans plunging to their waited for the OK from the
stan. will continue trying to extract deaths from the sides of mili- Hundreds of other Afghans Taliban to leave.
Americans and Afghan allies tary aircraft on takeoff and a who say they are at risk for
The White House said be- who want to leave. suicide bombing that killed helping the Americans have “I’m frightened I will be left
fore the flight that there were 169 Afghans and 13 U.S. gathered for more than a behind,” said the man, whose
roughly 100 American citi- As Taliban authorities pa- service members, came to week in the northern city of name was withheld by The
zens left in Afghanistan. But trolled the tarmac, passen- define the end of America’s Mazar-e-Sharif, waiting for Associated Press for his safety.

France to offer free birth control to all women up to 25

(AP) — France will offer minister announced clude free medical visits ies and lives.”
free birth control to all Thursday. about contraception, and will “It’s intolerable that wom-
women up to age 25 start- start Jan. 1, Health Minister en aren’t able to to protect The health minister didn’t
ing next year, the health The measure will also in- Olivier Veran announced on themselves, aren’t able to use address contraception meth-
France-2 television. contraception if they make ods for men, or specify
that choice, because it would whether the measure would
All contraceptive methods cost too much,” Veran said. apply to trans and nonbinary
were already free for girls up people. The Health Ministry
to 18 years old, and that is be- The measure will cost the did not respond to queries
ing expanded to all women government about 21 million seeking clarification.
up to 25. Abortions in France euros (nearly $25 million)
are free for everyone. per year, he said. Several other European
countries offer free or subsi-
Veran said young women “Finally!” tweeted Alyssa Ah- dized contraception. Contra-
are using contraception less rabare of activist group Osez ceptive methods cost nothing
than they used to, and that le feminisme. “The high price in Britain, for example, and
the main reason is financial. of medical consultations and Spain’s health system pro-
He didn’t cite specific data. contraception blocks access vides funding for 48 different
France’s state health care sys- for several women to this es- birth control methods, and
tem covers some birth con- sential right that allows them those administered in health
trol costs but not all of them. to keep control of their bod- centers are free.