Government Says Kenyans in Afghanistan Will Be Evacuated By their Employers

The government says Kenyans stranded in Afghanistan following the Taliban’s takeover will be evacuated by their respective employers.

Foreign Affairs Principal Secretary Amb. Macharia Kamau on Tuesday said there were no Kenyans on official assignment as diplomats or any other government duty in Afghanistan.

"Kenya has neither the diplomatic presence nor accreditation to Afghanistan," Kamau told Nation.

The official further indicated that the government was aware of Kenyans working for international agencies, adding that they have started evacuating their employees from troubled south Asian nation.

Other Kenyans were in Afghanistan as private contractors or legal experts for agencies such as the International Development Law Organization (IDLO), he said. 

Kamau divulged that the ministry had contacted IDLO headquarters in Rome regarding evacuation plans.

"We did a letter to IDLO country office and their headquarters in Rome. We are following up to find out if there are known Kenyans stranded there through the High Commission in Pakistan," he added.

Kamau expressed doubts that there are Kenyans running private businesses in Afghanistan citing the security situation.

The Taliban took over the country’s government this week after overrunning the national army, three weeks after the US withdrew its military deployment. President Ashraf Ghani fled Afghanistan on Sunday, with Taliban fighters entering the presidential palace in Kabul shortly after.

Many people including Afghans are trying to flee the country for fear of a return to the Taliban’s brutal rule.