WASHINGTON — Social media firm Facebook said it helped evacuate Afghan journalists to Mexico from Kabul—the capital of Afghanistan— alongside the tech giant’s employees, partners, and families.
“In the process of assisting Facebook employees and close partners leave Afghanistan, we joined an effort to help a group of journalists and their families who were in grave danger,” a Facebook spokesperson said.
Facebook had earlier released several features to help the Afghans. Nathaniel Gleicher, Head of security policy at Facebook, write a Twitter thread to help the Afghans.
The US social media network thanked Mexico for taking them in, and the United Arab Emirates provided the initial landing. Mexico confirmed that a group of 175 Afghan citizens landed at Mexico City’s airport on Sept. 1.
“A group of 175 Afghan citizens arrived today at the Mexico City International Airport,” said the Mexican government in a statement.
“This group, the fourth to come to Mexico for humanitarian reasons due to the situation in Afghanistan, is made up of social media workers, activists, and independent journalists and their families, including 75 children.”
“The group arrived on the first Egypt Air flight to ever land in Mexico, thanks to work done by Mexico’s embassies in Iran, the United Arab Emirates, and Egypt, with the invaluable assistance of the government of Egypt,” said the government.
“The Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Interior and other government agencies kept in close contact during the immigration procedures.”
This was the first-ever Egypt Air flight to land in the Central American country. Mexico thanked the government of Egypt and its embassy workers in Iran, the UAE, and Egypt for their invaluable assistance.
“In keeping with Mexico’s principles of solidarity with asylum seekers, refugees, and those seeking humanitarian protection in our country, additional groups of Afghan citizens are expected to arrive in the coming days,” said the government.
“The [Mexican] Ministry of Foreign Affairs is in communication with the representatives of these groups that are requesting protection for humanitarian reasons, in addition to the governments of other countries and other areas of the federal government to make their arrival possible.”
The terror group Taliban took control of Afghanistan on Aug. 15 after it seized the capital city of Kabul. The US and its allies left the country hastily on Aug. 31 after evacuating thousands of people.
The common citizens of Afghanistan are still fearful of the Taliban. They are known to flee the country in an attempt to save their lives.
“Afghans are trying to go to Iran/Europe in intense heat and days of walking, climbing and sleeping on harsh terrains to rest, May Allah makes it easy for them as this isn’t an easy road,” tweeted Afghan blogger Farhan Hotak.
“I was almost going down this path myself from unemployment and poverty of not receiving any Aid.”
(With inputs from ANI)
Edited by Saptak Datta and Praveen Pramod Tewari
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