Follow the latest updates on Afghanistan here
The UK plans to fly up to 1,500 people out of Kabul a day after the Taliban advance on the city sparked desperate scenes at the airport as Afghans who worked with Nato or the government tried to leave.
Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said the UK government was processing applications “as fast as we can” to help move hundreds of desperate Afghans, including translators and other embassy support staff, to safety.
“Right up until the day before yesterday, the Afghans wouldn’t let Afghans leave without their passport. If they’ve already been through our checks, we know who they are,” he told Sky News on Monday.
France and Germany have both begun evacuation missions.
“We need to see if we can adapt the rules to get those people out as soon as we can and we will cycle them out from Afghanistan to a Middle East country and then back to United Kingdom, so we can keep the flow of aeroplanes in and out," Mr Wallace said.
“Our target is at least 1,200 to 1,500 exits per day using the capacity of our aeroplanes, and we’ll keep that flowing. We’ve secured a place within the airport where we can process people securely and then marshal them on to the plane.”
Mr Wallace said he was surprised by the speed at which the security situation deteriorated in Afghanistan.
He said he had hoped that years of investment in the country’s military would have allowed for a more “transitional process” as foreign forces withdrew.
About 700 British troops, including paratroopers from 16 Air Assault Brigade, remained in the country to oversee the departure of administrative staff and other embassy workers, he said.
Mr Wallace had previously indicated they could be there until the end of the month, but given the speed of the collapse that now appears unlikely.
“The reason our soldiers are there right now is purely to process both the Afghans that we have obligations to, and indeed to other UK passport holders, people who are aid workers or people who have worked with journalists, so that’s why we will carry on that as long as we can,” he told the BBC.
Since April, the British authorities have managed to fly more than 2,000 Afghans out of the country and they are now safely in the UK with their families.
About 4,000 UK citizens and Afghans eligible to move to the UK are believed to still be in Afghanistan.
Mr Wallace appeared emotional as he told LBC that “some people will not get back”.
There were chaotic scenes at Kabul airport on Monday as hundreds of people gathered on the runway as they tried to secure a flight out of the country.
There were reports that US troops fired several warning shots to keep some civilians away from American aircraft.
The Pentagon confirmed it was preparing to help up to 22,000 special immigrant visa (SIV) applicants get to the US over the next week or so.
Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said they would initially be accommodated at two US bases, in addition to Fort Lee in Virginia.
He added that the US was prepared to offer medical assistance to thousands more Afghans outside of the US.
"A battalion-sized unit already in the Central Command area of responsibility is prepared to also assist with processing and medical care for up to 8,000 at-risk individuals there," Mr Kirby said.
The US has already relocated about 2,000 SIV-holding Afghans through Operation Allies Refuge.
"We know that there are other vulnerable Afghans, some for the work they have done, some for the things they have said, some for nothing more than their gender and we are also working and planning to bring as many as we can to safety," State Department spokesperson Ned Price told reporters.
An additional 1,600 individuals had been airlifted out of the country in the last few days, he added.
France has launched Operation Apagan by sending two planes this week.
“We are doing everything we can to facilitate the arrival in France of those who are willing and able to reach Kabul airport,” French defence minister Florence Parly said.
A German military transport plane set off for Kabul on Monday.
Berlin’s Foreign Minister, Heiko Maas, said the security of the Germans in Afghanistan and local partners “is paramount”.
But last week, the German Parliament rejected a motion recommending translators and “local Afghan staff were welcomed generously” into the country.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has pledged to take in 20,000 refugees as well as hundreds of Afghans who worked with the Canadian military and embassy over the years.
However, the Canadian government announced it had suspended its "diplomatic mission" in Kabul. Canada's Ministers of Foreign Affairs, Immigration and National Defence released a joint statement late Sunday.
“The Government of Canada, including the Canadian Armed Forces, is working closely with allies, including the United States, to ensure processing capacity for the ongoing Special Immigration Measures programme," the Ministers said.
But some in Canada say the government is not doing enough.
"This is a humanitarian crisis right now," said Retired Major-General David Fraser who led Nato's efforts in Afghanistan's south in 2006.
"You've just announced that you're going to bring 20,000 people in, what's the plan? We don't need to know the details for each file. But what's the plan for getting them out?"
Australia has similarly committed to bring Afghans who worked with the country's military and at its embassy to safety. Prime Minister Scott Morrison said his government was working to bring 130 Australians working in Afghanistan home.
On Sunday, it was reported that the UK’s ambassador to Afghanistan, Sir Laurie Bristow, was in a secure area of Kabul airport with other international diplomats.
But plans were being hastily made to move him and other personnel out of the airport, emphasising speed of the collapse.
UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson is set to recall parliament this week owing to the crisis that Foreign Affairs Select Committee chairman Tom Tugendhat called “the biggest single foreign policy disaster” since the Suez crisis in 1956.
Mr Tugendhat, who served as an army officer in Afghanistan, had said the priority should be to get as many people out before Kabul collapsed.
“This isn’t just about interpreters or guards. This is about those people who we trained in special forces to serve alongside us, those who helped us to understand the territory through our agencies and our diplomats,” he told BBC News on Sunday.
“These are the people who, on our encouragement, set up schools for girls. These people are all at risk now.
“The real danger is that we are going to see every female MP murdered, we are going to see ministers strung up on street lamps.”
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Company profile
Company: Eighty6
Date started: October 2021
Founders: Abdul Kader Saadi and Anwar Nusseibeh
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Hospitality
Size: 25 employees
Funding stage: Pre-series A
Investment: $1 million
Investors: Seed funding, angel investors
Timeline
2012-2015
The company offers payments/bribes to win key contracts in the Middle East
May 2017
The UK SFO officially opens investigation into Petrofac’s use of agents, corruption, and potential bribery to secure contracts
September 2021
Petrofac pleads guilty to seven counts of failing to prevent bribery under the UK Bribery Act
October 2021
Court fines Petrofac £77 million for bribery. Former executive receives a two-year suspended sentence
December 2024
Petrofac enters into comprehensive restructuring to strengthen the financial position of the group
May 2025
The High Court of England and Wales approves the company’s restructuring plan
July 2025
The Court of Appeal issues a judgment challenging parts of the restructuring plan
August 2025
Petrofac issues a business update to execute the restructuring and confirms it will appeal the Court of Appeal decision
October 2025
Petrofac loses a major TenneT offshore wind contract worth €13 billion. Holding company files for administration in the UK. Petrofac delisted from the London Stock Exchange
November 2025
180 Petrofac employees laid off in the UAE
Company Profile
Name: JustClean
Based: Kuwait with offices in other GCC countries
Launch year: 2016
Number of employees: 130
Sector: online laundry service
Funding: $12.9m from Kuwait-based Faith Capital Holding
Wicked: For Good
Director: Jon M Chu
Starring: Ariana Grande, Cynthia Erivo, Jonathan Bailey, Jeff Goldblum, Michelle Yeoh, Ethan Slater
Rating: 4/5
The Bloomberg Billionaire Index in full
1 Jeff Bezos $140 billion
2 Bill Gates $98.3 billion
3 Bernard Arnault $83.1 billion
4 Warren Buffett $83 billion
5 Amancio Ortega $67.9 billion
6 Mark Zuckerberg $67.3 billion
7 Larry Page $56.8 billion
8 Larry Ellison $56.1 billion
9 Sergey Brin $55.2 billion
10 Carlos Slim $55.2 billion
White hydrogen: Naturally occurring hydrogen
Chromite: Hard, metallic mineral containing iron oxide and chromium oxide
Ultramafic rocks: Dark-coloured rocks rich in magnesium or iron with very low silica content
Ophiolite: A section of the earth’s crust, which is oceanic in nature that has since been uplifted and exposed on land
Olivine: A commonly occurring magnesium iron silicate mineral that derives its name for its olive-green yellow-green colour
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$1,000 award for 1,000 days on madrasa portal
Daily cash awards of $1,000 dollars will sweeten the Madrasa e-learning project by tempting more pupils to an education portal to deepen their understanding of math and sciences.
School children are required to watch an educational video each day and answer a question related to it. They then enter into a raffle draw for the $1,000 prize.
“We are targeting everyone who wants to learn. This will be $1,000 for 1,000 days so there will be a winner every day for 1,000 days,” said Sara Al Nuaimi, project manager of the Madrasa e-learning platform that was launched on Tuesday by the Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, to reach Arab pupils from kindergarten to grade 12 with educational videos.
“The objective of the Madrasa is to become the number one reference for all Arab students in the world. The 5,000 videos we have online is just the beginning, we have big ambitions. Today in the Arab world there are 50 million students. We want to reach everyone who is willing to learn.”
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COMPANY PROFILE
Company name: Letstango.com
Started: June 2013
Founder: Alex Tchablakian
Based: Dubai
Industry: e-commerce
Initial investment: Dh10 million
Investors: Self-funded
Total customers: 300,000 unique customers every month
The specs: Fenyr SuperSport
Price, base: Dh5.1 million
Engine: 3.8-litre twin-turbo flat-six
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
Power: 800hp @ 7,100pm
Torque: 980Nm @ 4,000rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 13.5L / 100km
Quick pearls of wisdom
Focus on gratitude: And do so deeply, he says. “Think of one to three things a day that you’re grateful for. It needs to be specific, too, don’t just say ‘air.’ Really think about it. If you’re grateful for, say, what your parents have done for you, that will motivate you to do more for the world.”
Know how to fight: Shetty married his wife, Radhi, three years ago (he met her in a meditation class before he went off and became a monk). He says they’ve had to learn to respect each other’s “fighting styles” – he’s a talk it-out-immediately person, while she needs space to think. “When you’re having an argument, remember, it’s not you against each other. It’s both of you against the problem. When you win, they lose. If you’re on a team you have to win together.”
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
THE BIO
BIO:
Born in RAK on December 9, 1983
Lives in Abu Dhabi with her family
She graduated from Emirates University in 2007 with a BA in architectural engineering
Her motto in life is her grandmother’s saying “That who created you will not have you get lost”
Her ambition is to spread UAE’s culture of love and acceptance through serving coffee, the country’s traditional coffee in particular.
Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week
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Indoor Cricket World Cup - Sept 16-20, Insportz, Dubai
Results:
6.30pm: Maiden Dh165,000 2,000m - Winner: Powderhouse, Sam Hitchcott (jockey), Doug Watson (trainer)
7.05pm: Handicap Dh165,000 2,200m - Winner: Heraldic, Richard Mullen, Satish Seemar
7.40pm: Conditions Dh240,000 1,600m - Winner: Walking Thunder, Connor Beasley, Ahmed bin Harmash
8.15pm: Handicap Dh190,000 2,000m - Winner: Key Bid, Fernando Jara, Ali Rashid Al Raihe
8.50pm: The Garhoud Sprint Listed Dh265,000 1,200m - Winner: Drafted, Sam Hitchcott, Doug Watson
9.25pm: Handicap Dh170,000 1,600m - Winner: Cachao, Tadhg O’Shea, Satish Seemar
10pm: Handicap Dh190,000 1,400m - Winner: Rodaini, Connor Beasley, Ahmed bin Harmash
If you go
The flights
Etihad (etihad.com) flies from Abu Dhabi to Luang Prabang via Bangkok, with a return flight from Chiang Rai via Bangkok for about Dh3,000, including taxes. Emirates and Thai Airways cover the same route, also via Bangkok in both directions, from about Dh2,700.
The cruise
The Gypsy by Mekong Kingdoms has two cruising options: a three-night, four-day trip upstream cruise or a two-night, three-day downstream journey, from US$5,940 (Dh21,814), including meals, selected drinks, excursions and transfers.
The hotels
Accommodation is available in Luang Prabang at the Avani, from $290 (Dh1,065) per night, and at Anantara Golden Triangle Elephant Camp and Resort from $1,080 (Dh3,967) per night, including meals, an activity and transfers.
The President's Cake
Director: Hasan Hadi
Starring: Baneen Ahmad Nayyef, Waheed Thabet Khreibat, Sajad Mohamad Qasem
Rating: 4/5