Hopes are rising for workers at an animal rescue charity in Kabul, after UK officials began processing visas for them to leave Afghanistan.
British former Royal Marine commando Paul “Pen” Farthing has been lobbying for a way out for his 25 Afghan staff since Kabul fell to the Taliban last Sunday.
In what was described as a significant breakthrough, Mr Farthing is in talks with UK officials to get his staff to Britain.
But security fears are holding up the evacuation as chaos in Kabul prevents access to the airport.
Dominic Dyer, an animal welfare campaigner lobbying on Mr Farthing’s behalf, said the UK’s Foreign Office was dealing with visa applications for staff and their families.
“We are making significant progress to get that completed now,” he said on Sunday.
“Huge progress is being made.
“Everything is moving very quickly now, but also the crisis around the airport in Kabul is getting worse by the hour.”
Mr Farthing has said he will not leave until he is certain of the safety of his staff, who he fears could face reprisals after working for a western charity.
He said his staff’s problems were being compounded by closed banks and the suspension of money transfers from abroad.
“I can’t pay the staff wages, so they can’t go out and buy food,” he said. “This humanitarian disaster is just getting worse and worse.”
Staff at the charity, Nowzad, hope to be added to a rescue list of people who will be flown back to Britain in the coming days.
British ambassador Laurie Bristow has been widely praised for staying in Afghanistan to help manage evacuations from Kabul’s airport.
Nato personnel are securing the airport but there have been reports of shootings and violence in the surrounding area. Britain said on Sunday that seven people had died in the chaos.
At least 12 people were killed earlier, in and near the airport, Nato and Taliban officials have said.
The Taliban have set up checkpoints in the city while desperate Afghans with no visas or passports have rushed the airport in a bid to escape.
Mr Farthing appealed to US forces to secure an access corridor to the airport so that he and his staff could get out if their visas are approved.
“People are dying here,” he said. “You can tell me as many times as you like that there’s an aeroplane sat on that tarmac – I cannot get to it.”
Nowzad’s case was raised in the UK Parliament this week after the charity’s supporters appealed directly to politicians to intervene.
UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson said ministers would do “everything we can” to help Mr Farthing and others facing particular difficulties.
Nowzad hopes to bring the animals in its care to safety outside Afghanistan.
A wealthy investor in the US has donated money to charter a plane after Nowzad launched fundraising efforts to get its cats and dogs out.
Mr Dyer said there was no shortage of people wanting to adopt the animals being looked after by Nowzad.
“We’re not going to leave anyone behind – all the people and animals will be coming out of Afghanistan,” he said.
COMPANY PROFILE
Initial investment: Undisclosed
Investment stage: Series A
Investors: Core42
Current number of staff: 47
Our legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants
WHAT IS GRAPHENE?
It was discovered in 2004, when Russian-born Manchester scientists Andrei Geim and Kostya Novoselov were experimenting with sticky tape and graphite, the material used as lead in pencils.
Placing the tape on the graphite and peeling it, they managed to rip off thin flakes of carbon. In the beginning they got flakes consisting of many layers of graphene. But when they repeated the process many times, the flakes got thinner.
By separating the graphite fragments repeatedly, they managed to create flakes that were just one atom thick. Their experiment led to graphene being isolated for the very first time.
In 2010, Geim and Novoselov were awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The specs
Engine: 8.0-litre, quad-turbo 16-cylinder
Transmission: 7-speed auto
0-100kmh 2.3 seconds
0-200kmh 5.5 seconds
0-300kmh 11.6 seconds
Power: 1500hp
Torque: 1600Nm
Price: Dh13,400,000
On sale: now
Sholto Byrnes on Myanmar politics
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Brief scores:
Toss: Nepal, chose to field
UAE 153-6: Shaiman (59), Usman (30); Regmi 2-23
Nepal 132-7: Jora 53 not out; Zahoor 2-17
Result: UAE won by 21 runs
Series: UAE lead 1-0
Winners
Best Men's Player of the Year: Kylian Mbappe (PSG)
Maradona Award for Best Goal Scorer of the Year: Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich)
TikTok Fans’ Player of the Year: Robert Lewandowski
Top Goal Scorer of All Time: Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United)
Best Women's Player of the Year: Alexia Putellas (Barcelona)
Best Men's Club of the Year: Chelsea
Best Women's Club of the Year: Barcelona
Best Defender of the Year: Leonardo Bonucci (Juventus/Italy)
Best Goalkeeper of the Year: Gianluigi Donnarumma (PSG/Italy)
Best Coach of the Year: Roberto Mancini (Italy)
Best National Team of the Year: Italy
Best Agent of the Year: Federico Pastorello
Best Sporting Director of the Year: Txiki Begiristain (Manchester City)
Player Career Award: Ronaldinho
THREE
%3Cp%3EDirector%3A%20Nayla%20Al%20Khaja%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EStarring%3A%20Jefferson%20Hall%2C%20Faten%20Ahmed%2C%20Noura%20Alabed%2C%20Saud%20Alzarooni%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3ERating%3A%203.5%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The Settlers
Director: Louis Theroux
Starring: Daniella Weiss, Ari Abramowitz
Rating: 5/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The biog
Favourite food: Fish and seafood
Favourite hobby: Socialising with friends
Favourite quote: You only get out what you put in!
Favourite country to visit: Italy
Favourite film: Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels.
Family: We all have one!
BIGGEST CYBER SECURITY INCIDENTS IN RECENT TIMES
SolarWinds supply chain attack: Came to light in December 2020 but had taken root for several months, compromising major tech companies, governments and its entities
Microsoft Exchange server exploitation: March 2021; attackers used a vulnerability to steal emails
Kaseya attack: July 2021; ransomware hit perpetrated REvil, resulting in severe downtime for more than 1,000 companies
Log4j breach: December 2021; attackers exploited the Java-written code to inflitrate businesses and governments
THE SPECS
Engine: Four-cylinder 2.5-litre
Transmission: Seven-speed auto
Power: 165hp
Torque: 241Nm
Price: Dh99,900 to Dh134,000
On sale: now
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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United States
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China
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UAE
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Japan
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5
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Norway
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Canada
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Singapore
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Australia
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Saudi Arabia
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South Korea
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F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
MATCH INFO
Bayern Munich 2 Borussia Monchengladbach 1
Bayern: Zirkzee (26'), Goretzka (86')
Gladbach: Pavard (37' og)
Man of the Match: Breel Embolo (Borussia Monchengladbach)
Frankenstein in Baghdad
Ahmed Saadawi
Penguin Press
Brief scoreline:
Liverpool 2
Keita 5', Firmino 26'
Porto 0
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
