Germany wants to keep the door ajar for invited Afghans to flee to Europe – but not push it open so wide that a flood of refugees ensues.
Foreign Secretary Heiko Maas said there could be no repeat of the chaos in Kabul, where people with no visas or passports crowded outside the airport in the hope of escaping the Taliban.
Europe is determined to avoid a rerun of the 2015 refugee crisis when more than a million people crossed EU borders to seek asylum.
But Nato countries want their own citizens and Afghans who helped western troops to have a way out, after some people were left behind by the two-week airlift.
Visiting Uzbekistan on Monday, Mr Maas said Berlin had stressed to the government in Tashkent that it only wanted to extract a limited number of people.
He said potential land routes out of Afghanistan should not become public knowledge and would have to be negotiated with the Taliban.
“There is one thing we want to prevent, which is a repeat of what happened in Kabul – that contact and gathering points are publicly named, and those we want to extract get there but 10,000 others are already there,” he said.
Mr Maas said Uzbekistan had agreed to help with people on Germany’s rescue list, after Nato pilots used the capital Tashkent as a stopping point on the way to Europe.
“We did not make any requests beyond that,” he said. “It is only about this group of people.”
Britain has described safe passage out of Afghanistan as a key demand for any international engagement with the Taliban.
Ministers in the UK estimate that between 800 and 1,100 Afghans were left behind. The opposition says the numbers could be much higher.
Western countries hope that the Taliban can be persuaded to allow commercial flights out of Kabul airport once the Nato withdrawal is complete.
A far greater humanitarian crisis is just beginning
Filippo Grandi
But resuming flights could take time because of damage to the airport, Mr Maas said. A terrorist attack at the gates last week killed dozens of people.
In the meantime, some Afghans have headed for the borders. Iran and Pakistan already host hundreds of thousands of refugees.
Europe considers Afghanistan’s neighbours, including Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Pakistan, as key partners in preventing a fresh refugee wave.
Humanitarian crisis
The UN refugee agency, UNHCR, said on Monday that more than half a million people had been displaced since the start of the year.
UNHCR chief Filippo Grandi said the aid response was desperately short of funding and Afghanistan’s neighbours needed greater support.
“The airlifts out of Kabul will end in a matter of days, and the tragedy that has unfolded will no longer be as visible,” he said.
“But it will still be a daily reality for millions of Afghans. We must not turn away. A far greater humanitarian crisis is just beginning.”
Germany plans to provide €500 million ($590m) in humanitarian aid to Afghanistan and its neighbours to help people who cannot leave.
After moving on to Tajikistan later on Monday, Mr Maas said Germany wanted to provide “very practical help to affected people” in the region.
“We as a government want to send a clear signal that we are not just aware of the situation and holding talks about it, but taking action,” he said.
While Mr Maas travels to Pakistan on Tuesday, EU home affairs ministers will discuss the issue at an emergency summit in Brussels.
The ministers will express their determination to prevent another refugee crisis by mounting a “co-ordinated and orderly response”, according to a draft seen by Reuters.
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
What is the FNC?
The Federal National Council is one of five federal authorities established by the UAE constitution. It held its first session on December 2, 1972, a year to the day after Federation.
It has 40 members, eight of whom are women. The members represent the UAE population through each of the emirates. Abu Dhabi and Dubai have eight members each, Sharjah and Ras al Khaimah six, and Ajman, Fujairah and Umm Al Quwain have four.
They bring Emirati issues to the council for debate and put those concerns to ministers summoned for questioning.
The FNC’s main functions include passing, amending or rejecting federal draft laws, discussing international treaties and agreements, and offering recommendations on general subjects raised during sessions.
Federal draft laws must first pass through the FNC for recommendations when members can amend the laws to suit the needs of citizens. The draft laws are then forwarded to the Cabinet for consideration and approval.
Since 2006, half of the members have been elected by UAE citizens to serve four-year terms and the other half are appointed by the Ruler’s Courts of the seven emirates.
In the 2015 elections, 78 of the 252 candidates were women. Women also represented 48 per cent of all voters and 67 per cent of the voters were under the age of 40.
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
From Europe to the Middle East, economic success brings wealth - and lifestyle diseases
A rise in obesity figures and the need for more public spending is a familiar trend in the developing world as western lifestyles are adopted.
One in five deaths around the world is now caused by bad diet, with obesity the fastest growing global risk. A high body mass index is also the top cause of metabolic diseases relating to death and disability in Kuwait, Qatar and Oman – and second on the list in Bahrain.
In Britain, heart disease, lung cancer and Alzheimer’s remain among the leading causes of death, and people there are spending more time suffering from health problems.
The UK is expected to spend $421.4 billion on healthcare by 2040, up from $239.3 billion in 2014.
And development assistance for health is talking about the financial aid given to governments to support social, environmental development of developing countries.
How it works
Each player begins with one of the great empires of history, from Julius Caesar's Rome to Ramses of Egypt, spread over Europe and the Middle East.
Round by round, the player expands their empire. The more land they have, the more money they can take from their coffers for each go.
As unruled land and soldiers are acquired, players must feed them. When a player comes up against land held by another army, they can choose to battle for supremacy.
A dice-based battle system is used and players can get the edge on their enemy with by deploying a renowned hero on the battlefield.
Players that lose battles and land will find their coffers dwindle and troops go hungry. The end goal? Global domination of course.
Cryopreservation: A timeline
- Keyhole surgery under general anaesthetic
- Ovarian tissue surgically removed
- Tissue processed in a high-tech facility
- Tissue re-implanted at a time of the patient’s choosing
- Full hormone production regained within 4-6 months
GIANT REVIEW
Starring: Amir El-Masry, Pierce Brosnan
Director: Athale
Rating: 4/5
500 People from Gaza enter France
115 Special programme for artists
25 Evacuation of injured and sick
Types of bank fraud
1) Phishing
Fraudsters send an unsolicited email that appears to be from a financial institution or online retailer. The hoax email requests that you provide sensitive information, often by clicking on to a link leading to a fake website.
2) Smishing
The SMS equivalent of phishing. Fraudsters falsify the telephone number through “text spoofing,” so that it appears to be a genuine text from the bank.
3) Vishing
The telephone equivalent of phishing and smishing. Fraudsters may pose as bank staff, police or government officials. They may persuade the consumer to transfer money or divulge personal information.
4) SIM swap
Fraudsters duplicate the SIM of your mobile number without your knowledge or authorisation, allowing them to conduct financial transactions with your bank.
5) Identity theft
Someone illegally obtains your confidential information, through various ways, such as theft of your wallet, bank and utility bill statements, computer intrusion and social networks.
6) Prize scams
Fraudsters claiming to be authorised representatives from well-known organisations (such as Etisalat, du, Dubai Shopping Festival, Expo2020, Lulu Hypermarket etc) contact victims to tell them they have won a cash prize and request them to share confidential banking details to transfer the prize money.
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The specs
Engine: four-litre V6 and 3.5-litre V6 twin-turbo
Transmission: six-speed and 10-speed
Power: 271 and 409 horsepower
Torque: 385 and 650Nm
Price: from Dh229,900 to Dh355,000
The Penguin
Starring: Colin Farrell, Cristin Milioti, Rhenzy Feliz
Creator: Lauren LeFranc
Rating: 4/5
Dust and sand storms compared
Sand storm
- Particle size: Larger, heavier sand grains
- Visibility: Often dramatic with thick "walls" of sand
- Duration: Short-lived, typically localised
- Travel distance: Limited
- Source: Open desert areas with strong winds
Dust storm
- Particle size: Much finer, lightweight particles
- Visibility: Hazy skies but less intense
- Duration: Can linger for days
- Travel distance: Long-range, up to thousands of kilometres
- Source: Can be carried from distant regions
