UK Defense Secretary Ben Wallace told the Sky News broadcaster on Tuesday that Washington was "unlikely" to extend the Afghanistan withdrawal deadline beyond August 31, citing public statements by the US president
LONDON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 24th August, 2021) UK Defense Secretary Ben Wallace told the Sky news broadcaster on Tuesday that Washington was "unlikely" to extend the Afghanistan withdrawal deadline beyond August 31, citing public statements by the US president.
Taliban (outlawed in Russia as a terrorist organization) spokesman Suhail Shaheen told the broadcaster on Monday that the group would not give the United States and the United Kingdom any extra time to continue evacuations from Afghanistan, saying "there would be consequences" if the deadline is not met.
"I think it's unlikely, not only because of what the Taliban has said but also the public statement from [US] President [Joe] Biden," the official said, noting, at the same time, that it is worth trying to adjourn the exit.
The official added that the security risk was increasing and it was getting more and more dangerous as the exit deadline was approaching.
Following a weeks-long offensive launched after the US started withdrawing forces from Afghanistan, the Taliban entered Kabul on August 15 and caused the civilian government to fall. This prompted thousands of locals to seek escape for fear of reprisals from the militants. Many countries have since begun evacuating their diplomatic missions and citizens from the Central Asian nation.
As of Tuesday, the UK has airlifted 8,600 people out of Kabul, with over 2,000 evacuated over the past 24 hours.
