German evacuation plane to Afghanistan left with just ‘7 people on board’

German authorities described the situation at Kabul airport as ‘chaotic’

Thousands of people rush to Kabul airport, Afghanistan (Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

The first German evacuation plane to Afghanistan managed to leave with just seven people on board, Berlin’s foreign ministry confirmed.

Germany has the second largest military contingent in the country after the United States and wants to airlift thousands of dual nationals out as well as people who worked with them, such as activists and lawyers.

They managed to land a A-400M aircraft at Kabul airport but could only get a few people on board due to the “chaotic” situation.

A spokesman for the German Federal Foreign Office said: “We can confirm that seven people were evacuated on a flight from Kabul that night.

“Due to the chaotic circumstances at the airport and regular exchanges of fire at the access point, it was not guaranteed last night that other German nationals and other people to be evacuated would even get access to the airport without the protection of the Bundeswehr [armed forces].”

A second military plane took off from Kabul airport early on Tuesday afternoon with more than 120 people on board, including Germans, Afghans and people from other countries, Foreign Minister Heiko Maas tweeted.

More evacuations are set to follow, with Germany deploying 600 soldiers for the purpose.

MEP Hannah Neumann was critical of the first evacuation effort on Twitter, she said: “The dark side of German bureaucracy: An airport full of civilians in fear. 5.000 local contractors and ~45.000 ppl that worked for German institutions still in the country.

“And the german government flies home with an A400M and 7(!)evacuees.”

France also evacuated several dozen people from Kabul in a military plane on Tuesday that then brought people to a military air base in Abu Dhabi. A number of people were then transferred to a flight back to France.

The French military did not say whether there were Afghan or other citizens among the several dozen people brought on the overnight flight.

President Emmanuel Macron promised Monday that France would not abandon Afghans who worked for the country, from translators to kitchen staff as well as artists, activists and others potentially under threat with the collapse of the Afghan government, but also called for a plan to manage migration.

Additional reporting by agencies