CDC rule prevented dozens of dogs from being evacuated from Afghan airport, fears Taliban will execute them

Through social media, information was released that a significant number of animals believed to have served the United States Armed Forces they were stranded in Afghanistan after the departure on Monday of the last evacuation flight carried out by the North American country.

Amid fears that the animals could be executed by the Taliban who now occupy the terminal, a report from one of the households behind the rescue attempt sheds light on the underlying reason why many animals were unable to board the evacuation flights, which ended on Monday evening August 30.

The rescue house Rescue of small animals in Kabul (KSAR) expressed disappointment at the refusal to make an exception in this case, noting: “The recent policy adopted by the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to suspend the transport of dogs from the The United States was another terrible obstacle, despite our negotiations and our appeals. “

CDC regulations ban dogs and other pets from entering the United States on a long list of countries after fraudulent rabies vaccination certificates are detected, which, given the impossibility of control, generated the drastic measure.

“We have requested an emergency waiver so the dogs can go out on our chartered flight this week. But the CDC’s adherence to its import policy at this time of crisis has put animals and people in danger, ”lamented the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SCPA).

The group KSAR had managed to get a plane with which they wanted to perform the arduous task of removing the animals and several shelter workers in Kabul for safety.

The organization said at least 46 dogs were abandoned at the airport and now fear mistreatment, a feeling that has multiplied on social networks: “I have just heard the sad news that dozens of American assistance dogs that have been in the care of an animal rescue center in Kabul have not been allowed to be evacuated by the US Air Force. They were all left in cages at Kabul airport to be killed by the Taliban because in their view dogs are a sin “, denounced the Iranian journalist Babak Taghvaee, via his account on the social network Twitter.

The latest SCPA report assures that most of the animals are still in the Kabul rescue house, although they have no information on the fate of those who remained at the terminal and assure they will continue to do so. ‘try to evacuate them from the Afghan capital. The United States ended the operation and thus ended a 20-year war in the Asian country, now in the hands of the Taliban.

Thanks to a massive social media campaign, the plan to try to rescue the dogs and cats stranded in Kabul had gained very relevant force in recent hours, managing to garner considerable support from a large number of people.

The so-called “Operation Hercules” required the military support of US forces to be able to take off from Kabul airport safely with the dogs on board.

Dr Robin R. Ganzert, president and CEO of ‘American Humane’, the premier humanitarian organization in the United States that ensures the safety and well-being of animals and people, issued a statement on the risk posed to the lives of the dogs was left in the hands of the Taliban.

“I am devastated by reports that the US government is withdrawing from Kabul and leaving behind brave working dogs under contract with the military.”said Ganzert.

The director of “American Humane” fears that the animals are “tortured and killed at the hands of our enemies (the Taliban)”. He also called them “brave dogs who do the same dangerous job of saving lives.” He finally added that “they deserved a much better fate than that to which they were condemned”.

The case of “Pen” Farthing

A similar incident occurred last week with the UK, after controversy erupted over attempts to evacuate and rescue animals in Kabul.

This episode was directed by United Kingdom Defense Minister Ben Wallace, who criticized the fact that the British evacuation operation in Afghanistan had been “hijacked” by an animal rescue attempt by an NGO. .

Wallace was “upset” that military efforts had been “diverted from saving people”. because of “inaccurate stories” about what happens to the workers and animals of former sailor Paul ‘Pen’ Farthing’s NGO, the channel says News from the sky.

After the Taliban regained control of Afghanistan, Farthing campaigned for the evacuation of staff and 200 dogs and cats from his animal shelter in Kabul, a plan which the British Defense Minister said he was not “proud”.

Wallace insisted that the military evacuation operation must prioritize people over pets, Although a few hours later, he indicated that if Farthing managed to reach Kabul airport with his staff and animals, the authorities would facilitate his departure on a plane financed by private donations, according to the British press.

The former sailor, reluctant to leave the country without his equipment and animals, took to the Taliban spokesperson on Twitter begging him to allow him to go to the airport, where he claims the plane awaits him for his evacuation.

However, at the last minute he was not cleared by US forces to travel, he was rejected, and the fate of his pets is uncertain.

KEEP READING: