UK warned of imminent ISIS-K terrorist attack in Kabul and asked its citizens to stay away from the airport

The British government warned on Thursday that a “highly lethal” terrorist attack could be carried out at Kabul airport “imminently”., while refugee evacuation operations continue in Afghanistan.

Speaking to the British media, the Secretary of State for the Armed Forces of the United Kingdom, James Heappey, revealed to have received “Very credible information” which points to the possibility that an “imminent” and “serious” terrorist attack could take place in the Afghan capital.

“The credibility of the information has reached the point where we believe (the possibility of a terrorist attack) is very imminent, a highly lethal attack, possibly in Kabul.”, said the politician on Thursday in a program of the BBC.

Heappey pointed out that following this information, the UK executive changed its official travel recommendation and now advises its citizens not to approach the Afghan airfield, but to “get away from the airport, find a safe place and wait for our instructions”.

The Foreign Ministry is now urging its citizens who are waiting to be evacuated outside the Hamid Karzai airfield to leave this area to a safe place amid fears that a terrorist group affiliated with ISIS in Afghanistan, known as ISIS-K, will carry out the threat.

As United States and Australia, who have also asked their citizens to leave the airport for fear of terrorist attacks, the British Foreign Office has urged British nationals already outside Hamid Karzai airfield to leave the area immediately.

The Foreign Office notes that the security situation in this country “continues to be unstable” and warns against the existence of a “Continued and high threat of terrorist attack”.

The last plane chartered by this country which transported refugees from Afghanistan to the United Kingdom landed this morning, according to the British Ministry of Defense.

The aircraft, an RAF Vogager, was carrying a few 250 people from Kabul at Brize Norton military airbase, in the English county of Oxfordshire, where the plane landed after midnight.

According to official data provided by the aforementioned UK ministry, this country has evacuated more than 11,500 people since the start of the evacuation operation on the 13th, after the Taliban regained control of Afghanistan.

These refugees include British Embassy staff, British citizens, persons having collaborated with the armed forces of this country, now threatened with persecution by the Taliban regime, and included in the British Aid and Relocation Policy (Arap) program, along with others from allied countries.

The defense also clarified that London has evacuated some 7,000 Afghan citizens and their familiesAlthough it is not clear how many Britons remain in this country awaiting evacuation, nor of those with dual nationality.

Heappey also revealed to the BBC that a total of 11 planes chartered by this country leave this Thursday from Kabul to the United Kingdom evacuate the refugees.

Belgium and Denmark have also ended their evacuation operations

The Belgian Prime Minister, Alexandre de Croo, stressed that his decision to end the evacuation operation that this country was carrying out in Afghanistan was motivated by the high risk of terrorist attacks at Kabul airport.

During a press conference, De Croo said that the situation at the airport worsened seriously on Wednesday and indicated which US and foreign sources had warned them about risk of imminent attack, so they decided to end the evacuation operation.

“We have had many contacts with partner countries and we have seen that other countries have come to the same approach as Belgium: to decrease, to stop the number of flights from Kabul to Islamabad,” said De Croo, who said safety has always been their priority.

“Yesterday, in view of the security situation, and on the basis of indications received from international partners, we had no choice but to leave Kabul airport. Teams in the region have informed us that other nations have started withdrawing their military and consular personnel from Kabul, ”added Defense Minister Ludivine Dedonder.

For its part, the Danish authorities have ended the evacuation of personnel from Afghanistan and consider that it is no longer justified to fly to and from Kabul airport by the deterioration of the security situation.

“The defense sent a clear recommendation. It is no longer safe to fly to or from Kabul “the head of this department, Trine Bramsen, said on TV2 on Thursday.

(With information from EFE)

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