India is evacuating its nationals from Afghanistan on Tuesday on a “special flight” from Mazar-i-Sharif – the country’s fourth-largest city as the Taliban launch another offensive.
“A special flight is leaving from Mazar-e-Sharif to New Delhi. Any Indian nationals in and around Mazar-e-Sharif are requested to leave for India in the special flight scheduled to depart late today evening,” the Indian consulate in Mazar-e-Sharif tweeted.
All India-based diplomats and officials from the Indian consulate in Mazar-e-Sharif and Indian nationals living in and around the city are to be evacuated in Indian Air Force (IAF) aircraft by Tuesday evening, people familiar with developments said on condition of anonymity.
The exact number of people being evacuated couldn’t immediately be ascertained. It asked Indian citizens who want to leave by the special flight to submit the details like their full name and passport number to the consulate immediately. Around 1,500 Indians are currently staying in Afghanistan.
Last month India pulled out around 50 diplomats and security personnel from its consulate in Kandahar following intense clashes between Afghan forces and Taliban fighters around the city.
There was no official word on the development of the external affairs ministry.
The people cited above said the strength of the Indian consulate in Mazar-e-Sharif had been reduced recently in the wake of the Taliban intensifying its campaign to capture territory in rural areas and overrun provincial capitals and urban centers. The consulate has also been without a head since the last consul general, Vinesh Kalra, died of Covid-19 in a hospital in Kabul in May.
The Taliban have so far taken over Kunduz and Aibak cities in the north, triggering fears of an assault on Mazar-e-Sharif, the fourth-largest city in Afghanistan and the capital of Balkh province.
According to information provided by the government in Parliament last week, there are currently some 1,500 Indian nationals in Afghanistan. A majority of them are workers and professionals engaged in the hundreds of development projects being implemented by the Indian government.