Pakistan Airlines said today, Saturday, that it will launch commercial flights to the Afghan capital, Kabul, starting from Monday, while Doha received yesterday, Friday, the second Qatari passenger plane coming from Kabul, carrying dozens of citizens from America, France and other countries. Paris and Washington praised Qatar’s role in securing The exit of its remaining citizens in Afghanistan after the Taliban movement took control of the country.

PIA spokesman Abdullah Hafeez Khan said that the company had obtained technical licenses to operate flights to Kabul Airport, adding that the company had received 73 requests from people wishing to travel, and explained that many of the requests came from aid organizations and journalists wishing to travel to Kabul.

Pakistan Airlines flights will be the first commercial flight of its kind since the Taliban took control of Afghanistan after the last US soldier left the country on August 30.

The first international passenger flight - but not commercial - took off from Kabul to Doha last Thursday, followed by a second Qatar Airways flight on Friday carrying 158 passengers, including Americans, Germans, Canadians, French, Dutch, Belgians and Mauritanians, in addition to Afghan citizens.

The French Foreign Ministry said that among the passengers of the Qatari plane that landed yesterday at Doha Airport were 49 French with their families, and Paris thanked Qatar for what it described as its very important support in the transportation of passengers from Afghanistan.

Kabul Airport

In the days following the Taliban’s takeover of Kabul, its airport became a symbol of scenes of despair among Afghans who were afraid of the return of Taliban rule, and thousands crowded its gates daily during America’s conduct of military evacuation flights for its citizens, soldiers and citizens of allied countries, as well as Afghan collaborators with foreign forces in Afghanistan.

The French Foreign Ministry said that among the passengers of the Qatari plane - which landed yesterday at Hamad International Airport - were 49 French with their families, and the French Foreign Ministry thanked the State of Qatar for what it described as its very important support in passenger transport operations.

A White House official confirmed that 19 Americans were on a Qatar Airways chartered plane, noting that two other Americans and 11 permanent residents of the United States had left Afghanistan by land.

The White House expressed its gratitude for the continuous efforts made by Qatar in facilitating operations at Kabul International Airport, and thanked the US Special Envoy to Afghanistan Zalmay Khalilzad Doha for its efforts in operating international flights from Kabul Airport, and welcomed the cooperation of the Taliban in this regard.

In turn, British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said that a second Qatari plane carrying Britons arrived in Doha safely.

air bridge

As part of an air bridge that was launched about a week ago, Qatari planes yesterday transported more aid to Afghanistan through Kabul Airport, and Doha had pledged to fly aid planes to the Afghan capital on a daily basis, as part of an air bridge to provide humanitarian support to the Afghan people.

Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaki, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, met with Dr. Mutlaq Al-Qahtani, the Special Envoy of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Qatar.


Mr. Mottaki expressed his thanks and gratitude for Qatar's efforts in re-operating Kabul Airport, and they also discussed a number of important issues.

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— Islamic Emirate (@alemara_ar) September 9, 2021

In the past few days, Qatari planes carried tens of tons of urgent relief aid, and other aid, some of which was provided by Qatar Charity and the Qatari Red Crescent.

In this context, Mutlaq Al-Qahtani, envoy of the Qatari Foreign Minister, said yesterday, Friday, that Kabul Airport has become navigable, and that this constitutes a new achievement for Qatari diplomacy. Operating flights from Kabul Airport.

He said that Doha will hold talks with the Afghan caretaker government and with Turkey to make the airport more efficient.

It is noteworthy that on August 15, the Taliban announced its control of the capital, Kabul, in parallel with a US military withdrawal that was completed at the end of the same month, which prompted Afghan President Ashraf Ghani to flee the country.