By 24 August 2021, all those working for the Swiss government and their close family members had either successfully left Afghanistan or made it to a secure part of the airport in Kabul, according to RTS. 15 Swiss citizens now remain in the country in addition to those at the airport.
A total of 292 people with links to Switzerland have been evacuated, Ignazio Cassis, Switzerland’s foreign minister told the press on Tuesday. A further 66 were at Kabul airport. A chartered Swiss fight from the Uzbek capital Tashkent arrived in Switzerland early on Tuesday with 219 people on board including 78 Germans, Swedes and Afghans.
15 Swiss remain in the country outside the airport, however these people either do not want to or cannot get to the airport and Switzerland has no plans to send another aircraft to Kabul, said the minister. Switzerland’s embassy in Islamabad is in regular contact with the remaining 15 people and is working with them to help them leave.
Refugees among those arriving in Switzerland will not be required to apply for asylum and will be able to convert their B permits into residence permits after 5 years.
More on this:
RTS article (in French) – Take a 5 minute French test now
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