Boris Johnson: 'Some Good Progress' Made In Afghan Evacuation Effort

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said the UK is making "some good progress" on getting eligible persons and Afghan resettlement persons out of Afghanistan.

In a video posted on Twitter, he said the UK has helped 2,272 Afghans to the leave Afghanistan under the Afghan resettlement programme, adding that he met with some of them this morning.

Personnel deployed on Operation Pitting have assisted the evacuation of former British staff eligible for relocation under the Afghan Relocation and Assistance Policy (ARAP).

Mr Johnson wrote: "I’m proud that we are able to give this help to them, they have been of incredible use to our country as interpreters and in countless other ways over the last 20 years.

"We owe them a big debt of gratitude and obligation, so it’s right that they should come to this country. And I can tell you that we are working flat-out at the Hamid Karzai International Airport to bring out as many more as we can, as rapidly as we can.

"And we are now starting to see some good progress in getting the eligible persons out and getting the Afghan resettlement persons out as well."

The Prime Minister has also backed Dominic Raab, after the Foreign Secretary was criticised for his handling of the Afghanistan crisis, including the repatriation of Afghan interpreters.

Asked whether he had full confidence in Mr Raab, Mr Johnson told reporters in Downing Street: "Absolutely.

"And I can tell you that the whole of the Government has been working virtually around the clock to do what we can to sort it out, to deal with a situation that has been long in gestation and to make sure we get as many people back as possible."

Cover image: Boris Johnson (Picture: Alamy).