NAfter the biggest rescue operation Armed forces In Afghanistan, paratroopers and hundreds of other soldiers from the First Airborne Brigade are expected to return to Germany on Friday. Secretary of Defense Annie Gretel Kramp-Karenbauer (CDU) and Inspector General Eberhard Zorn flew to Uzbekistan immediately after the dangerous mission was over on Thursday night to thank the soldiers. They “bring as many people as possible to safety under the most difficult conditions on site.”
The terrorist attack at the airport on Thursday night demonstrated the danger of this operation. According to the British Ministry of Health, the attack caused more than 90 deaths and more than 150 injuries. Among the dead were at least 13 American soldiers who tried to save people at the entrance. Since August 14 and the Taliban came to power, the United States and its allies have transported more than 100,000 people out of Afghanistan.
Two paramedics stay temporarily
Like other countries, German soldiers should have retreated on Thursday as planned. This means that the airport should be withdrawn gradually under the guidance of the United States next Tuesday. While loading the last batch of military transport vehicles, the suicide bomber’s bomb exploded in front of the airport. The German commander Brigadier General Jens Alter ordered an emergency retreat. The two paramedics initially stayed behind, but were later picked up by an Air Force plane. In the evening, all soldiers of the German task force landed safely in Tashkent.
In the past 11 days, German aircraft brought more than 5,300 people from Kabul from the Taliban to safety. The soldiers were supposed to land in Wenstorf, Lower Saxony, at about 4 pm, which is the base of the 62nd Air Transport Wing. Since the Monday of the previous week, airlifts between Kabul and Tashkent have been carried out using squadron A400M military transport aircraft.
More than 1,000 German citizens and nationals of other countries, as well as more than 4,000 Afghans flew out of them. Most importantly, people who had served as local helpers for the Bundeswehr, German police and development aid organizations were taken to safety. But politicians, human rights activists and journalists were also airlifted.
Most of the approximately 200 men and women deployed by the Bundeswehr came from the 31st Parachute Regiment in Seedorf, Lower Saxony. It belongs to Airborne Brigade 1, and all the paratroopers of the army are bound in it. Like the Special Forces Command (KSK), which is also deployed in Kabul, it belongs to the Rapid Force Division (DSK). The deployed soldiers were reinforced by medical personnel, military police, paramedics and logistics personnel, who made it possible to deploy in Kabul and Tashkent.
Every Tuesday
In addition to the Minister and the Inspector General, Eva Högl, a member of the German Bundestag and a commissioner of the armed forces, is expected to attend the welcome ceremony in Winstorf in the afternoon. A few weeks ago, when the last regular contingent of the twenty-year mission in Afghanistan returned, none of the above were present, which aroused strong criticism.
At the same time, nine federal policemen have arrived in Germany as part of the last evacuation mission, together with the soldiers at Kabul Airport. According to the Ministry of the Interior, they arrived in Berlin at 9.15am, where they were thanked and respected by the “management of the Ministry of Interior”.
