Concerns mount for Afghans who helped Canada as Taliban tighten grip on Kabul

As Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau emerged from Rideau Hall to announce an early election, journalists were flooded with messages and photos from interpreters in Afghanistan and their families who had helped Canada’s intervention against the Taliban. They said they feared for their lives.

Many were told to travel to Kabul, where the Canadian embassy is located, only to find it had been shut down when they arrived.

Canada temporarily suspended its diplomatic operations in Kabul amid safety concerns on Sunday as Taliban fighters entered the Afghan capital in what is expected to be the final push to overtake the government.

While Canadian embassy staff are on their way back home, many Afghans fear they will be left behind amid reports of revenge killings and other brutal tactics in areas of the country the Taliban have seized in recent days.

Speaking to reporters on Sunday, Trudeau said Canada is “constantly monitoring the rapidly evolving situation” to get the latest developments on the ground in Afghanistan and was quick to reiterate the federal government’s commitment to resettle 20,000 Afghans who supported Canadian troops as interpreters, cultural advisers or support staff.

“We are heartbroken at the situation the Afghan people find themselves in today,” he said.

But when asked to clarify what the federal government would do to bring Afghans home, Trudeau said Canada was in “close contact” with its allies and with the U.S., which increased its troop presence on the ground in order to secure the airport in Afghanistan’s Green Zone.

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“We will continue to work to get as many Afghan interpreters and their families out as quickly as possible, as long as the security situation holds,” he said.

“And we will continue to work over the coming months to resettle refugees who will flee Afghanistan, who will look to come to start new lives in Canada.”

3:07 Trudeau pressed on what his government is doing to bring Afghan interpreters to Canada

The Liberal leader was slammed by Conservative and NDP leaders for the country’s lack of action.

Conservative Leader Erin O’Toole condemned the violence in Afghanistan and lambasted Trudeau for not doing more to help those trying to flee.

“My heart goes out to the thousands of military families across the country who in the last few weeks have really been suffering because we lost people in that country, and for many of our veterans, it’s horrible to see the Taliban once again securing control of the country,” he said.

“Canada must work with our allies, and we’re going to be standing up for dignity and for human rights as a government, because Mr. Trudeau has not.”

NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh also criticized Trudeau for triggering an election while Afghanis were suffering and vowed to keep the turmoil facing Canadian allies in Afghanistan at the forefront of the election campaign.

1:27 Taliban takeover in Afghanistan overshadows Trudeau’s election campaign

“I wouldn’t have called an election,” he said.

“I would be deploying all resources possible to get those that are at risk out of Afghanistan, provide them with help to evacuate not only the people directly impacted, but their families as well.”

Meanwhile, two senior Afghan Interior Ministry officials told the Associated Press that President Ashraf Ghani had fled the country to Tajikistan.

In a stunning rout, the Taliban seized nearly all of Afghanistan in just over a week, despite the billions of dollars spent by the U.S. and NATO over nearly two decades to build up Afghan security forces.

The Taliban began rapidly regaining their territory after the U.S. decided to pull its troops out of Afghanistan, putting an end to its longest war — a 20-year mission to dismantle al-Qaeda and remove the Taliban from power.

1:39 Afghan-Canadians watch growing conflict in Afghanistan with unease

Afghani-Canadians have been watching in horror as the Taliban tightened its grip around Kabul, fearing for their loved ones back at home.

“My family is heartbroken. They don’t know what to do, what action to take from here,” Maihan Sarwary, who has lost two cousins to the escalating violence in Afghanistan, previously told Global News from his home in Scarborough.

“They’re living hour by hour. They don’t know what’s going to happen next hour, what’s going to happen at the end of the day,” Baktash Nasseri, an Afghan-Canadian also living in Scarborough, said in a prior interview with Global News.

“It’s very sad, it’s nerve-breaking to see.”

— with files from the Associated Press, Global News’ Saba Aziz and Kamil Karamali