Two private flights carrying nearly 800 people left Kabul, Afghanistan, and landed in Doha, Qatar, after weeks of being stuck.
Sayara International, a global development organization that has had a presence in Afghanistan for more than almost two decades, secured the departure and landing rights for the two flights.
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One of the flights carried 385 Afghans, and it arrived in Doha on Sept. 21, while the other carried 399 and landed safely last Sunday, the group announced on Thursday. There were 11 Americans on the flights, according to Sayara International.
The group said it took four weeks and negotiations with both the Taliban and the U.S. State Department to ensure the plane would be allowed to depart. Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut also assisted the group.
“I am immensely grateful to our network of advocates and volunteers who made this possible through countless phone calls, text chains, and sleepless nights. Amid the delays, frustration, and fear, their steadfast devotion was an inspiration,” Blumenthal said in a statement. “I was proud to work alongside them. Our international partners — in particular, leaders in Qatar and Albania — provided significant support to our mission and I thank them for it. I also want to thank the State Department staff in Doha for their tireless advocacy on behalf of these passengers.”
Sayara International’s struggle to get permission for the planes to take off has been a common occurrence since the U.S. and NATO forces withdrew from Afghanistan at the end of August. The troops left hundreds of American citizens and thousands of Afghan allies behind to survive under the newly formed Taliban government.
Safi Sina Noorzai and his brother Samim were among the Afghans on the flight out of Afghanistan.
Samim Noorzai, who goes by the nickname Metal Sam, boasted to the Washington Examiner that they’re a part of Afghanistan’s first black metal band, Rig Veda.
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“So we were staying [at a hotel] for a month or so, and finally, our flights were approved and we headed to the airport. And after a long time, we got permission from [the] Taliban, and our flights were approved,” he said, describing the more than a month in which his family was waiting to leave.
They’re now residing at the Al Udeid Air Base in Doha, though their family plans to come to the United States once they’re permitted.
