2021-08-28
Times Front Page 28th of August 2021
The Pentagon’s plans for retaliatory strikes against ISIS militants in Afghanistan make the front of The Times.
The Pentagon’s plans for retaliatory strikes against ISIS militants in Afghanistan make the front of The Times.
At least 12 US troops were killed along with as many as 60 Afghans when two suicide bombers attacked crowds desperate to board flights at Kabul airport, reports The Times.
The Times leads with Defence Secretary Ben Wallace’s warning that thousands of Afghans entitled to come to Britain risk being left behind after the Foreign Office advised against travel to Kabul airport.
The Times reports that the last British evacuation flight from Kabul is expected to leave on Thursday or Friday to ensure there is time for the 1,000 UK troops to get out of the Afghan city.
Britain is increasingly resigned to having to conclude its evacuation from Kabul by the end of the week, The Times says.
The Times writes that Britain will step up the mass evacuation of British and Afghan citizens from Afghanistan on Monday under plans to fly up to 6,000 people out of the country this week.
The Times has been told that thousands of Afghans entitled to come to Britain could be left behind unless the 31 August deadline for their evacuation is extended.
The Times leads with the story that three of Britain’s most senior civil servants, whose departments are overseeing the evacuation from Afghanistan, are on holiday.
The Times leads with MPs’ condemnation of US President Joe Biden for his “shameful” withdrawal from Afghanistan.
Boris Johnson says Britain will take in 20,000 Afghan refugees in recognition of the “debt of gratitude” the country owes Afghanistan which is now under Taliban rule, writes The Times. The prime minister is setting up a dedicated scheme for those fleeing their homes, which will give them a safe and legal route to the UK.