35 ethnic Kazakhs returned from Afghanistan to Kazakhstan

Almaty, September 9, 2021-According to the instructions of the President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, 35 ethnic Kazakhs – Kandas have been organized today to return to their historical homeland from Afghanistan.

A special flight of the Air Force of the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Kazakhstan arrived from Kabul to the airport of Almaty with 41 passengers, including 4 citizens of the Republic of Kazakhstan, 1 citizen of Kyrgyzstan and 1 Afghan permanently residing in Kazakhstan. Arriving passengers will be temporarily isolated for quarantine procedures.

The evacuation flight was organized in coordination with the Taliban movement.

The Embassy of Kazakhstan in Kabul operates normally and is in constant contact with the Kandas living in Afghanistan. The work on confirming the applicants' ethnicity and the return of the Kandas continues.

As previously reported, on August 18, Kazakhstan evacuated 25 of its citizens from Afghanistan and 16 citizens of Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Lithuania. In addition, the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) and the offices of other international organizations have been temporarily relocated to Almaty from Kabul.