UAE operating aid air bridge to Kabul to deliver tons of aid: Airport manager

UAE operating aid air bridge to Kabul to deliver tons of aid: Airport manager

The United Arab Emirates has set up an air bridge to deliver tons of aid to Afghanistan after the Taliban takeover, a Kabul airport operations manager told AFP on Saturday.

The wealthy UAE, a close US ally, is one of a number of Gulf states that have been key staging posts for evacuation flights for foreigners and Afghans, alongside Qatar, Kuwait and Bahrain.

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“From the 3rd of September, (...) the UAE government has activated an air bridge corridor for humanitarian aid,” said Ibrahim Moarafi.

Moarafi is general manager and regional director of GAAC, a UAE-based company that has provided ground and security handling services at Kabul airport since November 2020.

“From that day and until now, we have received and handled 11 flights almost on a daily basis, and we have handled 255 tonnes of medical aid and food items,” he said.

On Saturday, two UAE aircraft unloaded dozens of aid packages containing roast minced veal, powdered milk, cooking oil and medical supplies, an AFP correspondent said.

More than two-thirds of the 120,000 Afghans and foreigners who fled Afghanistan on evacuation flights landed in the UAE and Qatar before going on to their