More than a thousand Canadians remained in Afghanistan months after diplomats fled Kabul, say Department of Foreign Affairs briefing documents. Records did not indicate if Canadians are still trapped under Taliban rule, according to Blacklock's Reporter..“How many Canadians were left in Afghanistan after Aug.31, 2021? 1,290,” said a briefing note for Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly. “1,280 Canadians are still there.” The note is dated May 2..The department cited “significant security concerns” since the Taliban regained control..“Al-Qaeda has become more active in Afghanistan and the Taliban has shown little desire to contain them,” wrote staff. “There has also been an alarming rise of forced disappearances and arrests.”.Diplomats closed the Canadian embassy in Kabul on Aug. 15, 2021 as the city fell to Taliban forces. The air force suspended Canadian rescue flights August 27..The briefing note said it knew of Canadian citizens who remained in Afghanistan as recently as this past May. None were known to be in Taliban jails..“The department has no information to suggest there are any Canadians currently detained in Afghanistan,” said the briefing note..Then-ambassador Reid Sirrs and staff fled Kabul though 1,290 Canadians remained in the country. Sirrs in March 11 testimony at the Commons Special Committee on Afghanistan said it was unsafe for diplomats to remain..“We could hear explosions,” testified Sirrs. “We could see fires all over the city. When we came into the military side of the airport itself it was very obvious the city was coming under siege.”.“It looked like the whole airport was going to be overrun,” said Sirrs, adding it “just seemed to be far too dangerous for us to stay put.”.Sirrs did not identify who accompanied him on the flight. The Department of Foreign Affairs has refused to disclose flight logs..“We all saw on TV it was two planes after ours that the people were hanging off the airplane when people fell of it,” said Sirrs. “So it was quite close for us.”.The foreign affairs department two days after closing the embassy posted a Twitter message encouraging trapped citizens to leave..“Attention Canadians,” staff tweeted Aug. 17, 2021. “If you’re in Afghanistan you should leave if it’s safe to do so.”.The department in an October 14 submission to the Special Committee on Afghanistan invoked national security in refusing to explain its abrupt departure from Kabul..“The sensitive nature of some Government of Canada operations prohibits these reviews from being shared publicly at this time,” it said.
