Coventry daughter of woman stuck in Kabul asks for more troops there

The daughter of a vulnerable woman who is stuck in Afghanistan has pleaded for the UK to send more troops there to try to help her mother fly back to England.

Fereba's mother Layloma flew to Afghanistan a month ago to attend a family funeral.

Fereba, from Coventry, said the dual British and Afghan citizen, 79, was low on medication provided by the NHS.

The government has deployed hundreds of troops to Kabul to assist with the evacuation of British nationals.

The daughter said her mum had been unable to fly back home after the Taliban captured Kabul and she was "begging the British forces, the US forces, Boris Johnson, to please, please send more troops and planes".

The fashion photographer stated: "Once the Taliban enter the airports, there will be no hope for them, they will be slaughtered.

"All I'm asking for the world to do is to show some compassion for the Afghan nation."

Her mum had difficulty booking a flight home initially due to Afghanistan being on England's red list as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

She eventually managed to book one, but when the Taliban began capturing parts of Afghanistan last week, flights to and from the country were cancelled, including hers.

Her son, Asad, was due to fly back with her to the UK but has been stuck in India after flying to the country several weeks ago to deal with a separate family issue.

Fereba said the medication was not available in Afghanistan and her mother "requires a wheelchair system when she travels, she's diabetic, she's got high cholesterol and arthritis".

She had had two strokes, was currently waiting for surgery and "the way the airport is running", there were "no wheelchair services or guides for anyone", Fereba stated.

"With all these medical conditions, she's actually not fit to be travelling on her own.

"I understand there's a lot of people who are trying to flee Afghanistan who don't have a passport, but please bear in mind, there are still civilians, dual nationals and British nationals who are still stranded in Afghanistan."

A spokesperson for Prime Minister Boris Johnson said there would be "significant numbers flying out day-by-day" from Afghanistan.

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace told the BBC more than 700 troops are currently in Afghanistan and they will be there "for as long as needed or indeed towards the end of the month".

The Foreign Office has been contacted for comment.

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