Govt to send NAC aircraft to fetch dead bodies from Kabul

Kathmandu, June 21: The government is sending an aircraft to bring home the bodies of 12 Nepalese killed in the Kabul terrorist attack on Monday morning.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) spokesperson Bharat Raj Poudyal informed that a meeting held at the Ministry on Tuesday morning decided to charter a Nepal Airlines Corporation (NAC) aircraft to fetch the dead bodies of Nepalese.

A meeting, coordinated by the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs Kamal Thapa and participated in by high officials from the Ministry of Home Affairs (MoHA), Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, Ministry of Labour and Employment, Nepalese Army, Nepal Police, Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal, Ministry of Health (MoH) and NAC, took the decision to this effect.

“We have expedited the process to obtain permission for landing at the Kabul Airport and overflights on Kabul-Kathmandu air route,” said Poudyal.

According to the MoFA, the NAC aircraft will bring Nepalese citizens who want to come back to Nepal from Afghanistan as per its capacity.

Tirtha Raj Aryal, acting Nepalese ambassador Pakistan who is also accredited to Afghanistan, reached Kabul on Tuesday morning.

He met with Afghan government officials and visited the injured in the hospital.

At least 12 Nepali and two Indian with Nepali origin security guards working at the Canadian Embassy died in the gruesome attack while seven were injured.

The government in collaboration with the Afghan government sent Krishna Bahadur Deuja and Man Bahadur Thapa, who were badly injured, to New Delhi, India for further treatment while preparations were underway to send other three injured to India as well, informed Poudyal.

He stated that the government was trying to bring the dead bodies at the earliest however medical forensic process might take some time.

A team comprising high officials of NA, MoH, Police and Foreign Employment Promotion Board will fly to Kabul in the chartered plane.

“The government has three concerns now – treatment of the injured, repatriation of the dead bodies and security of Nepalese citizens in Afghanistan,” Poudyal remarked.

DPM Thapa talked to his Afghan counterpart Salahuddin Rabbani and talked about the same concerns.

MoFA informed that Rabbani said that the Afghan government was positive about providing necessary support in the process.

Meanwhile, the MoFA informed that the government would initiate process to punish agencies involved in sending Nepalese citizens to Afghanistan illegally, and launch awareness campaigns as well.

According to an official figure, around 3,323 Nepali nationals are currently working in Afghanistan.