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AFGHANISTAN

Spain ends evacuations of Afghan collaborators and their families from Kabul

Spain said on Friday that it has ended its evacuations out of Kabul, just over a week after it began airlifting its citizens in the wake of the Taliban's takeover of Afghanistan.

Published: 27 August 2021 10:48 CEST
Spain ends evacuations of Afghan collaborators and their families from Kabul
Refugees queue on the tarmac after disembarking from an evacuation flight from Kabul, at the Torrejón de Ardoz air base. Photo: PIERRE-PHILIPPE MARCOU / AFP

“The Spanish evacuation of its Afghan collaborators and their families has been completed,” the government said in a statement.

Two final flights landed in Dubai early Friday morning, it added.

On board were 81 Spanish citizens who had still been in Afghanistan, including embassy personnel, army and navy troops, four Portuguese troops and 85 Afghans who had been working for Spain, Portugal and NATO.

They will fly on to the military base of Torrejón de Ardoz, near Madrid, in the afternoon on an Air Europa plane, the government said.

In total, the Spanish armed forces have evacuated 1,900 Afghans, employees and their families who were working for Spain, the United States, Portugal, the European Union, the United Nations and NATO, as well as the staff of the Spanish embassy in Kabul.

Madrid used military planes to fly the evacuees to Dubai, where they then transferred to commercial flights to Europe.

On Thursday, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez had vowed to evacuate “as many people as possible” out of Kabul following the twin suicide bombings at the Afghan capital’s airport.

During the hugely complex evacuation operations put in place after the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan, Spain flew out a lot of Afghan employees of EU institutions, who are housed at the Torrejón de Ardoz base before being distributed among EU member states.

Spain has also agreed to host up to 4,000 Afghans who will be airlifted by the United States to airbases in Rota and Moron de la Frontera in southern Spain.

Under an agreement signed by Madrid and Washington, the evacuees may stay at the airbases, which are used jointly by the United States and Spain, for up to 15 days.

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POLITICS

Judge insists Spain’s PM testify in person in wife’s corruption probe

A Spanish judge on Friday rejected Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez's request to testify in writing in a preliminary corruption probe into his wife's business ties.

Published: 26 July 2024 18:11 CEST
Judge insists Spain's PM testify in person in wife's corruption probe

Judge Juan Carlos Peinado, who is leading the inquiry, maintained Sánchez’s hearing for next Tuesday at 11:00 am (0900 GMT), according to a court filing seen by AFP.

He said he had summoned Sánchez as the spouse of Begoña Gómez, not as prime minister — which would have allowed the Socialist premier to testify in writing as he had requested.

The judge is scheduled to question Sánchez at the premier’s official residence.

But Sánchez can testify at a later date in writing about “relevant facts of which he has had knowledge by reason of his position”, the judge added.

The only other time a sitting Spanish prime minister had to testify in a judicial case was in 2017 when Mariano Rajoy was summoned in a graft case that led to the conviction of several members of his conservative Popular Party (PP).

Gomez is being investigated for alleged influence peddling and corruption following a complaint filed by an anti-graft NGO with links to the far-right called “Manos Limpias” – Spanish for “Clean Hands”.

Sánchez claims harassment

Sánchez has denied any wrongdoing by his wife, repeatedly dismissing the allegations as part of a smear campaign against his government.

Sánchez can appeal the judge’s ruling that he must testify in person, or he can choose not to testify.

His wife invoked her right to remain silent under questioning by a judge earlier this month.

Gómez, has worked in fundraising for years, notably for foundations and NGOs. She is alleged to have used her husband’s position as leverage within her professional circles, notably with businessman Juan Carlos Barrabés who was seeking public funding.

In his testimony, Barrabés – who teaches part of a master’s course at Madrid’s Complutense University that is run by Gómez – acknowledged meeting her five or six times at Moncloa, the premier’s official residence.

Sánchez, in power since 2018, was also present at two of those meetings, he said.

Barrabés — who got two letters of recommendation from Gómez before pitching for a public tender worth several million euros – said they only talked about matters of innovation, judicial sources said.

When the probe was opened in April, Sánchez shocked Spain by saying he was considering resigning over what he denounced as a campaign of political harassment by the right.

He took five days to reflect but ultimately decided to stay on.

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