A support network said on Friday that Germany left behind nearly 5,000 former staff and their families in Afghanistan.
Nevertheless, Germany vowed to maintain pressure on the Taliban for them to leave after the August 31 deadline.
Late this Thursday, the German military finished its air transport from Kabul airport.
Germany evacuated 5,347 people, including over 4,100 Afghans.
According to the foreign office in Berlin, nearly 300 Germans stayed in Afghanistan.
Besides, an unknown number of former Afghan staff and their families.
“We estimate that at least 5,000 were left behind,” said Marcus Grotian, founder and head of the Sponsorship Network for Afghan Staff.
The main problem in evacuating these people at the moment is that Germany’s embassy in Kabul is closed.
This means they can’t get documents permitting them to reach Germany, he added.
Staff members, not important?
“Other nations have issued virtual visas and mailed them to people,” Grotian said, suggesting German authorities should follow their example.
“That way they can at least prove their identity as former staff members,” he added.
He promised that the support network will do its best to bring back the remaining staff to safety, even if the chances are slim now.
Germany said its plans to evacuate the former staff members are still in place even after the August 31 deadline.
The Taliban have said that anyone permitted to leave the country will be able to do so on civilian airplanes once foreign forces withdraw.
However, Several Afghan former staff of missions in the West fears persecution at the hands of the insurgents who seized the capital less than 14 days ago.
