Prince William helps family of Afghan fellow Sandhurst cadet get out of Kabul, report says

Royal intervention comes after chaotic scenes outside Kabul airport as thousands flee Taliban

The Duke of Cambridge has helped an Afghan officer get his family out of Afghanistan on a UK-bound plane following the Taliban’s takeover of the country, it has emerged.

The man, who was a fellow Sandhurst officer cadet with Prince William, is believed to have served with his country’s national army and been integral to the British military operation in Afghanistan, according to the Daily Telegraph.

His role meant his family of more than 10 people, who were reportedly eligible for evacuations, were potentially at risk from reprisals by the Taliban.

William’s intervention came after witnessing chaotic scenes outside Kabul airport as thousands of people attempted to get through the gates and onto evacuation flights.

The Telegraph reported that the duke asked his equerry, Lieutenant Commander Rob Dixon, to make calls on his behalf to help the Afghan officer and his family access the airport, as they were unable to get past the airport crowds to board a plane to the UK.

When asked about the incident, Kensington Palace declined to comment.

William joined the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst as an officer cadet after graduating from St Andrews University and was commissioned as an Army Officer in December 2006.

He later served with the RAF as a search and rescue helicopter pilot.

More than 8,000 former Afghan staff and their family members eligible under the Afghan relocations and assistance policy were among the 15,000-plus people evacuated by the UK since 13 August.

However, there are fears that thousands of Afghans who helped British efforts in the nation and their relatives have been left behind in the country.

Foreign secretary Dominic Raab told the Foreign Affairs Committee on Wednesday that he could not give a “definitive answer” for how many people in Afghanistan who were eligible for UK settlement were unable to leave.

Mr Raab said that he believed the number was in the “low hundreds”, as he admitted that some of those left behind included guards who had secured the British embassy in Kabul.

“We wanted to get some of those embassy guards through, but the buses arranged to collect them, to take them to the airport, weren’t given permission to enter,” Mr Raab told the committee, adding that this was a “reflection of the conditions on the ground”.

On Thursday, the Cabinet minister raised the possibility that evacuations could resume from Kabul airport “in the near future” following talks in Qatar.

Mr Raab said that he had “good conversations” with Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani about the “workability” of evacuations resuming from the airport for UK nationals and Afghans who worked with Britain.

Additional reporting by PA