Once more the Nowzad charity is appalled to find ourselves at the centre of a political media debate on who did what and when in relation to Operation Ark.
67 vulnerable Afghans were evacuated against all odds from Afghanistan by road to start new lives in the United Kingdom. This should be an achievement that is celebrated not used for political point scoring.
As a charity, we had no oversight of any communication between any government departments relating to who authorised the call forward of the Nowzad staff.
We found out at the same time as everyone else, when Ben Wallace tweeted our approval at 1.30am on the 25th August. Sadly, it was too late to ensure the evacuation flight that our supporters had fundraised for, would be able to transport our staff to safety. Only Pen Farthing (British passport holder) with the Nowzad rescued animals in the cargo hold, was able to leave Kabul airport after the British military had already ended Operation Pitting. No British military were put in harm’s way or supported Pen Farthing during his two attempts to gain access to Kabul airport.
The Nowzad charity and its founder, Pen Farthing, have also submitted evidence to the select committee hearing which can be found here; Please scroll down to find Nowzad's submission
We will not be taking part in any further interviews on this subject.