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German soldiers in Tashkent
Photo: BUNDESWEHR / MARC TESSENSOHN / H / EPA
On Sunday night, the Special Forces Command (KSK) rescued a German family for the first time from a meeting point outside the militarily secured airport in Kabul.
It was about the Munich high school graduate Samira *, who had been stuck in Kabul with her little brother and mother for days.
According to SPIEGEL information, nine KSK elite soldiers were involved in the action, internally named by the KSK with the operation name "Blue Light".
It was the first time that the commando was also active outside the airport.
The rescue operation had been planned since early Saturday morning.
Since the Munich family had already tried several times to get into the airport through a gate on their own, the KSK decided to undertake a rescue operation.
It was agreed by phone that the family should approach the so-called Abbey Gate between 9 p.m. and 11 p.m., where they wanted to pick up the KSK under cover of darkness.
According to the high school graduate Samira, the call from the KSK came when the family was just standing in front of one of the gates of the airport.
However, her cell phone went out after a few seconds.
“That's why we fought our way through to the gate on our own.” Finally, the family found a German soldier who checked their passports and let them inside the airport.
Despair for days at the airport gate
Samira had tried desperately in the past few days to organize her family's escape from Kabul.
The three originally wanted to visit Samira's grandmother again before the Taliban conquered Kabul.
When the city suddenly fell, they were then stuck.
Since Monday, the three - supported by their uncle - have been huddled at the north gate of the airport.
People have died there over and over again in the past few days.
The security situation worsened from day to day.
After joint research by SPIEGEL and ARD magazine “Report Mainz”, the family tried for days to establish contact with the Foreign Office - in vain.
For a long time Samira also didn't know whether her mother could come to Germany with her.
She has lived with her family in Munich for years.
Unlike her children, however, she does not have German citizenship, but an unlimited residence permit.
At first, the Foreign Office had apparently informed the family that the mother had to stay in Kabul because of this.
This is suggested by an email from Samira to the Foreign Office, which is available to SPIEGEL and Report Mainz.
It says: “On the phone, an employee of the Foreign Office said that only my underage brother and I, not our mother, could be flown out.
Our mother had to stay in Kabul because she did not have German citizenship. "
It was only in the middle of the week that the Foreign Office apparently changed its mind and informed the family that Samira's mother should also be flown out.
The Federal Foreign Office has not yet commented on this.
Greens criticize the Foreign Office
The Green politician Jamila Schäfer, who has supported the family in the past few days, accuses the federal government.
In Berlin, too much time was wasted and the life of the family was endangered, said Schäfer.
She also criticizes the statements made by Foreign Minister Heiko Maas.
He claimed on Tuesday evening that the German forces had "given the people to whom we gave information access to the airport."
Samira's family tried several times to get into the airport, Schäfer said.
In doing so, she kept coming into a completely confusing, very dangerous situation.
“Either our Foreign Minister has no idea what is happening there in Kabul and simply did not know.
Or he was deliberately telling the truth. "
On Sunday evening shortly before midnight, Samira and her family finally landed at Frankfurt Airport - after a sleepless night.
Then they drove to Munich by car.
* Name changed