'You have seen the unspeakable and achieved incredible things', Germany tells troops home from Kabul

Record ID: 1633919

  • Title: 'You have seen the unspeakable and achieved incredible things', Germany tells troops home from Kabul
  • Date: 27th August 2021
  • Summary: WUNSTORF, GERMANY (AUGUST 27, 2021) (REUTERS) SOLDIERS GETTING OFF PLANE AT DUSK IN BLUE LIGHT VARIOUS OF SOLDIERS WALKING ACROSS TARMAC AT DUSK SOLDIERS DISEMBARK AT DUSK SOLDIERS COMING TO A HALT ON TARMAC VARIOUS OF SOLDIERS WALKING FROM PLANE SOLDIERS WALKING PAST IN SUNSET, CLAPPING HEARD SOLDIERS WALKING PAST, CLAPPING HEARD SOLDIERS GOING INTO HANGAR SOLDIERS WAITING PLANES ON TARMAC GERMAN DEFENCE MINISTER ANNEGRET KRAMP-KARRENBAUER COMING INTO HANGAR LOCAL POLITICIANS SITTING FAMILY MEMBERS SITTING; KRAMP-KARREMBAUER HUGS WOMAN VARIOUS OF SOLDIERS COMING INTO HANGAR IN FORMATION KRAMP-KARRENBAUER SITTING SOLDIERS IN FORMATION SOLDIERS STANDING CLOSE OF SOLDIERS FACES KRAMP-KARRENBAUER SITTING (SOUNDBITE) (German) HEAD OF THE JOINT OPERATIONS COMMAND IN POTSDAM, LIEUTENANT-GENERAL ERICH PEFFER, SAYING: "In light of the dramatic situation in Afghanistan, today cannot be a day to celebrate, but it is a day to honour the successful evacuation of more than 5000 people. A day to honour your incredibly intense mission that went on for nearly two weeks. At the same time it is extremely painful to know that in the limited time we had, we were unable to and could not evacuate all those who worked with and for Germany in Afghanistan. Nonetheless it is a day to celebrate the return of our troops out of Kabul." TROOPS IN HANGAR PFEFFER ADDRESSING KRAMP-KARRENBAUER TROOPS LEAVING HANGAR TO APPLAUSE AUDIENCE CLAPPING TROOPS LEAVING HANGAR TO APPLAUSE (SOUNDBITE) (German) GERMAN DEFENCE MINISTER ANNEGRET KRAMP-KARRENBAUER, SAYING: "As you have just seen the German mission soldiers have safely returned from their difficult and complex operation in Kabul. Our first thoughts on this evening go to the victims of the horrendous terror attacks yesterday, the civilian casualties and in particular our U.S. comrades with whom we carried out this mission side-by-side and this evening I am also thinking of those who stayed in Kabul, and we told them that in the second phase we would do everything to get them out of Kabul, out of Afghanistan, in the coming days and weeks and months. Today I started first talks in this with the Uzbekistan foreign minister." KRAMP-KARRENBAUER'S HANDS (SOUNDBITE) (German) GERMAN DEFENCE MINISTER ANNEGRET KRAMP-KARRENBAUER, SAYING: "What is very clear is that these soldiers, but also the representatives of the foreign ministry, the embassy and the military police have seen and experienced unspeakable things and achieved incredible things and it will take some time for many of them to come to terms with all of this." MEDIA (SOUNDBITE) (German) BRIGADIER GENERAL, JENS ARLT, SAYING: "This has been a highly dynamic mission and doesn't compare to anything I have experienced until now, everyone went to their absolute limits of what they could take and do to make this happen. This has been an incredible team effort and I want to thank all who helped." SOLDIERS (SOUNDBITE) (German) BRIGADIER GENERAL, JENS ARLT, SAYING (pauses with emotion): "This mission will define me, it will define all of us, and I ask for some patience and a bit of time for my soldiers to come down from all of this. This is very important to me." MEDIA
  • Embargoed: 10th September 2021 20:45
  • Keywords: Afghanistan Germany Kabul Taliban Wunstorf arrivals defence minister evacuations explosion refugees
  • Location: WUNSTORF, GERMANY
  • City: WUNSTORF, GERMANY
  • Country: Germany
  • Topics: Conflicts/War/Peace,Europe,Military Conflicts
  • Reuters ID: LVA001ES20TON
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: The last German troops returned to the northern air base of Wunstorf on Friday (August 27), after evacuating more than 5,300 people from 45 nations out of Kabul airport over the past 11 days.
    Three military aircraft landed on the base, greeted by fire engines spraying fountains of water for the planes to pass through as a welcome ceremony.
    The aircraft brought home more than 300 soldiers who had been involved in the evacuations, with paratroopers, special forces, military police, medical staff and dog handlers with their dogs among them.
    "You have seen the unspeakable and achieved incredible things," said German Defence Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, who had welcomed the troops at their stop-over in the Uzbek capital Tashkent and travelled back with them.
    The German military ended its airlift from Kabul airport late on Thursday after evacuating 5,347 people, including more than 4,100 Afghans.
    A visibly moved German army Brigadier General Jens Arlt praised his soldiers, saying the mission would define them forever, asking for patience and time from the media and public for them to recover.
    Around 300 German citizens remain in the country, according to the foreign office in Berlin - besides an unknown number of former Afghan staff and their families. A support network founded by German troops estimating the number of those left behind to be at least 5,000.
    "It is extremely painful knowing that, in the limited time we had, we have not succeeded and could not succeed in evacuating all those who have worked for or with Germany in Afghanistan," said the head of the joint operations command in Potsdam, Lieutenant-General Erich Pfeffer.
    Kramp-Karrenbauer repeated Germany's promise to take in former Afghan staff after an Aug. 31 deadline for evacuations from Kabul airport has passed.
    The Taliban have said that Afghans with permission to leave will be able to do so on civilian flights once foreign troops withdraw. But many former Afghan staff fear persecution at the hands of the former insurgents who seized the capital less than two weeks ago.
    Overall, up to 600 German soldiers were involved in one of the biggest airlifts in the Bundeswehr's history. The German planes were about to take off from Kabul airport for the last time yesterday when a suicide bombing occurred, killing more than 90 people.
    (Production. Tanya Wood, Leon Malherbe, Max Schwarz, Mehmet Kucuk)
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