Dec 23, 2021: As many as 30 Afghans, formerly employed by Turkey as part of a NATO deployment in Kabul, staged a protest on Wednesday, accusing Ankara of abandoning them in the wake of the Taliban’s return to power.

Before the Taliban took control of the capital on August 15, many had worked as spokesmen or technical staff at Kabul’s military airport. A few weeks earlier, the U.S. military had seized control of the airport until its last troops departed on August 31 after a chaotic evacuation of about 120,000 Afghans after a 20-year-long foreign military presence.

Though the Taliban have banned public protests, they allowed Wednesday’s gathering to take place unhindered.

The protesting workers say they have been abandoned as they face the most difficult days of their lives.

“Nobody comes from the embassy to listen to us, they do not even talk to us. It is a real disappointment.”

Meanwhile the Turkish embassy declined to comment.

Thousands of Afghans are still desperately trying to flee the country, claiming that their links to the former US-backed government or to Western forces and other foreign organizations are a target for the Taliban.

The Taliban has insisted that no retaliation has been carried out against anyone associated with the old government, and has called on Afghans to stay and help rebuild the country.

The United Nations has warned that Afghanistan is on the brink of the worst humanitarian catastrophe in the world and Afghanistan is in the grip of a severe economic crisis.

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