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Family of Afghan boy stranded in France accuse Priti Patel of making false promises
The family of an 11-year-old Afghan refugee stranded in France after getting separated from his parents in the Kabul airport bombing last year has accused Britain’s Home Secretary Priti Patel of making “false promises” over safe routes into the UK.
Qamar Jabarkhyl, a 28-year-old UK citizen, said his “heart melts” when his young cousin, Obaidullah, calls him crying every day from the tiny flat where he is staying in Strasbourg, Bloomberg reported.
Obaidullah and his parents, along with his twin brother and older sister, fled his home city of Jalalabad during the chaotic US troop withdrawal in August last year.
According to Jabarkhyl, the family had hoped to get a flight to the UK but were separated when a bomb was detonated outside the airport on August 26.
Obaidullah was mistakenly put on a flight to France, where he has been stuck “unhappy and scared” for the last eight months, Jabarkhyl, said.
A 22-year-old Afghan refugee living in a studio flat in Strasbourg has taken Obaidullah under his wing, but works long hours and cannot afford to care for him full-time.
Bloomberg reported that in March, a family reunion visa application was made for Obaidullah on the advice of the Home Office, which promised it would be dealt with swiftly, Jabarkhyl said.
The same month, Obaidullah had his 11th birthday, thousands of miles away from his loved ones for the first time.
“It was really hard. I asked the guy he lives with to buy him a birthday cake but he said he was crying all day long. He didn’t even want to cut his own cake,” Jabarkhyl said.
“It just melts your heart when an 11-year-old boy is calling 20 times a day just to say ‘hello’ and ‘hi.’
“He’s not the same boy I would talk to on the phone in Afghanistan years ago, telling me hundreds of stories about his friends, what vegetables his family is growing in their garden.”
Four months later, the family say the Home Office has still failed to confirm whether Obaidullah will be able to stay with them in the UK, Bloomberg reported.
“I just feel the Home Office don’t even care, with these empty promises Priti Patel makes about letting people from Afghanistan settle in the country,” Jabarkhyl said.
Obaidullah’s parents and sister could not be evacuated and have moved to a rural area of Afghanistan Jabarkhyl said, adding that the boy’s twin brother made it to the UK.
The youngster is desperate to be reunited with his brother and eventually the rest of his family, Bloomberg reported.
Ariana Afghan Airlines has ranked seventh among 45 airlines in Central Asia in Skytrax’s 2026 rankings.
Company officials say Ariana Afghan ranked eighth on the list in 2025, but moved up one place this year following improvements in service quality and the expansion of its operations.
According to the officials, in 2026 the airline met criteria including service quality, flight safety, professional cabin crew, and experience in the aviation sector, placing it among the top 10 airlines in Central Asia.
Skytrax is an international organization that evaluates and ranks the quality of services in the aviation industry and airlines, assessing and ranking carriers annually based on specific criteria.
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Silk Road highway in Wakhan corridor now reaches the China border
The road is expected to be officially opened for use in the near future, potentially improving connectivity through the remote Wakhan Corridor.
The construction of the Silk Road Highway in Afghanistan’s Wakhan Corridor has been fully completed after five years of work, officials in Badakhshan province said.
Amanullah Chehra, head of Rural Rehabilitation and Development in Badakhshan, said the 121.13-kilometre road begins in the Barghil area and stretches to Bzai Gonbad near the Chinese border.
According to officials, the road is between 7 and 10 metres wide and includes three major bridges, each measuring approximately 20 to 22 metres in length. Numerous smaller drainage structures have also been built along the route to facilitate the flow of water.
The road is expected to be officially opened for use in the near future, potentially improving connectivity through the remote Wakhan Corridor.
Afghanistan’s Minister of Refugees and Repatriation, Mawlawi Abdul Kabir, met on Wednesday with Bruno Lemarquis, UNAMA’s Deputy Head for Humanitarian Affairs, to discuss the situation of Afghan returnees and humanitarian assistance.
The Ministry of Refugees and Repatriation said Lemarquis briefed the minister on assessments conducted by UN agencies during visits to several provinces to identify the needs of returnee families.
Lemarquis said joint cooperation between UN agencies and the Islamic Emirate is needed to support and resettle returnees. He added that UN agencies are currently assisting thousands of families and called for the expansion of humanitarian assistance.
He also said the international community should pay greater attention to the needs of Afghans, adding that UNAMA is ready to cooperate in addressing challenges facing returnees.
Abdul Kabir welcomed UNAMA’s support and thanked the United Nations for its assistance to Afghans. He said various government institutions have been tasked with addressing returnees’ needs.
The minister also called on aid organizations to continue supporting returnee families, saying a program to resettle thousands of internally displaced families is also underway.
Kabir further said the necessary facilities have been provided for UN agencies to operate and that the Islamic Emirate welcomes UNAMA’s humanitarian cooperation.
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