FILE PHOTO: British Royal Air Force plane which evacuated Afghan nationals arrives at Al Maktoum International Airport (DWC) in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, August 19, 2021. REUTERS/Rula Rouhana/File Photo
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Days before President Donald Trump said he would help Afghan evacuees who fled their country and were stuck in the United Arab Emirates, the Emirati government had already begun returning them to Afghanistan and informed Washington that it was doing so, according to an internal State Department cable seen by Reuters on Sunday.
The UAE, a close security partner of the United States, agreed in 2021 to temporarily house several thousand Afghans evacuated from Kabul as the Taliban ousted the U.S.-backed government during the final stages of the U.S.-led withdrawal.
