PEN Farthing's rescued dogs are adjusting to life in quarantine after jetting into Heathrow from Afghanistan this weekend.
The ex-Royal Marine yesterday said almost all of his 173 cats and dogs are lined up for loving new homes as he praised the "phenomenal" efforts of troops in getting his animals to Britain.
After landing, he took to Twitter to express his thanks for being evacuated out of Afghanistan.
But in an interview with the Mail he revealed one of his dogs was killed on the road to Kabul Airport after being stabbed at a Taliban checkpoint, and said a pal told him the extremists had shot another dog named Brutas.
The news comes as many service dogs face being slaughtered by Taliban after being abandoned during the US withdrawal from Afghanistan.
Heartbreaking pictures show the pooches been left at the terror group's mercy at Kabul airport after the final US jet left Kabul last night.
Read our Kabul explosion live blog for the latest updates...
louis.allwood@thesun.co.uk 13 minutes ago
PEN FARTHING ‘DOESN’T EVEN REMEMBER’ LEAVING ANGRY VOICEMAIL FOR GOVERNMENT AIDE
The ex-marine hit headlines after a leaked voicemail message appeared to reveal the animal activist leaving a tirade for a Government aide.
But Pen says his recollections of leaving the angry message are vague.
He explained: “I don’t even remember making it ‘I totally forgot about it until somebody sent me a tweet that said, ‘Pen Farthing’s explosive rant…’ I thought, ‘What the hell are they going on about?”
“It was a heat-of-the-moment thing. We needed paperwork for our staff and their families to be able to go to the airport.”
louis.allwood@thesun.co.uk 27 minutes ago
BORIS JOHNSON TELLS SOLDIERS FAMILIES: ‘YOUR SUFFERING WAS NOT IN VAIN’
Addressing the families and loved ones of the British troops who “gave their all”, Mr Johnson said: “Your suffering and your hardship were not in vain.”
He added: “It was no accident that there’s been no terrorist attack launched against Britain or any other western country from Afghanistan in the last 20 years.
“It was thanks to the bravery of our Armed Forces who fought to knock out (Osama) Bin Laden’s networks.
“And, thanks to the devotion of British troops and aid workers and diplomats and others, we’ve helped educate 3.6 million girls.
“Whatever the future may hold for Afghanistan, they will have that gift for the rest of their lives, a gift they will pass on to their daughters as well as their sons.”
louis.allwood@thesun.co.uk 43 minutes ago
PEN FARTHING SAYS HE’S ‘NOT WORRIED WHAT POLITICIANS ARE SAYING’ ABOUT HIM AS HE APOLOGISES TO PETER QUENTIN
Pen continued: “Peter Quentin had told me six days before the staff had been approved to leave the country but, for whatever reason, they wouldn’t give me the paperwork.
“You can imagine as the window between where we were and when the Americans were pulling out got smaller and smaller I was getting pretty stressed.
“Quentin was the only person I had a phone number for. I guess that’s why he got both barrels. As far as the person who decided to release that voicemail is concerned, if that’s their priority in life let them crack on. I’ve apologised for the language I used but that’s it.”
He defiantly added: “I’m not worried about what some politician is saying about me. That’s not on my radar.
“What’s on my radar is that this ill-thought out withdrawal has destroyed a country overnight and cost countless lives.”
louis.allwood@thesun.co.uk 58 minutes ago
EX-MARINE EVACUATES ANIMALS FROM KABUL – BUT SHELTER STAFF LEFT BEHIND
A former Royal Marine has succeeded in evacuating to the UK around 170 dogs and cats from an animal shelter in Afghanistan.
But Paul “Pen” Farthing’s privately funded charter flight, which arrived at London’s Heathrow Airport at about 7.30am on Sunday, was not carrying his 24 staff and dependents from the Nowzad shelter in Kabul.
Dominic Dyer, an animal welfare campaigner and supporter of Mr Farthing, said the former marine was forced to travel back alone after being told it was not possible to find people to fill the plane’s seats.
Mr Farthing’s campaign to get workers and animals from the shelter out of Afghanistan has caused controversy in recent days, after receiving a huge amount of public support.
Mr Dyer said the shelter staff were “still in their homes” with the charity in contact with them, adding that efforts would be made to try to get them out of Afghanistan.
“They are one of thousands of Afghans… that have a right to leave the country but actually have no safe passage out at the moment,” he said.
louis.allwood@thesun.co.uk Today, 20:45
DOMINIC RAAB DENIES CLAIMS HE CALLED AFGHANISTAN ‘YESTERDAY’S WAR’
The Foreign Secretary has denied claims in the Sunday Times he did not take regular calls from Afghan and Pakistani ministers during the evacuation from Kabul airport, allegedly because he thought Afghanistan was “yesterday’s war”.
Dominic Raab told Sky News: “Anyone that is toddling off to the Sunday Times or any other newspaper at a time of crisis, including the evacuation which has been two weeks running, giving buck-passing briefings either at me or the FCDO is frankly not credible and it is deeply irresponsible.
“I have spoken, for example to foreign minister Qureshi (of Pakistan) more intensively given the evacuation but we have absolutely been on this, and you can see we have been on this… why? Because we have got 17,000 people out.”
He later told LBC: “I can’t tell you my precise call sheet for the last six months.”
But he added he was part of a “team of ministers” and delegated some phone calls to colleagues including Lord Ahmad, saying: “It is right that you have delegation, a division of labour if you are going to operate effectively as a team. Anyone who tells you otherwise has not done a job like this.
louis.allwood@thesun.co.uk Today, 20:30
RESPONSIBILITY FOR CIVILIAN CASUALTIES CAUSES BY US DRONE STRIKES ‘LIES WITH TERRORISTS’ SAYS RAAB
Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab has said the moral responsibility for civilian casualties caused by US drone strikes “lies with the terrorists”.
A US drone strike targeted at a vehicle “carrying Isis fighters” was reported to have killed 10 civilians over the weekend.
Mr Raab told Times Radio: “The right of self-defence is ultimately for every country to decide, but we do support exercising it and of course it has got to be targeted in accordance with international law, and the aim of the Americans was to hit a terrorist.
“And we know history shows – recent history in particular – that terrorists will try to hide in cover where civilians are at risk. I think the moral responsibility of that lies with the terrorists.”
louis.allwood@thesun.co.uk Today, 20:15
‘LIONS OF PANJSHIR’ RESISTANCE FIGHTERS TRAIN SAS-STYLE IN MOUNTAIN FORTRESS
The "Lions of Panjshir" were seen balancing wooden logs on their shoulders while wading through water as they prepared for the arrival of enemy forces.
The Panjshir Valley, located in the Hindu Kush mountains, is the last region holding out against the Taliban.
Elsewhere in the valley, other resistance military forces were seen carrying weapons and marching through the mountainous terrain.
Hundreds of the anti-Taliban fighters, known as the Northern Alliance, have vowed to crush the jihadi rulers and to defend the 170,000 residents of the Panjshir Valley.
Last week, it was claimed that the Taliban retreated from the valley after an embarrassing defeat by the Afghan resistance forces.
louis.allwood@thesun.co.uk Today, 20:15
NO 10 DENIES CLAIM UK PRESSED TO KEEP KABUL AIRPORT GATE OPEN AHEAD OF BOMBING
Downing Street has flatly denied pressuring the US to keep open the Kabul airport gate near where a deadly terror attack was launched, following a leak from the Pentagon that threatened to strain relations.
Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab insisted it was “just not true” to suggest the UK called for the gate to be held open in order to continue British evacuations at the site where a suicide bombing killed more than 170 Afghan civilians and 13 US troops.
The Cabinet minister also said the number of UK nationals left behind in Afghanistan was in the “low hundreds” on Tuesday following the end of two decades of western military presence in the country.
But he was unable to give a “definitive” figure on how many Afghans the UK had failed to airlift to safety after the Taliban seized power as the US withdrew its final troops.
A strain in relations between London and Washington was threatened when the Politico website reported leaked notes from the Pentagon suggesting US commanders planned to close Abbey Gate by Thursday afternoon, Kabul time, amid intelligence of an imminent terror attack.
louis.allwood@thesun.co.uk Today, 20:00
IAIN DUNCAN-SMITH BLAMES KABUL TERROR ATTACK ON US GOVERNMENT AND JOE BIDEN
Former Tory leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith has blamed the US and President Joe Biden for the terror attack at Kabul airport on August 26.
Speaking to LBC, he said: “President Biden was responsible for those decisions which, I believe, were critical in the course of the events that we’ve seen unfolding.
“I do think now to attempt to try and brief against the UK on the suicide bombing is reprehensible really, because, you know, if the American government or the American military were very serious about shutting the gates, they would have shut the gates.
“I think this idea that it was down to the idea that the British were begging them to keep them open, I think is a little bit mean-spirited on them and probably wrong.”
louis.allwood@thesun.co.uk Today, 19:45
VIDEO SHOWS ARSENAL OF TANKS SEIZED BY TALIBAN AS TERROR GROUP NOW CONTROL ￡62BILLION WORTH OF ABANDONED MILITARY GEAR
Video shows row after row of tanks and other armoured vehicles parked up and being inspected by the fanatics after being captured when they defeated government forces.
In the video, a Taliban fighter can be seen on top of one of the vehicles panning round to show the extent of their weaponry.
Taliban fighters have also been pictured posing for snaps in abandoned fighter jets as satellite shots show the aircraft treasure trove left behind by the US in Kabul.
The grinning jihadis sat in the cockpits of gunships and rode on the bonnets of US Air Force Humvees as they strutted about the airport hours after Joe Biden's troops finally left Afghanistan.
Taliban Badri special force fighters were pictured training on the grounds of Kabul airport while other jihadis rummaged through hangars full of discarded kit and abandoned helicopters.
louis.allwood@thesun.co.uk Today, 19:30
KABUL RESIDENT SAID HE ‘COULDN’T SLEEP DUE TO TALIBAN GUNFIRE’ THROUGHOUT THE NIGHT
A resident of Kabul has said he and his family were unable to sleep last night due to the noise of gunfire as the Taliban celebrated the departure of US troops from Afghanistan.
The Afghan, who is not being named to protect his security, told the PA news agency the Taliban were shooting into the sky until 3.30am.
“Firing began when US last airplane took off from airport… we didn’t (sleep) because of gunshots,” he said.
He added that many people in the capital are already suffering from money, food and medicine shortages amid shop closures and border restrictions.
“Some of them (are) selling their house items to get some food or medicines for his or her family,” he added.
louis.allwood@thesun.co.uk Today, 19:15
AFGHAN FORMER ENGLISH TEACHER ‘REGRETS’ WORKING WITH THE UK
A former English language teacher stranded in Afghanistan said he “regrets” working with the UK mission in the country because of the grave danger he now faces.
The unnamed teacher said he has been targeted by the Taliban because his face is on billboards in Afghanistan advertising English classes.
Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, he said: “I regret working with the English. I regret helping people learn English. Why did I work for people who left me and fled and left me alone here? My background is hurting me nowadays.
“They are looking for me because I’ve got pictures in billboards advertised for classes. Also, I worked for the British Council. I worked for the UK for the past eight or nine years.”
louis.allwood@thesun.co.uk Today, 19:00
MUM OF BABY INJURED IN KABUL BOMBING BEGS PM TO HELP REUNITE HER WITH HER TWO CHILDREN
THE grieving young mum of a baby boy gravely hurt in the Kabul Airport suicide bombing is pleading with PM Boris Johnson to help reunite her with her two children.
Basbibi Raza, 19, wept as she revealed that Muhammad Raza — two next month — needs a life-saving operation in the next 48 hours.
The tot was hit by shrapnel in the blast which killed his dad Miraj and grandad Sultan, 48.
He has already had surgery in Afghanistan where he remains with his five-month-old sister, Kalsoom.
Basbibi was split from her family moments before Thursday’s attack which killed at least 170, including 13 US troops and three Brits.
louis.allwood@thesun.co.uk Today, 18:45
PEN FARTHING SAYS HE’S ‘NOT WORRIED WHAT POLITICIANS ARE SAYING’ ABOUT HIM AS HE APOLOGISES TO PETER QUENTIN
Pen continued: “Peter Quentin had told me six days before the staff had been approved to leave the country but, for whatever reason, they wouldn’t give me the paperwork.
“You can imagine as the window between where we were and when the Americans were pulling out got smaller and smaller I was getting pretty stressed.
“Quentin was the only person I had a phone number for. I guess that’s why he got both barrels. As far as the person who decided to release that voicemail is concerned, if that’s their priority in life let them crack on. I’ve apologised for the language I used but that’s it.”
He defiantly added: “I’m not worried about what some politician is saying about me. That’s not on my radar.
“What’s on my radar is that this ill-thought out withdrawal has destroyed a country overnight and cost countless lives.”
louis.allwood@thesun.co.uk Today, 18:30
GLOATING TALIBAN POSE IN FIGHTER JETS AS SATELLITE SNAP SHOWS AIRCRAFT TREASURE TROVE
The grinning jihadis sat in the cockpits of gunships and rode on the bonnets of US Air Force Humvees as they strutted about the airport hours after Joe Biden's troops finally left Afghanistan.
Taliban Badri special force fighters were pictured training on the grounds of Kabul airport while other jihadis rummaged through hangars full of discarded kit and abandoned helicopters.
In one picture, a fighter is seen taking pictures of the damaged Chinook choppers left behind, while others explore the inside of a US Air Force plane.
louis.allwood@thesun.co.uk Today, 18:15
DOZENS OF HERO SERVICE DOGS FACING SLAUGHTER AFTER BEING ABANDONED TO THE MERCY OF TALIBAN AS US TROOPS FLEE AFGHANISTAN
The specially-trained pooches have been left at the terror group's mercy after the final US jet left Kabul last night, with the innocent animals now facing a "death sentence".
Dozens of service dogs have been left behind, as well as a number of US citizens and billions of pounds worth of military equipment.
The abandonment has been slammed by animal welfare charity American Humane, which has branded the situation "senseless".
Robin R. Ganzert, the organisation's CEO said in a statement: "I am devastated by reports that the American government is pulling out of Kabul and leaving behind brave US military contract working dogs to be tortured and killed at the hand of our enemies.
"These brave dogs do the same dangerous, lifesaving work as our military working dogs, and deserved a far better fate than the one to which they have been condemned."
louis.allwood@thesun.co.uk Today, 18:00
TALIBAN MILITANTS STEAL ￡62BILLION WORTH OF HELICOPTERS, ARMOURED VEHICLES AND WEAPONS AFTER AFGHANISTAN WITHDRAWAL
An eye-watering amount of US military inventory is now in the hands of the terror group after they surged across the war-torn nation in a matter of weeks, plundering stocks of weapons and vehicles.
The Taliban now has access to billions of pounds worth of equipment, including identification devices that could alarmingly help them identify Afghans who helped coalition forces – many of whom remain stranded in Kabul.
According to US Republican Congressman Jim Banks – who served in Afghanistan as an officer in charge of supplying weapons – the group now has “more Black Hawk helicopters than 85 per cent of the countries in the world”.
“Due to the negligence of this administration, the Taliban now has access to $85billion (￡62billion) worth of military equipment,” he said.
“Unbelievably, and unfathomable to me and so many others, the Taliban now has access to biometric devices.
“This administration still has no plan to get this military equipment or supplies back.”
louis.allwood@thesun.co.uk Today, 17:45
PEN FARTHING’S DOGS ARE IN QUARANTINE
louis.allwood@thesun.co.uk Today, 17:30
PEN FARTHING SAYS ‘HUMAN MISERY’ HE SAW IN KABUL ‘WILL TAKE A LONG TIME TO GET OUT OF HIS HEAD’
The ex marine continued: “I think it’ll take a long time to ever get out of my head having to say goodbye to the two members of staff who drove the truck for me to get me into the airport along roads just lined with people.
“There were thousands and thousands of them in makeshift camps waiting for their turn to try to get into the airport – women, children…”
He added: “And you should have seen the human misery in that hangar – the possessions people had left behind – photographs, hats, children’s toys.
“I was sitting amongst all that when someone tweeted about my foul-mouthed rant [to Defence Minister Ben Wallace’s special advisor Peter Quentin."
louis.allwood@thesun.co.uk Today, 17:15
TALIBAN MOCK WEST BY HOLDING FAKE FUNERALS FOR BRITISH, AMERICAN AND NATO FORCES WITH FLAGS DRAPED OVER COFFINS
Footage shows coffins were seen draped with the US, UK and French flag as well as Nato's insignia as they were paraded through the streets of Khost by crowds flying the Taliban's flag.
Gloating Taliban fighters were also pictured posing for snaps in abandoned fighter jets as satellite shots show the aircraft treasure trove left behind by the US in Kabul who earlier withdrew its last forces from the airport.
The grinning jihadis sat in the cockpits of gunships and rode on the bonnets of US Air Force Humvees as they strutted about the airport hours after Joe Biden's troops finally left Afghanistan.
Taliban Badri special force fighters were pictured training on the grounds of Kabul airport while other jihadis rummaged through hangars full of discarded kit and abandoned helicopters.
In one picture, a fighter is seen taking pictures of the damaged Chinook choppers left behind, while others explore the inside of a US Air Force plane.
According to reports, the US is likely to have abandoned millions of dollars worth of military gear in the rush to leave Kabul.
It comes as the Taliban's spokesman said the West's retreat from Afghanistan should serve as a "lesson for the world".
louis.allwood@thesun.co.uk Today, 17:00
PEN FARTHING DESCRIBES HOW UK SOLDIERS HAD TO GIVE WAY TO TALIBAN
Pen Farthing has spoken out about his ordeal in Kabul as he attempted to evacuate his charity, Nowzad, and his 173 rescue animals from the Afghan capital.
“At the airport the British troops are on the inner side of the barbed wire,” he explained yesterday in his first full interview since leaving the UK for Norway to be reunited with his new wife, Kaisa, 30, who fled their home in Kabul two weeks ago.
“You can talk to them but they can’t do anything as the Taliban check people at gunpoint. The Afghan people were standing there with all their belongings in a line.
“There was one guy whose paperwork they didn’t like so they’re like, ‘Come on, out’, with an AK rifle in his back.
“I was just watching this guy trying to wave at his wife and kids as he was being dragged off at gunpoint.”
louis.allwood@thesun.co.uk Today, 16:45
BORIS JOHNSON TELLS SOLDIERS FAMILIES: ‘YOUR SUFFERING WAS NOT IN VAIN’
Addressing the families and loved ones of the British troops who “gave their all”, Mr Johnson said: “Your suffering and your hardship were not in vain.”
He added: “It was no accident that there’s been no terrorist attack launched against Britain or any other western country from Afghanistan in the last 20 years.
“It was thanks to the bravery of our Armed Forces who fought to knock out (Osama) Bin Laden’s networks.
“And, thanks to the devotion of British troops and aid workers and diplomats and others, we’ve helped educate 3.6 million girls.
“Whatever the future may hold for Afghanistan, they will have that gift for the rest of their lives, a gift they will pass on to their daughters as well as their sons.”
louis.allwood@thesun.co.uk Today, 16:30
PEN FARTHING ‘DOESN’T EVEN REMEMBER’ LEAVING ANGRY VOICEMAIL FOR GOVERNMENT AIDE
The ex-marine hit headlines after a leaked voicemail message appeared to reveal the animal activist leaving a tirade for a Government aide.
But Pen says his recollections of leaving the angry message are vague.
He explained: “I don’t even remember making it ‘I totally forgot about it until somebody sent me a tweet that said, ‘Pen Farthing’s explosive rant…’ I thought, ‘What the hell are they going on about?”
“It was a heat-of-the-moment thing. We needed paperwork for our staff and their families to be able to go to the airport.”
louis.allwood@thesun.co.uk Today, 16:25
PEN FARTHING SAYS HE’S ‘NOT WORRIED WHAT POLITICIANS ARE SAYING’ ABOUT HIM AS HE APOLOGISES TO PETER QUENTIN
Pen continued: “Peter Quentin had told me six days before the staff had been approved to leave the country but, for whatever reason, they wouldn’t give me the paperwork.
“You can imagine as the window between where we were and when the Americans were pulling out got smaller and smaller I was getting pretty stressed.
“Quentin was the only person I had a phone number for. I guess that’s why he got both barrels. As far as the person who decided to release that voicemail is concerned, if that’s their priority in life let them crack on. I’ve apologised for the language I used but that’s it.”
He defiantly added: “I’m not worried about what some politician is saying about me. That’s not on my radar.
“What’s on my radar is that this ill-thought out withdrawal has destroyed a country overnight and cost countless lives.”
Joseph Gamp Today, 16:00
CANADA TO TAKE IN 5,000 AFGHAN REFUGEES EVACUATED BY US FORCES
Canada said on Tuesday it would take in and resettle some 5,000 Afghan refugees who had been evacuated by the United States after the withdrawal of the last American troops after almost two decades of war.
"We're pulling out all the stops to help as many Afghans as possible who want to make their home in Canada," said Immigration Minister Marco Mendicino.
"Over the weekend, Canada and its allies received assurances from the Taliban that Afghan citizens with travel authorization from other countries would be safely allowed to leave Afghanistan."
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