Not sure it was the wrong decision - would you rather have squaddies guard civil servants saying no to visas whilst demanding suitable beds and meals, o4 squaddies doing the job themselves and just saying yes.
Not sure if the extra troops are the “Tac Admin” combat bounties being discussed on another thread…
https://www.theguardian.com/politics...ign-office-mod
Row erupts in cabinet over evacuation of UK diplomats from Kabul
Cabinet splits have emerged over Afghanistan, with the defence secretary, Ben Wallace, accusing the Foreign Office of evacuating diplomats while leaving soldiers and
Ministry of Defence staff to handle the fallout of the Taliban takeover.
The frustrated minister told colleagues he believed there would be “a reckoning” for the Foreign Office after the crisis, sources told the Guardian.
He complained that diplomats had been “on the first plane out”, with MoD officials having to replace them and bear the brunt of processing resettlement claims for people trying to flee the Afghan capital.
MoD officials, some soldiers and other civil servants were on Monday helping frantic efforts to process claims from up to 4,000 Afghans thought to be eligible for resettlement in the UK amid
chaotic scenes at Kabul’s international airport.
Wallace told senior colleagues he was frustrated at “18-year-old squaddies having to process visa applications of incredible complexity at speed” in an effort to get Afghans who helped the British during the 20-year conflict out of the country…..
Foreign Office officials are advising all British nationals still in Afghanistan “to shelter in place unless further flight options become available”, with some being hidden in safe houses in Kabul secured by the SAS. It is unclear how many more people the RAF will be able to evacuate.
On Monday night, the UK said it was sending in another 300 armed forces personnel to help safeguard the airport and process visa claims, taking its total to 900….
The MoD declined to comment on Wallace’s remarks while the Foreign, Commonwealth Development Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.…