DFA: 10 Filipinos want to stay in Taliban-controlled Afghanistan

Ten Filipinos have refused evacuation and signified their intent to stay in Afghanistan, which returned to Taliban control two decades after it was ousted by a United States-led coalition.

The Department of Foreign Affairs said the Filipinos' decision not to leave the country is "work-related."

Since the Taliban takeover, which resulted to chaos in capital Kabul and left diplomats,  foreign workers and Afghans scrambling to get flights out of the country, 182 Filipinos have been airlifted, while 27 have remained.

The DFA said 17 have requested company or Philippine government evacuation.

Not all Filipinos who left Afghanistan are returning to the Philippines "for various reasons," it added.

On the other hand, five Filipinos, who were rescued by the Indonesian military in Kabul, have already returned to Manila and undergoing quarantine.

Manila raised Alert Level 4, which calls for mandatory evacuation, for the whole of Afghanistan due to the uncertain security situation in the country.

Emboldened by Washington's withdrawal of American troops after two decades of war, Taliban militants seized capital Kabul and key areas in less than two weeks as many feared that their return to power would curtail freedom of speech and civil liberties, especially women's rights. — Michaela Del Callar/RSJ, GMA News