Since the Taliban took over Afghanistan and the mess that followed, this is the first time the armed group wrote India to resume commercial flights between the two countries.
The letter received by the DCGA (Directorate General of Civil Aviation) from the Taliban is currently under review, as per media reports.
Along with India, the ruling group of Afghanistan had also requested airlines across the globe to begin their flights again. Given the fears surrounding the Taliban’s dark history, countries had shut operating flights to and from the country, including India. Soon after the ruckus in Afghanistan when the Taliban attained power on August 15th, India had halted all commercial flights to the nation.
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However, as the war-laden country is not witnessing the clash of powers now, the Taliban promised all airlines last week of full cooperation with them apart from the resolution of all issues at the airport.
This comes as one of the many attempts the Taliban is making to get formal recognition from the international community and strengthen Afghanistan’s collapsing economy.
Due to the suspension of flights from the country, several Afghans got stranded in different countries, Taliban spokesman Abdul Qahar Balkhi said. “As problems at Kabul International Airport have been resolved and the airport is fully operational for domestic and international flights, the IEA (Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan- the new term Taliban named its government as) assures all airlines of its full cooperation,” he told Reuters.
The first international commercial flight to be operating in and out of the Afghan airport was a Pakistan International Airlines plane on September 13th. For more than a month, very few flights only have been operating there.
As per Reuters, though some airlines have resumed operations, the fares are a lot higher than the usual prices and with limited options available.
Since the Taliban takeover, almost all countries have taken the backseat when it comes to building ties with the government. During the dreadful times, heart wrenching videos of Afghans trying to flee the country surfaced as many clung onto flights to escape Afghanistan and the Taliban.
Though the airport was damaged during the power switch, assistance from Qatar and Turkey helped the repair work.
