Afghan student who spent exchange year in Madrid flown to safety in Spain

A YOUNG Afghan student who spent his 'sandwich' year in Spain has been safely evacuated to Madrid along with his family, thanks to a petition on Change.org.

Hujjat's friends and classmates from Kabul University launched an appeal addressed to Spanish president Pedro Sánchez, as the trainee dentist feared for his loved ones' safety. 

They belong to two minority communities, the Hazara and the Shi'ite, both of which are among the Taliban's targets, and Hujjat's father and sister had previously worked for the government which was ousted by the new régime, putting them in direct danger.

In fact, in the beginning, after his friends' appeal, Hujjat spoke to Spanish national daily media but asked to remain anonymous as he was terrified the whole family would be tortured, imprisoned, killed or all three if it became known that they had spoken out.

He and the family were all in hiding inside their house.

A week ago, his friends from the faculty of odontology, where he studies, lost contact with him and became gravely worried.

But their fears were, thankfully, unfounded: The lack of contact was because the entire household had managed to enter Kabul airport and, successfully dodging the terror attack at the terminal which ISIS claims authorship of and which killed hundreds of civilians and US soldiers, boarded one of the last planes chartered by the Spanish government in round one of its evacuation programme.

A second evacuation is due to start shortly, after the first enabled 2,206 people, mostly Afghans but also Spanish nationals, to escape the country and reach safety at the air base in Torrejón de Ardoz (Madrid region).

Practically as soon as he and his family landed, Hujjat videoed himself (screenshot from Change.org shown above) thanking his classmates for setting up the petition, everyone who signed it, the media for reporting on his plight, and Spain's authorities.

He also had words of gratitude for the Spanish Armed Forces and police – 17 of the latter remain stationed in Kabul to aid the evacuation, and none were injured in the terrorist attack – for their help in his home country and on the journey.

And although he describes the pain and emotional upheaval of having to leave his country of origin, not knowing if he will ever be able to return, Madrid is Hujjat's second home: Three years ago, as part of his degree course, he spent a year in the Spanish capital as an exchange student.

His faculty colleagues back in Afghanistan have publicly celebrated Hujjat's successful quest to escape to safety, but recall that his is 'just one more case in an enormous list' of personal stories of those who 'with so much pain in their hearts', have had to 'leave everything behind, the life they have built up, so as not to lose this life completely'.

“Thousands have managed it, but millions will be left behind once the West concludes its evacuation operations,” say Hujjat's friends on the Change.org petition update.