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The sudden collapse of the Afghan government has sparked a frenzied attempt to accelerate online relief and evacuation efforts. Largely organized through Google Forms, WhatsApp and private social media groups, these initiatives seek to fill the void created by the US government’s failure to protect vulnerable Afghans. This may be the only lifebuoy for many trying to flee the country – but at the same time, it is not without risk as observers fear that crowdsourced information could be used by the Taliban to identify people in need of rescue.
The war in Afghanistan lasted 20 years and claimed at least 174,000 lives, but Kabul’s fall took place over the course of a weekend. As the Taliban shut down, former president Ashraf Ghani fled the country on Saturday (August 14th). On Sunday, the Taliban had entered the Afghan presidential palace.
But as residents of Kabul either waited in dread to see what the takeover would mean for them or tried to escape the chaotic scenes at the city’s airport, Afghanistan’s only evacuation point, a frenzied volunteer effort was underway to help as many people as possible.
bypass the bureaucracy
Afghans and their allies had been organizing for weeks, but these efforts took on new urgency as the last major cities fell into Taliban hands within a week, often without resistance. Largely online, informal networks of people at home and abroad, including journalists, nonprofits, universities, and sometimes even government officials working outside of official politics, were compiling lists of Afghans eligible for different resettlement programs and even trying to bypass the slowdown. -To move the bureaucratic processes completely.
“Real-time messaging platforms are used to make snap decisions. It indicates the intensity of the crisis and desperation.”
Mark Latonero, Harvard Kennedy School
Several groups were planning to charter aircraft for private airlifts. Some planned to crowdsource road conditions and help identify Afghans stranded in the provinces and make their way to Kabul. Others focused on more specific target groups such as journalists, women leaders, and Afghans who have worked on specific projects.
“If anyone in Kabul can reach the airport by the end of the week, please enter the information here to share with the air evacuation company and the State Department,” reads at the top of a Google Form created by a national coalition. -in hopes of security-related organizations Evacuate Afghans who already have passports.
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