Farthing gained backing from celebrities and many offers to adopt the rescued animals. But he also drew criticism from those who said the case was draining time and energy from the task of rescuing Afghans.
REBECCA HARDY: The wife of animal charity founder and former marine Pen Farthing last night spoke of her joy that her husband and his furry friends looked to be on their way home… Her husband and his animals escaping Kabul is the dream she has clung to ever since she was flown out of the city on a near-empty flight.
She learned last night that Pen, having made it through Taliban checkpoints, had been finally allowed to board a flight with 150 rescue cats and dogs from his Nowzad charity – but he was forced to leave his staff members behind. ‘I know Pen had a very hard choice. He faced that same choice when he was inside the airport with his staff and their families on Thursday and the animals and the staff were not allowed through,’ says Kaisa…
The founder of Kabul’s Nowzad animal shelter, Paul Farthing – known as Pen – had been attempting to arrange a freedom flight in an operation dubbed ‘Operation Ark’. British soldiers helped load the animals on to a privately chartered plane last night as they prepared to return to the UK. The Ministry of Defence confirmed that the group were ‘assisted through the system at Kabul airport by the UK Armed Forces’.
Last night his supporter and animal rights campaigner Dominic Dyer told the Mail: ‘Pen is OK, but he is very stressed. ‘He has no choice but to leave and bring the animals with him. We are looking forward to getting them to the UK. ‘We are very pleased we’ve got him out and are very grateful to the British Government for their help, and for the support of the Armed Forces’…
MoD sources last night made clear that Mr Farthing and his convoy did not get preferential treatment and were not on board a military flight. While Mr Farthing’s supporters said he had been turned away by the Taliban on Thursday, sources said he may have gone to the wrong gate.
Defence Secretary Ben Wallace initially dismissed Operation Ark, saying it would put ‘people before pets’ in the rush to flee Kabul. He later agreed to ‘seek a slot’ for the plane carrying out the mercy mission, but insisted the convoy would not be able to jump the queue…
Mr Farthing will fly from Kabul to Tashkent in Uzbekistan before later returning to Britain, where he has won legions of fans for holding the government to account. But in a blow to the ex-soldier, it emerged today his animals will be locked up when he arrives in the UK. Officials said the dogs and cats face a four-month quarantine in kennels and catteries until at least Christmas. SOURCE…
BREITBART LONDON: Farthing, who started the Nowzad charity after serving with British forces in Afghanistan 15 years ago, was eligible for evacuation in Britain’s military airlift along with Afghan members of his staff and their dependents. But he refused to leave without the animals.
For days, Farthing used social media and press interviews to chronicle his attempts to depart with his four-legged companions amid the chaotic exodus from Kabul airport, as his supporters lobbied the British government for help with a rescue effort dubbed Operation Ark…
Farthing and his supporters say Operation Ark did not take aeroplane seats from people or drain resources from the official evacuation operation. But UK government officials have become increasingly vocal in their frustration…
Farthing gained backing from celebrities including comedian Ricky Gervais, and many offers to adopt the rescued animals. But he also drew criticism from those who said the case was draining time and energy from the task of rescuing Afghans at risk from the country’s new Taliban rulers…
The Sunday Times released a recording of an expletive-filled message left by Farthing last week for a senior defence official, Peter Quentin, accusing him of “blocking” the evacuation and threatening to “spend the rest of my time … destroying you on social media”…
Animal welfare campaigner Dominic Dyer, who has acted as a UK-based spokesman for Farthing said… “Pen Farthing, who was risking his life in Kabul to get his people and animals to Britain, was completely justified in holding Mr Quentin to account for his actions”… Dyer said Taliban guards would not let the Afghan staff enter, even though they had papers permitting them to come to Britain. He said Nowzad would continue to work to get them safely to Britain. SOURCE…
CHRIS JEWERS: A Tory MP waded into the Pen Farthing on Saturday as a rescue plane landed in Kabul to evacuate the former marine and 180 cats and dogs. Tom Tugendhat criticised the decision to use soldiers to evacuate Mr Farthing’s animals while the lives of Afghans who assisted the British during the 20-year occupation of the country are under threat from the Taliban.
‘The difficulty is getting people into and out of the airport and we’ve just used a lot of troops to get in 200 dogs,’ the Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee said. ‘Meanwhile my interpreter’s family are likely to be killed,’ Tugendhat – who served in Afghanistan and Iraq – added. ‘As one interpreter asked me a few days ago, why is my five year-old worth less than your dog?’…
There were suggestions by Mr Farthing’s supporters that his change of tone was prompted by an intervention from Boris Johnson’s animal-loving wife Carrie – but this was denied by Downing Street sources. Asked if Mr Farthing had been a diversion to the overall evacuation mission, Mr Wallace yesterday told LBC: ‘I think it has taken up too much time of my senior commanders dealing with this issue when they should be focused on dealing with the humanitarian crisis.’ SOURCE…
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