Ashraf Ghani declared on Sunday that he left his country to avoid a “bloodbath”, acknowledging that “the Taliban won.”
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At the time, the former president, without saying where he was, declared that he was convinced that if he had stayed in Afghanistan, “unnameable patriots would die and that Kabul would be destroyed.”
“The Taliban won by arms and are now responsible for the honor, control and preservation of the country,” he added in a message on Facebook.
Numerous rumors circulated since his departure about his final destination: Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Oman and, as it was, the United Arab Emirates.
It is not the first time that this rich Gulf country has welcomed leaders and their families exiled from their countries.
Last year, the former king of Spain, Juan Carlos, went into exile in the Emirates due to the corruption investigations carried out by the country’s justice system.
In 2017, Dubai welcomed former Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, sentenced for rebellion to five years in prison.
Former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto went into exile in the Emirates between 1999 and October 2007.
The Emirates, along with Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, recognized the previous Taliban government, from 1996 to 2001.