A humanitarian flight operated by the NGO Solidaire, led by the Argentine Enrique Piñeyro, allowed this Friday the arrival in Italy of 199 refugees afghans. This mission is part of a joint effort to establish humanitarian corridors that protect migrants from the most dangerous routes.
The Boeing 787 plane took off from Islamabad, Pakistanand landed at Terminal 5 of the Leonardo da Vinci Fiumicino International Airport, in Rome.
Tension between Pakistan and Afghanistan grew due to intensified attacks by the Pakistani Taliban, an independent militant group allied to the Afghan Taliban. The Pakistani Taliban, known as Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan or TTP, have found refuge in neighboring Afghanistan, from where they sneak across the unstable border to launch deadly attacks against Pakistani forces.
After a series of attacks, Pakistan expelled hundreds of thousands of Afghan refugees near the border, while the same is in limbo awaiting a resolution.
The flight was commanded by the Argentine pilot and filmmaker Enrique Piñeyro, who recounted the experience upon arrival: “They were all very happy to get on the plane, I was able to greet them one by one and that is always very exciting. “They are people, mainly women and children, who were escaping from Afghanistan, where their future was closed.” This operation is the second carried out from Pakistan, with an air route specially designed to avoid Afghan airspace.
The transport of the refugees, initially planned for June 20, World Refugee Day, had to be postponed due to unfavorable weather conditions. Finally, the flight was carried out without problems in a clear sky, lasting eight hours. Upon arrival, the refugees were greeted by volunteers waiting to help them integrate into different regions of Italy.
The integration process includes language learning and job placement, in a project financed by several Italian institutions, including the Italian Episcopal Conference through Cáritas Italiana, the Community of Sant’Egidio, the Federation of Evangelical Churches in Italy and the Waldensian Table.
Piñeyro also reflected on the emotional differences he observed on different humanitarian flights. “People’s emotions when they get on the plane and when they get off are very different. In this case they arrived at a place where they do not speak the language and have a challenge ahead of them. In the end it is a great uncertainty for them. So maybe they go up very happy and come down very anxious. That changes on each flight depending on the circumstance: on the flights with Ukrainian refugees it was different because they did not want to leave their country, they left by force, leaving their parents or husbands or children behind. The emotional pulse is very different on each flight,” he explained.
Since August 2021, these families moved to Italy had been taking refuge in Pakistan, escaping persecution by the Taliban. The operation also had the support of NGOs such as New Onlus and the Pangea Foundationwho worked for months in Islamabad to ensure the protection of these people.
In addition to the missions with the Boeing 787, Solidaire is fitting out a rescue ship to operate in the central Mediterranean, one of the most dangerous migration routes in the world. “Europe has to take care of the mess it made in Africa for centuries. They massacred populations and explored their riches without leaving anything in return, and now they have to be responsible for all that,” Piñeyro claimed. The Argentine NGO will be the first to have a presence in this crucial area for the migratory flow from Africa to Europe.
From 2016 to 2024, more than one million people have attempted to cross the Mediterranean by barge. It is estimated that more than 23 thousand people have died in the attempt. In 2019, before the pandemic, it was estimated that one in every 21 people trying to cross drowned. This number varies depending on the number of rescue ships operational in the area, underscoring the importance of rescue efforts.
The Solidaire ship aims to facilitate the creation of maritime humanitarian corridors. “If the people who arrive on rescue ships, whether ours or any other NGO, receive safe passage from the government to go to the airport directly from the port, we can take them on the plane to the other countries in Europe. that they should absorb the quota of migrants that corresponds to them and that they committed to absorb in the migration pact,” explained Piñeyro.
The ship is expected to be operational in the coming months, coordinating efforts with destination authorities to provide a faster and safer solution to migrants.
