Taliban let Englishman who said he was Welsh go as they didn’t know where the country was
The Taliban let a man who was ‘on holiday’ in Afghanistan go when he said he was Welsh, because they didn’t know where it was, he has said.
Student Miles Routledge from Birmingham said that he decided to tell them he was from Wales rather than England or the UK.
He flew out to Kabul four days ago, apparently unaware that it was on the brink of capture by the Taliban.
He told Twitch that he had been confronted by the insurgents this morning when he attempted to go to the airport.
“I kind of just thought, I’m going to be killed by the Taliban, fair enough,” he said.
But when he was asked where he was from, he said that he was Welsh rather than British, and was let go.
He added today that he hoped to be part of an “emergency evacuation” after apparently finding refuge at a UN safe house.
Miles Routledge added that he had made a point of visiting dangerous areas, having previously travelled to Chernobyl.
‘Best to get out’
Miles Routledge’s visit coincided with the Taliban’s recaptured nearly all of Afghanistan, despite the billions of dollars spent by the U.S. and NATO over almost 20 years on the Afghan military.
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani has reportedly fled the country.
“If there were still countless countrymen martyred and they would face the destruction and destruction of Kabul city, the result would have been a big human disaster in this six million city,” the President said in a Facebook post yesterday.
“The Taliban have made it to remove me, they are here to attack all Kabul and the people of Kabul. In order to avoid the bleeding flood, I thought it was best to get out,” President Ghani said in a Facebook post on August 15.”
According to witnesses, at least five people were killed in Kabul airport last night – either by gunshots or a stampede – as hundreds of people tried to leave the capital.
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I’m glad our fine nation was able to save his skin.
But you have to ask yourself why he was going out there. I don’t buy that he was too stupid to know what was going on. Why is he posing with that toy gun?
Did he fancy himself some war tourism? Get a bit of excitement out of the chaos and misery? Shoot a few Talitubbies like a big boy for his Twitch followers?
Note: That’s a real gun.
Really? It looks very plasticky. The SA80 MkII looked like it was a toy, but that looks like it came out of a kinder egg. Still, I claim no expertise
It looks like an AR-15 variant with a polymer barrel shroud. it looks plasticky because it is and that’s lightweight and practical. That said, some airsoft weapons are quite literally indistinguishable from real firearms from the outside so that’s a possibility but i’d be surprised if it wasn’t real.
I smell bovine mess! No-one asked to see his passport?! Lies lies lies…
Well it shows one thing – the name of Wales is not tarnished by foreign wars. What good came from British presence in Afghanistan or Syria ? Hundreds of deaths and both countries are still a mess. When independence comes we must take a different path – warmongering has got us nowhere.
No stupid the taliban are idiots with zero education so to them Wales was some place in the world nothing to do with Britain or America or any other coalition forces , quite simple really now if he had said I am from Wales which is part of britain do you really think Mr war tourist would have walked away alive 🤔.
The Taliban sound like Millwall fans in that respect. And they won the war of Afghanistan, because UK and US forces have fled and betrayed ANOTHER ally to their fates.
That’s a very colonialist attitude you have there assuming all of the Taliban are just thick tribespeople. Is that how they evaded 21st century British and American forces for 20years? It’s this sort of thinking that has led to them taking over again !
Like all other groups set on genocidal intent the Taliban are no better no worse. This bloke just got lucky if he was ever there, smacks of Walter Mitty to me!
I hope he does not get a free ride home at the expense of the UK taxpayer.
Oh he did. Flying back as I write. Just another burden on the taxpayer
“Gwna hi’n hanfod, ac fe gei di weld”
“He flew out to Kabul four days ago…” …on holiday
Do they normally allow him to have matches or sharp objects?
What an absolute muppet! Surely he knew that the Taliban were advancing rapidly across the country! If he wanted to pose with a weapon and face danger, then he should have joined the army.
Miles must have thought that as Afghanistan was controlled by US & UK forces it was like Wales being controlled by England, that’s why he called himself a Welshman!!
And as an Englishman he was under the mistaken impression that England “owned” Afghanistan since it was siphoning off their resources. Had the Taliban not routed the invading forces it would only a matter of time before some ginger Telegraph writer whined that the locals started speaking Afghan whenever he/she walked into a room and some CofE bishop started wittering that Afghanistan should sing GSTQ
Curiosity got the better of me. Miles is 24 and studying physics at Loughborough University. Presumably, given his age, this means he is studying for a Master’s or Doctorate. God help us when he gets to join a SAGE group.
Physics at Loughborough is to do with trajectories of footballs and basketballs isn’t it?
He has a bright future in HR
Very revealing comment. Shows how little you know about Physics at Loughborough or the requirements for a meaningful role in HR. You just reduced yourself to muppet Miles’ level in 2 sentences.
Oh boo hoo. It was a joke. Loughborough is a university known for its “sports science”.
Sorry you were so offended that you had to make a personal attack. My employer has a HR department. I have a pretty good idea what they do.
Joke ? well maybe it was although I suspect that wasn’t the initial intent. Loughborough Uni was well known for its Science and Engineering long before it absorbed the even more famous Loughborough College.
Offended ? Not really. I put the comment down to where it comes from.
No. That was the original intent. But people choose to get offended these days. I get that. It gives them a chance to vent their strongly held “opinions”
I have been in Bulgaria and Lithuania and have avoided some definitely dodgy situations by telling people I am WELSH not English, which is true I am Welsh. Ask yourself why!