We were very worried Relief as Afghani evacuees in Perth return negative COVID-19 results

Western Australia will welcome about 80 more people escaping Afghanistan this week, with the evacuees expected to join the 96 already in a Perth quarantine hotel.

The news comes after WA Premier Mark McGowan expressed his relief that the people who had arrived in Perth on Friday had returned negative COVID-19 test results.

Two women and a child from Afghanistan arrive at the Hyatt Hotel in Perth.Credit:Getty Images

“We were very worried there’d be a lot of positives but they’ve all, at this point in time, returned negative tests,” he said.

“Our state has been the most proactive in assisting the Commonwealth with what is a tragic situation in getting Australians and those people who helped Australians out of Afghanistan over this crisis.

“We intend to take further people from Afghanistan over coming days, it may well be up to 80 that we take in to Western Australia.”

The 96 people were among 167 Afghan nationals and Australian citizens who were evacuated from Kabul on four flights, arriving on Friday morning. They were placed at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Perth.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison confirmed an additional four flights out of Kabul had evacuated more than 300 people on Saturday night.

This brings the total number of evacuation flights by the Australian government to eight, in the middle of what Mr Morrison said was a “chaotic” situation.

The conditions on the ground in Kabul have been worsening, with reports of deaths around the airport from shootings or from people being trampled as they tried to leave.

Mr Morrison said Australia would get as many people safely out of Afghanistan as possible.

“What we are simply doing right now is getting as many people out safely, with the proper checks being done both on the airfield itself and as well as back in the Emirates, to ensure we are doing the right thing in terms of Australia’s national security interests, but also the right thing by humanitarian interests,” he said.

Australian, UK, US and New Zealand citizens and visa holders are among those being assisted on these flights.

Mr Morrison said 430 people had been taken out of the country ahead of the takeover.

The Australian embassy in Afghanistan was closed in May, four months ahead of the military withdrawal, but the Taliban takeover happened much faster than most global leaders say they expected.

“I wouldn’t say [the Taliban takeover] was a surprise ... and that’s why we were taking the actions that we were taking as far back as before April to ensure we were massively accelerating how we were getting people processed to get them out of the country,” he said. However, he said many people were wise “in hindsight”.

More than 1000 people flocked to Forrest Chase in Perth on Sunday calling on Australian officials to help more people seeking refuge from Afghanistan.

They called for Australia to increase its intake to 20,000 people to match that of Canada and the UK.

Mr Morrison has so far only agreed to helping 3000 people.

Lauren Pilat is a part-time journalist at WAtoday, with a special focus on social justice issues, education, and breaking news.

Jennifer Duke is an economics correspondent for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, based at Parliament House in Canberra.

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