Who is Pen Farthing? He is a former Royal Marines commando who founded the charity Nowzad Dogs in Afghanistan in 2007. The name of the organization comes from the fact that he once served in the town of Nozad in Afghanistan, when he rescued a dog na...
Who is Pen Farthing? He is a former Royal Marines commando who founded the charity Nowzad Dogs in Afghanistan in 2007. The name of the organization comes from the fact that he once served in the town of Nozad in Afghanistan, when he rescued a dog named Nozad. The agency has been working to reunite veterans and women with their lost pets. Later, it slowly developed into Afghanistan's first animal rescue organization.
Well, since Afghanistan was overrun by the Taliban, Peng Faxin has been fighting to have his 200 dogs and cats, as well as Nozad’s 68 staff members (Afghan refugees), removed from the charity’s animal shelter in Kabul, controlled by the Taliban.
In fact, after Joe Biden refused to extend the rescue mission, the UK is facing a more serious rescue mission, making it more difficult to rescue thousands of desperate Britons and Afghans from Kabul. Defense Secretary Ben Wallace also said the animals would have to wait as Britain prioritized evacuating people from Kabul. "I'm not prepared to prioritize pets over people," he explained to MPs. But Nowzad raised hundreds of thousands of pounds to rent private jets in a mission called Operation Ark. Supporters have privately chartered an Airbus A330 and are on standby to fly to Kabul to rescue the group's workers and animals. Peng Faxin has also been fighting to allow 94 dogs, 79 cats, as well as himself and 68 Afghan refugees to escape from Taliban-controlled Kabul. British comedian Ricky Gervais backed the project, denouncing the defense minister in a foul-mouthed post on Twitter: "Dear stupid guys saying we shouldn't put animals before people. Animals don't go into people's places. It's an extra privately funded plane that would save more people." But Defense Secretary Wallace insists the main problem with Kabul's evacuation is getting people in and out of the airport safely. Charter flights would simply "block the airport" and be "idled" as thousands of people trying to leave Kabul would be processed before animals.
In the meantime, all dogs and cats at Nozad's three rescue shelters have been relocated to the charity's headquarters. It even includes a dozen British embassy cats like Mr Grey, Chopsy, Sweep and Sca - yes, they were all abandoned by British diplomats.
Peng Faxin said that these animals will be transported in the cargo hold of the aircraft. Once his staff are in place, any spare seats on the plane can be filled by others approved by UK authorities, and the plane can carry a total of 250 passengers. "The cargo hold is empty, we put the dogs and cats there! There are seats for 250 people in the cabin!" Peng Faxin said on Twitter.
Afterwards, the British "Sun" published a story calling for the rescue of war dogs. Then, on August 24, 2021, the British government finally issued visas to 68 of Peng Faxin's employees and their families.
Defense Secretary Ben Wallace said officials will find a runway location for the plane Peng Faxin has chartered to receive him, his staff and the animals when they arrive at Kabul Airport.
