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Friday, 17 September 2021 (YJC)_ Dutch Defence Minister resigned over her handling of the Afghan evacuation crisis.
Dutch Defence Minister Ank Bijleveld resigned on Friday over her handling of the Afghan evacuation crisis in a widening scandal that has also claimed the job of the foreign minister.
Bijleveld had originally refused to quit but finally bowed to pressure after parliament formally censured her over a debacle that has left dozens of interpreters stranded in Afghanistan.
"I informed my party and prime minister that I will ask the king to receive my resignation," Bijleveld told reporters at the defence ministry, referring to Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte.
"I don't want to get in the way of the important work" of her colleagues who are still trying to get people out of Afghanistan, she added.
Dutch foreign minister Sigrid Kaag resigned on Thursday after she too was condemned by parliament over the government's failure to evacuate some Afghans, and for missing signs of an imminent Taliban takeover.
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