Daughter of British shopkeeper killed in Kabul blast pleads for help to bring mother home

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Andrew Feinberg

White House Correspondent

The daughter of a London shopkeeper killed in the terror attack on Kabul airport is begging the UK government to help bring her widowed mother home.

Musa Popal, 60, was one of at least three British nationals killed in the suicide attack on Thursday.

He moved to the UK in 1999 and had been running the Madeena Supermarket in Hendon, north London, for more than 20 years.

He and his wife, Saleema, had flown to Kandahar in south Afghanistan in June to visit family, including their son and daughter who still live in the country. They travelled to Kabul airport on Thursday to try to return to the UK.

Mr Popal is said to have been waving his British passport at American soldiers at the Abbey Gate when the attack took place.

His wife, who was watching from a distance, was uninjured, but their grandson Hameed, who was standing with Mr Popal, remains missing.

His daughter, Zohra, said the family feel “ignored” by the Foreign Office, which has not made contact since news of his death was confirmed.

She said she fears for the life of her 60-year-old mother who remains in Afghanistan, and members of her family who she believe could be targeted by the Taliban.

“My mum, she has no documents now because my dad was holding everything when he died,” Ms Popal told PA news agency.

“She and the rest of my family are still in danger, and we still might lose them. And yet we can’t get through to the Foreign Office.

“Their number is constantly engaged. We feel completely ignored. But we must get them to safety. I can’t live without them. We need the government’s help.”

The traumatic loss of her father has left Zohra, 23, feeling like she’s “falling to a thousand pieces”. “I’ve never experienced pain like this,” she said.

“Most of us haven’t slept or eaten in days. I just want to hug my dad once more, and I want to kiss my mother.

“My nephew, Hameed Popal, who is just 14 years old, is still missing after the bomb. And now I’m really worried about my mum and other siblings being targeted by the Taliban.

“I don’t think any of us could take another loss.”

Mohamed Niazi, 29, an Uber driver from Aldershot, Hampshire, also died in the attack.

The number of British-Afghan victims is expected to rise as the nationalities of the victims becomes clearer.