Afghan citizens on Friday speaking to TOLOnews urged officials of the caretaker government to promptly reopen the passport department.

Citizens said that three weeks have passed since the caretaker government pledged to reopen the department but the office has remained closed.

Hedayatullah, a Kabul resident, said: “Every day we are coming and then going. No exact information is available.”

“Many people have problems. Someone whose relatives are sick is not capable of travelling out for medical treatment,” Ali Yaser said.

Fakhria, 62, said that due to illness and unemployment she has decided to leave the country with her two sons. She said: “Our hearts are restless. We do not know what to do."

The deputy chief of the passport department would not speak on camera but said serious efforts to start the process of distributing passports have begun as someone has been introduced as the caretaker head of the department.