Afghan evacuees enjoy Albania but have eyes set on Canada

GOLEM, Albania (AP) — Hundreds of Afghans who were evacuated from their homeland are staying at a beach resort in Albania, enjoying the warm welcome and a normal daily life free from fear.

A group of judges, sportsmen, journalists, activists, artists, law enforcement officers and scientists arrived last month. They all worry about the fates of relatives back home but are now able to sleep at night without fearing for their own lives.

The small Balkan nation of Albania has hosted 2,000 Afghan evacuees since the end of August after the Taliban took power in Afghanistan.

All of the Afghans in Albania who talked with an Associated Press journalist were waiting for U.S. visas but were aiming to go to Canada, where their relatives live.