Mail exclusive on Sunday: Dominic Raab denies reducing leave to deal with Afghanistan crisis

foreign Secretary Dominic Rabo Sources told the Mail on Sunday that he had fallen into a new row on his leave after he refused the No. 10 order to return from the Mediterranean. Afghanistan Difficulty.

Sources said Mr Raab was told by a senior Downing Street On Friday 13 August it was officially stated that he should return to London immediately if the situation in Kabul deteriorated, and was ‘gritting his teeth’ when he delayed his return home until the early hours of Monday morning.

This claim was vehemently denied by Mr Raab’s friends, who insist that he was assured by boris johnson So that he can stay with his family till the end of the weekend.

The cabinet minister faced criticism for being on leave as Kabul fell into the hands of extremists, and missed a call to the Afghan foreign minister to seek help for translators stranded in the country.

A soldier carries a civilian amid chaos at Afghanistan’s Kabul airport, with thousands desperate to flee the country. Four women killed in crush as thousands try to exit Afghanistan on evacuation flights

Afghans desperate at the barrier at Kabul airport

Hundreds of people race with a US Air Force C-17 transport plane as it descends the runway of the international airport in Kabul on Monday

US soldiers stand behind barbed wire as Afghans sit by the roadside near the military side of the airport in Kabul yesterday

The saga has drawn a dig at Mr Raab from within his own party and calls for Labor to resign, although Mr Johnson has said he has ‘absolutely’ confidence in his foreign secretary.

However, this has undoubtedly strained relations between No. 10 and the FCO.

A source said, ‘There is no doubt that Raab was asked to come back that Friday. There was a significant surprise when he appeared on Cobra down from Crete on Sunday. He must have given Boris to the noble and sought permission to end his leave’.

Last night, Mr Raab told the Mail on Sunday that he had enjoyed a ‘wave of support’, and denied that there was pressure to resign from within his party.

Mr Raab said: ‘I haven’t heard any of my Conservative allies asking me to resign, but I have a wave of support. There is no doubt that, as in all countries, the pace of the Taliban takeover is surprising.

‘But as a foreign secretary traveling around the world, whether I’m on vacation or I’m traveling for work purposes, I’m always ready to be able to catch things’.

The claim against Mr Raab was vehemently denied by his friends, who insist he was assured by Boris Johnson that he could stay with his family until the end of the weekend.

Cabinet minister has faced criticism for being on leave after falling into the hands of extremists in Kabul

Members of the UK Armed Forces participating in the evacuation of entitled personnel from Kabul

A close aide of Raab insisted that Number 10 had not ‘ordered’ him to return on Friday.

The aide added: ‘The suggestion was that he should plan to come back. They need to be ready to come back at a moment’s notice if the situation worsens, he added. After this he talked to the PM about this and it was decided that he would come back on Sunday.

The aide strongly denied reports that Mr Raab had spent much of last Sunday at the beach.

‘That is just not true. He put his family in a gazebo on the beach so he could go back and work at the hotel, all the while checking in on them every now and then.

The row has given rise to speculation that Mr Raab will be replaced in the next reshuffle, possibly replacing Robert Buckland as Justice Secretary.

Cabinet Office Minister Michael Gove, who plans to relocate one of the state’s great offices, has been tipped to replace him.

Downing Street declined to comment.