Videos from the airport show people pouring into the terminal building. Embassy staff were being helicoptered to the military side of the airport, which US soldiers have secured. Foreign embassies told their nationals and Afghan citizens it was not safe to travel to the airport and only to go there if instructed. A US official quoted by Reuters said military flights would resume “shortly”. The airport – secured by the US military – was the only feasible route out after the Islamist group took control of the country’s land borders.Īll civilian flights were temporarily suspended on Monday for safety reasons. They follow the evacuation by helicopter on Sunday of the US embassy, and other diplomatic missions, in images reminiscent of the 1975 fall of Saigon.ĭespite Taliban reassurances that there would be no reprisals against the civilian population, thousands of Afghans on Monday were trying to flee. The chaotic and tragic scenes at the airport after the fall of Kabul to the Taliban are likely to become a defining symbol of the west’s failure in Afghanistan. Taliban fighters nearby were firing warning shots to control the crowds, he said, adding: “Almost certainly a gunshot wound.” One witness said he saw a body in the road. It is unclear if they came from the plane or died in other circumstances. Horrified onlookers left behind on the tarmac point upwards, watching in disbelief.Ī second video shows the bodies of three people – two men and a woman – lying on the ground in the airport complex. 9qA36HS0WQ- TOLOnews August 16, 2021Īs the plane soars towards the mountains overlooking the Afghan capital, two people can be seen falling, first one and then another. Video: People run on tarmac of Kabul international airport as a US military aircraft attempts to take off.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |