British commandos reportedly disguised themselves to escape Taliban surveillance. SAS commandos arrived at the airport wearing burqas and pretending to be women. The commandos traveled for miles, wearing burqas, a full-body garment worn by Afghan women when they went out. The commandos, who worked with members of the Afghan security forces, had to find a strange way to escape at the last minute.
A military unit of 20 men wearing burqas was flown to Kabul airport by taxi from a British base in Afghanistan. In addition to wearing a burqa, the Taliban flag was tied to the vehicle. Several Taliban check posts were bypassed to reach the airport. Helicopters were not available for the rescue mission and were diverted by road.
The SAS team has been on a covert reconnaissance mission in Afghanistan for months. The commandos had earlier been asked to stop the operation and return to Kabul immediately. By then, most cities had been captured by the Taliban. They used five taxis to travel hundreds of kilometers to Kabul.
They also enlisted the help of the Afghan anti-terrorism police to find a safe way out. Burqas of different colors were worn. The commandos abandoned most of their equipment except their weapons and ammunition. The journey was covered with a few weapons and burqas. The commandos saw five taxis carrying 20 people in disguise carrying Taliban flags all over the roads.
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