Conditions at Kabul Airport are still in chaos. Tens of thousands of Afghans are struggling to flee the country. As the US warns citizens to stay away from the airport pointed to the threat of terrorism Including from IS in Afghanistan, Europe said it was “impossible” to evacuate all people by the end of the month deadline. The Taliban blamed the US for failing to control the situation.
Image courtesy of the British Ministry of Defense. British soldiers work with American soldiers to evacuate Afghan civilians with their eligible families. in Kabul, Afghanistan on Aug. 21, 2021 (Photo by MoD Crown Copyright via Getty Images).
It’s been a week since the Taliban took control of the Afghan capital last weekend. That caused a panic escaping into the Hamid Karzai international airport. And causing the US government and many other countries to launch urgent evacuation operations. What US President Joe Biden described as one of the largest and most difficult airlifts in history.
AFP and Reuters reports on Sunday, Aug. 22, citing a statement from Major General William Taylor of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff. at the Pentagon in Washington on Saturday that There are currently 5,800 American troops operating at Kabul airport and the airport is still seizing. Some entrances to the airport were temporarily closed and reopened in recent days. To facilitate the flow of asylum seekers safely
The US government has set an August 31 deadline for evacuation operations, Major General Taylor said. Last week, the United States evacuated 17,000 people from Kabul, including 2,500 Americans. There are still 15,000 Americans awaiting immigration and more Afghan allies. 50,000-60,000 people
As thousands of Americans and Afghans waited for their flights at the airport. Or collecting samples frantically outside the doorways, there are “sparse” reports that have been confirmed by the Pentagon. that the Taliban fighters or other armed groups Beat and injure people who are trying to flee the country.
The Taliban had previously warned that Those who do not have travel documents should go home. and it was reported that since last Sunday At least 12 people died, either on or near the airport runway, which has only one runway. Some fell from the plane while clinging to the military plane as it took off.
on sunday A spokesman for the British Defense Ministry also said 7 Afghans killed in chaos near airport But the statement did not reveal details. Earlier in the day, Sky News broadcast images of at least three bodies covered in white tarps outside the airport.
British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace said to Mail on Sunday that No country can get all its people out before the Aug. 31 deadline. Maybe the US could extend that even longer. and England will fully support
Joseph Borrell, Head of European Union Foreign Policy It also told AFP on Saturday the evacuation of 60,000 people from now to the end of the month. Mathematically impossible, and that Europe has complained to the Americans that Their airport security is too strict. And it hinders Afghans working for Europeans to get inside the airport.
Amir Khan Mutaki, a Taliban official accused the United States on Sunday that America, which has both power and facilities. Unable to maintain order at the airport There is peace all over Afghanistan now. Only at the chaotic Kabul Airport
the previous day The shocking video was widely circulated. A baby in a diaper was handed over to the US Marines standing on the wall of the airport. which uses one arm to grab the child and send it to the soldiers inside The US Department of Defense later stated that the child was sick and that the child’s father asked the soldiers to take him for treatment. The child has now been returned to his father.
The situation at Kabul Airport is also becoming more difficult. When the US and German governments issued a warning on Saturday. Citizens are advised to stay away from the airport because of a “security threat”. The warning does not provide a clear reason. But a White House official later said: President Biden receives a summary report on the threat of counter-terrorism. including from the Islamic State group in the Khorasan region (IS-K or ISIS-K), which is the IS branch of Afghanistan.
“We advise US citizens to avoid traveling to airports. and avoid the gates of the airport unless you receive an individual order from a representative of the US government,” the US embassy warned.
The German embassy also warned German citizens via email that Taliban forces are increasing tighter control of the area surrounding the airport.
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