5 reportedly killed at Kabul airport as Afghans flee Taliban reign
Post created on August 17, 2021
At least five people have been reported killed at Kabul airport as Afghans attempt to run away from their country, after the Taliban took control of the government.
All commercial flights have been cancelled from Hamid Karzai International Airport after the chaos that ensued as Afghans and foreigners tried to flee Afghanistan as Taliban fighters took over.
The Afghan capital, Kabul, fell to the Taliban on Sunday, August 15, after the terrorist group had seized a dozen other towns and provinces.
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani fled the country before Kabul fell; and is reported to be taking refuge in Uzbekistan.
The Taliban swept into Kabul unopposed, before seizing the presidential palace.
New satellite images from Maxar showed a crowd of people on the tarmac at Kabul International Airport, early Monday.
“While one Turkish airliner prepares to takeoff from the airfield, security forces can be seen near one of the airport’s main runways attempting to prevent crowds of people from moving toward other aircraft and from blocking flight operations,” Maxar said of the images.
Another video showed people clinging to the fuselage of a US military aircraft as it taxied on the runway.
Gunshots rang round the airport, as the United States announced that all its embassy staff have been evacuated to what has turned into a chaotic airport.
UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterres, says he has heard of “chilling reports of severe restrictions on human rights throughout the country.”
He adds that: “I am particularly concerned by accounts of mounting human rights violations against the women and girls of Afghanistan.”
More than 60 countries have issued a joint statement, calling on the Taliban to allow people to leave, the BBC reports.
