Many injuries and casualties are reported to have taken place over the last several days at the Kabul Airport; At least a dozen deaths were reported on Thursday afternoon; Several shots have been fired.
Amid the Taliban’s resurgence throughout Afghanistan in recent months, and more specifically, its overthrow of key cities throughout the country, the US has abandoned its embassy in Kabul, one of the world’s largest. Furthermore, as the US withdrawal from the region remains underway, violence is rising at an unprecedented rate in the capital city.
As of Tuesday, the estimated number of Americans evacuated from Kabul was 1,100.
Of course, all of this follows on the heels of the Taliban’s pledge to reign in an inclusive manner, pledging peace and women’s rights efforts as they fit within the religion of Islam (emphasis added).
According to at least one report on the situation in Kabul, nearly a dozen people were killed at the airport on Thursday after the Taliban opened fire, which resulted in a stampede. There are several additional reports concerning violent measures the Taliban has used at the airport.
US personnel in Afghanistan received a message from the US State Department on Thursday stating, “Travel to Airport: U.S. citizens, U.S. LPRs, and their spouses and children (under age 21) should proceed to Hamid Karzai International Airport (HKIA) as soon as possible.” It continued, explaining that the government “cannot ensure safe passage to the airport.”
Taliban fighters continue to gain control of the airport’s outskirts, restricting access to numerous people, while the US military is defending the interior of the compound itself. Government officials claim they’re seeking to increase the rate at which people are evacuated from the collapsing country where the US has had a major presence since 2001.
