Crush at Kabul airport kills 7 as Afghans try to flee

KABUL, Afghanistan — At slightest 7 Afghans died successful a panicked crush of radical trying to participate Kabul’s planetary airport, the British subject said Sunday, arsenic thousands were inactive trying to fly the state successful a chaotic exodus a week aft the Taliban takeover.

The Taliban moved to face the archetypal stirrings of equipped absorption since capturing astir each of Afghanistan successful a substance of days earlier this month. Anti-Taliban fighters claimed to person seized 3 mountainous districts, and a salient militia commandant successful the lone state not yet nether Taliban power pledged to combat backmost if attacked.

The British subject connected Sunday acknowledged astatine slightest 7 deaths astatine the airport. Others whitethorn person been trampled, suffocated oregon suffered bosom attacks arsenic Taliban fighters fired into the aerial to effort to thrust backmost the crowds. Soldiers covered respective corpses successful achromatic clothing. Other troops stood connected factual barriers, trying to calm the crowd.

Kabul’s airport, present 1 of the lone routes retired of the country, has seen days of chaos since the Taliban entered the superior connected Aug. 15. Thousands poured onto the tarmac past week, and respective Afghans plunged to their deaths aft clinging to a U.S. subject cargo level arsenic it took off, immoderate of the 7 killed connected Aug. 16.

The Taliban person pledged amnesty to those who worked with the U.S., NATO and the toppled Afghan government, but galore Afghans inactive fearfulness revenge attacks. There person been reports successful caller days of the Taliban hunting down their erstwhile enemies. It’s unclear if Taliban leaders are saying 1 happening and doing another, oregon if fighters are taking matters into their ain hands.

Outside the airdrome connected Saturday, Western troops successful afloat combat cogwheel tried to power crowds large capable to beryllium seen successful outer photos. They carried distant immoderate who were sweating and pale. With temperatures reaching 34 degrees Celsius (93 F), the soldiers sprayed h2o from a hose connected those gathered and gave retired bottled water.

“The concern astatine Kabul airdrome remains highly challenging and unpredictable,” a NATO authoritative said connected information of anonymity successful keeping with regulations. The authoritative was not capable to corroborate a precise fig of casualties.

The U.S. Embassy, which has relocated to the subject broadside of the airport, has told American citizens and others not to travel to the airdrome until they person precise instructions.

U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan told CNN that 3,900 radical had been airlifted retired of Kabul connected U.S. subject flights successful the past 24 hours, up from 1,600 the erstwhile day. That’s successful summation to astir 3,900 radical airlifted connected non-U.S. subject flights implicit the past 24 hours. It remains acold beneath the 5,000 to 9,000 that the subject says it has the capableness to airlift daily.

Britain said it had airlifted much than 5,000 people, including 1,000 successful the past 14 hours.

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin activated the Civil Reserve Air Fleet program, requesting 18 craft from U.S. carriers to assistance successful transporting Afghan refugees aft they are evacuated to different countries. The voluntary program, calved successful the aftermath of the Berlin airlift, adds to the military’s capabilities during crises.

President Joe Biden has vowed to bring location each Americans from Afghanistan and to evacuate Afghans who aided the U.S. warfare effort. U.S. subject helicopters person been utilized to cod 169 Americans from extracurricular the airport. Tens of thousands of Americans and others are inactive hoping to alert out.

There besides person been concerns astir a imaginable onslaught connected the airdrome by a section Islamic State affiliate. U.S. subject planes person been executing corkscrew landings, and different craft person fired flares upon takeoff, measures utilized to forestall rocket attacks.

The Taliban blasted the chaotic evacuation connected the U.S. military, saying there’s nary request for Afghans to fearfulness them, adjacent though their fighters sprout into the aerial and bushed radical with batons arsenic they effort to power the crowds extracurricular the airport.

“All Afghanistan is secure, but the airport, which is managed by the Americans, has anarchy,” Amir Khan Motaqi, a elder Taliban official, said Sunday. The U.S. “should not embarrass itself to the satellite and should not springiness this mentality to our radical that (the Taliban) are a benignant of enemy.”

Speaking to an Iranian authorities tv transmission Saturday nighttime successful a video call, Taliban spokesperson Mohammad Naeem besides blamed the deaths astatine the airdrome connected the Americans.

“The Americans announced that ‘we would instrumentality you to America with us,’ and radical gathered astatine Kabul airport,” Naeem said. “If it was announced close present successful immoderate state successful the world, would radical not go?”

The Taliban person sought to task a much mean representation than erstwhile they past ruled the country, from 1996 until the U.S.-led penetration pursuing the 9/11 attacks, which al-Qaida carried retired portion being sheltered by the Taliban. During their earlier rule, women were mostly confined to their homes, tv and euphony were banned, and nationalist executions were held — each successful accordance with the Taliban’s harsh mentation of Islamic rule.

This time, the Taliban are holding talks with Afghan officials from erstwhile governments connected a governmental modulation and accidental they volition reconstruct bid and information aft decades of war. Afghan officials acquainted with the talks accidental the Taliban person said they volition not denote a authorities until aft the Aug. 31 deadline for the U.S. unit withdrawal.

But they already look stirrings of resistance.

In Baghlan province, immoderate 120 kilometers (75 miles) northbound of Kabul, fighters calling themselves the “People’s Uprising” claimed to person seized 3 districts successful the Andarab Valley, nestled successful the towering Hindu Kush mountains.

Khair Mohammad Khairkhwa, the erstwhile provincial caput of intelligence, and Abdul Ahmad Dadgar, different person successful the uprising, said Taliban fighters had burned down homes and kidnapped children. Two different officials, who spoke connected information of anonymity, made akin allegations. The Taliban did not instantly respond to a petition for comment.

In the adjacent Panjshir state — the lone 1 yet to autumn nether Taliban power — a radical of militia leaders and officials from the ousted authorities person pledged to support it against the Taliban, who circulated video showing their fighters heading toward the region.

The state is simply a stronghold of the Northern Alliance fighters who joined with the U.S. to topple the Taliban successful 2001, and Ahmad Massoud, the lad of a celebrated Northern Alliance commandant assassinated days earlier the 9/11 attacks, has appeared successful videos from there.

But it appears improbable a fewer 1000 guerrilla fighters volition soon win wherever the Afghan nationalist information forces failed contempt 20 years of Western aid, assistance and training.

“If Taliban warlords motorboat an assault, they volition of people look staunch absorption from us,” Massoud said successful an interrogation with the Al-Arabiya quality network. But helium besides expressed openness to dialog with the Taliban.

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Akhgar reported from Istanbul and Gambrell from Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Associated Press writers Joseph Krauss successful Jerusalem, Robert Burns successful Washington, Amir Vahdat successful Tehran, Iran, and Lolita C. Baldor successful Washington contributed.

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Afghanistan coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/afghanistan