- Title: U.S. military planes land and take off from Kabul airport
- Date: 23rd August 2021
- Summary: KABUL, AFGHANISTAN (AUGUST 23, 2021) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF U.S. MILITARY AIRCRAFT TAKING OFF AND LANDING FROM KABUL AIRPORT / VIEWS OF CITY FROM HILLTOP AIRCRAFT IN FLIGHT ROOFTOPS WITH PLANES ON TARMAC IN BACKGROUND KABUL ROOFTOPS WITH BLACK SMOKE RISING IN DISTANCE KABUL ROOFTOPS AIRCRAFT IN FLIGHT KABUL ROOFTOPS AFGHANS SITTING NEAR BARRIER WALL AT KABUL AIRPORT VARIOUS OF AFGHANS GATHERED NEAR KABUL AIRPORT WALL VARIOUS DRIVING SHOTS FROM CAR TRAVELLING NEAR KABUL AIRPORT
- Embargoed: 6th September 2021 18:04
- Keywords: Afghanistan Kabul U.S. troops airplane views airport
- Location: KABUL, AFGHANISTAN
- City: KABUL, AFGHANISTAN
- Country: Afghanistan
- Topics: Asia / Pacific,Crime/Law/Justice
- Reuters ID: LVA001ERI1CNB
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: American military planes took off and landed at Kabul airport on Monday (August 23) as thousands of desperate Afghans and foreigners wait with hopes of fleeing Afghanistan's new Taliban rulers.
U.S. President Joe Biden on Sunday (August 22) warned that the evacuation was going to be "hard and painful" and said a lot could still go wrong. U.S. troops might stay beyond their August 31 deadline to oversee the evacuation, he said.
That concern was underlined on Monday morning when a firefight erupted at the airport between Afghan guards and unidentified gunmen.
German and U.S. forces were also involved, the Germany military said.
The security situation around Kabul airport has become increasingly dangerous, a senior Canadian government official told reporters.
The Taliban seized power just over a week ago as the United States and its allies were withdrawing troops after a 20-year war launched in the weeks after the September 11 attacks in 2001.
Panicked Afghans and foreigners have flocked to the airport since the Taliban entered Kabul on August 15, clamouring to catch a flight out.
Many fear reprisals and a return to a harsh version of Islamic law that the Taliban enforced while in power from 1996 to 2001.
(Production: Michael Fiorentino) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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