[ad_1]
Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said that even if the evacuation resumes, the airport will face a “concrete and credible” threat.
Sources told Al Jazeera that after the suicide bombing attached to the Islamic State killed at least 175 Taliban, the US military helped evacuate Afghans desperate to escape Taliban rule on Saturday to prevent further attacks. Thirteen American soldiers were killed in the attack outside the Kabul airport.
Late Friday, the US Embassy issued a warning to Americans staying in Afghanistan on the grounds of security threats to avoid going to Hamid Karzai International Airport.
Earlier, Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said on Friday that the United States believes that the airport still has a “concrete and credible” threat.
At the same time, Al Jazeera’s Charles Stratford reported from Kabul that evacuation work had resumed.
“We have seen multiple planes taking off. Since yesterday, the number of people around the airport has increased dramatically,” he said.
The Islamic State (ISIS) branch in Afghanistan, the Islamic State ISKP (ISIS-K) in Khorasan Province, claimed Thursday’s attack.
US President Joe Biden promised to retaliate against the Kabul attack and confirmed that the explosion was carried out by ISKP. “We will hunt you down and make you pay the price. I will do my best to protect our interests and our people,” he said.
The following are the latest updates:
U.S. Embassy in Kabul warns Americans to avoid airport
The U.S. Embassy said in a statement on its website that Americans should avoid going to Kabul Airport due to security threats, and personnel from the monastery, east gate, north gate or the interior department should leave immediately.
U.S. says 4,200 people evacuated within 12 hours
The United States said that after a deadly suicide attack near Kabul Airport on Thursday, about 4,200 people had been evacuated within 12 hours on Friday.
The White House said in a statement: “Since August 14, the United States has evacuated and assisted in the evacuation of approximately 109,200 people.” “Since the end of July, we have resettled approximately 114,800 people.”
France ends its evacuation
The French government minister announced on Friday night that France has ended its evacuation in Kabul, citing the “security situation” and the imminent withdrawal of US troops at the end of this month.
“French evacuated nearly 3,000 people under exceptionally difficult circumstances,” said Defense Minister Florence Pali and Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian in a joint statement.
The ministers added that Paris will continue to help the Afghan people “in every possible way.” They stated that they will work with Taliban officials to ensure that they leave the country unhindered after August 31.
[ad_2]
Source link