3 yıl önce

US ramps up Kabul evacuation, says Taliban promised 'safe passage'

Some 3,200 people have been evacuated by the US military so far, including 1,100 on Tuesday alone as Washington aims to complete the airlift of its citizens and Afghans granted refugee visas before its August 31 withdrawal deadline.

Reuters

British citizens and dual nationals residing in Afghanistan board a military plane for evacuation from Kabul airport, Afghanistan on August 16, 2021.

The White House said the Taliban had promised that civilians could travel safely to the Kabul airport as the US military stepped up its airlift for Americans and Afghans fleeing the country.

Some 3,200 people have been evacuated by the US military so far, a White House official said, including 1,100 on Tuesday alone - US citizens, permanent residents and their families on 13 flights.

Earlier Tuesday, the White House had said that 11,000 US nationals remain inside the country, including diplomats, contractors and others, most waiting to be evacuated after the Taliban takeover.

Washington wants to complete the exodus before its August 31 withdrawal deadline, and thousands of US soldiers were at the airport as the Pentagon planned to ramp up flights of its huge C-17 transport jets to as many as two dozen a day.

"Now that we have established the flow, we expect those numbers to escalate," said the White House official who gave the updated evacuation figures on Tuesday and who spoke on condition of anonymity.

US officials said they were in contact with Taliban commanders to ensure the flight operations at Hamid Karzai International Airport remained safe from attack and that citizens and Afghans seeking to leave had safe passage.

"We have had no hostile interactions, no attack and no threat by the Taliban," said Major General Hank Taylor said at the Pentagon.

But State Department spokesman Ned Price said on Tuesday that the United States could decide to keep its core diplomatic presence, now operating out of the airport after the US embassy was shuttered, after August 31.

"If it is safe and responsible for us to potentially stay longer, that is something we may be able to look at," Price said.

He also called on the Taliban to follow through on promises to respect the rights of citizens including women.

Also being airlifted are Afghans granted US refugee visas, mostly for having worked as translators for American and NATO forces, other foreign nationals, and other unspecified "at risk" Afghans.

'Safe passage'

Despite some reports that people are being harassed and even beaten as they try to leave, White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said "large numbers" had been able to reach the airport.

"The Taliban have informed us they are prepared to provide the safe passage of civilians to the airport, and we intend to hold them to that commitment," he told reporters.

The US Department of Defense has poured troops into the airport since Saturday to protect the exodus as the Taliban insurgents entered Kabul after a lightning siege across the country and seized power.

Taylor said the number of US troops would rise from 2,500 on Monday to around 4,000 by late on Tuesday.

He said the United States aimed to increase its airlift to one plane an hour so that between 5,000 and 9,000 passengers could be carried out per day.

Some other countries, including Germany and France, have also been able to pick up their nationals and Afghans qualified to travel to those countries.

Evacuations continue

Britain on Tuesday announced a resettlement scheme for Afghans fleeing the Taliban after their return to power, offering an initial 5,000 places in the first year, rising to up to 20,000 in the long term.

Some 900 British troops have been sent back to the Afghan capital to help repatriate thousands of UK nationals, including embassy staff, following the Taliban's return.

London said priority would be given to those most at risk, including Afghan women, children and others forced to flee or facing threats and persecution from the hardliners, offering them a chance to remain in Britain indefinitely.

The first Lufthansa plane carrying evacuees from Afghanistan landed in Frankfurt early on Wednesday with about 130 people aboard, the airline said.

The Airbus A340 picked up passengers who had been taken by Bundeswehr flights from the Afghan capital of Kabul to the Uzbek capital of Tashkent.

As part of an airlift effort in coordination with the German government, further special flights from Tashkent, Doha or other neighbouring nations in the next few days will evacuate more people from Afghanistan.

Meanwhile, Australia's Prime Minister Scott Morrison said its first rescue flight flew 26 people out of Afghanistan on Wednesday, after Australian troops arrived to help with the evacuation from Kabul airport that has been secured by US and British colleagues.

Airport chaos

Security broke down at the airport on Sunday, with videos showing hundreds of Afghans running next to a C-17, some clinging to it.

Videos appeared to show two people falling to their deaths from one aircraft after it took off. Another person was later found dead in a wheel well.

US Air Force spokeswoman Ann Stefanek said they were investigating the incidents.

"Before the air crew could offload the cargo, the aircraft was surrounded by hundreds of Afghan civilians," she said.

"Faced with a rapidly deteriorating security situation around the aircraft, the C-17 crew decided to depart the airfield as quickly as possible."