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A30 world news
Diabierna 27 augustus 2021

Attack in Afghanistan kills at least 22, including US troops

Afghanistan, along with the crowds. After the attack, he
group’s rescued animals. appeared to shirk blame, not- “The reality on the ground is
ing the airport is controlled the perimeter of the airport
He is among thousands try- by U.S. troops. is closed. The Taliban have
ing to flee. Over the last tightened the noose. It’s very,
week, the airport has been Before the blast, the Taliban very difficult for anybody to
the scene of some of the most sprayed a water cannon at get through at this point,”
searing images of the chaotic those gathered at one airport Canadian General Wayne
end of America’s longest war gate to try to drive the crowd Eyre, the country’s acting
and the Taliban’s takeover, as away, as someone launched Chief of Defense Staff, said
flight after flight took off car- tear gas canisters elsewhere. ahead of the attack.
rying those who fear a return
to the militants’ brutal rule. Nadia Sadat, a 27-year-old Lt. Col. Georges Eiden, Lux-
When the Taliban were last in Afghan, carried her 2-year- embourg’s army representa-
power, they confined women old daughter with her outside tive in neighboring Pakistan,
largely to their home and the airport. She and her hus- said that Friday would mark
widely imposed draconian band, who had worked with the official end for U.S. al-
(AP) — Two suicide restrictions. coalition forces, missed a call lies. But two Biden admin-
bombers and gunmen at- “Surgeons will be working from a number they believed istration officials denied that
tacked crowds of Afghans into the night,” said Marco Already, some countries have was the State Department was the case.
flocking to Kabul’s airport Puntin, the charity’s manager ended their evacuations and and were trying to get into
Thursday, transforming a in Afghanistan. The wound- begun to withdraw their the airport without any luck. A third official said that the
scene of desperation into ed overflowed the triage zone soldiers and diplomats, sig- Her husband had pressed U.S. worked with its allies
one of horror in the wan- into the physiotherapy area naling the beginning of the ahead in the crowd to try to to coordinate each country’s
ing days of an airlift for and more beds were being end of one of history’s larg- get them inside. departure, and some nations
those fleeing the Taliban added, he said. est airlifts. The Taliban have asked for more time and were
takeover. At least 22 peo- insisted foreign troops must “We have to find a way to granted it.
ple were killed and dozens Pentagon spokesman John be out by America’s self-im- evacuate because our lives are
wounded. Kirby said there were casual- posed deadline of Aug. 31 — in danger,” Sadat said. “My “Most depart later in the
ties, including among mem- and the evacuations must end husband received several week,” he said, while adding
The dead include 11 Marines bers of the military, but gave then, too. threatening messages from that some were stopping op-
and one Navy medic, ac- no figure. He said one ex- unknown sources. We have erations Thursday. All three
cording to two U.S. officials. plosion was near an airport In Washington, U.S. Presi- no chance except escaping.” officials spoke on condition
They said another 12 service entrance and another was a dent Joe Biden spent much of anonymity because they
members were wounded and short distance away by a ho- of the morning in the se- Aman Karimi, 50, escorted were not authorized to dis-
warned the toll could grow. tel. cure White House Situation his daughter and her fam- cuss the information publicly.
Room where he was briefed ily to the airport, fearful the
One of the bombers struck Even as the area was hit, on the explosions and con- Taliban would target her be- Danish Defense Minis-
people standing knee-deep evacuation flights continued ferred with his national se- cause of her husband’s work ter Trine Bramsen bluntly
in a wastewater canal under to take off from Kabul air- curity team and commanders with NATO. warned earlier: “It is no lon-
the sweltering sun, throwing port. on the ground in Kabul. ger safe to fly in or out of Ka-
bodies into the fetid water. “The Taliban have already bul.”
Those who moments earlier Adam Khan was waiting Overnight, warnings begun seeking those who
had hoped to get on flights nearby when he saw the first emerged from Western capi- have worked with NATO,” Denmark’s last flight has al-
out could be seen carrying explosion outside what’s tals about a threat from IS, he said. “They are looking ready departed, and Poland
the wounded to ambulances known as the Abbey gate. which has seen its ranks for them house-by-house at and Belgium have also an-
in a daze, their own clothes He said several people ap- boosted by the Taliban’s free- night.” nounced the end of their
darkened with blood. peared to have been killed ing of prisoners during its ad- evacuations. The Dutch gov-
or wounded, including some vance through Afghanistan. The Sunni extremists of ernment said it had been told
A U.S. official said the com- who were maimed. IS, with links to the group’s by the U.S. to leave Thurs-
plex attack was believed to Shortly before the attack, the more well-known affiliate in day.
have been carried out by the The second blast was at or acting U.S. ambassador to Syria and Iraq, have carried
Islamic State group. The IS near Baron Hotel, where Kabul, Ross Wilson, said the out a series of brutal attacks, But Kirby, the Pentagon
affiliate in Afghanistan is far many people, including Af- security threat at the Kabul mainly targeting Afghani- spokesman, said some planes
more radical than the Tal- ghans, Britons and Ameri- airport overnight was “clearly stan’s Shiite Muslim minori- would continue to fly.
iban, who recently took con- cans, were told to gather in regarded as credible, as im- ty, including a 2020 assault on
trol of the country in a light- recent days before heading to minent, as compelling.” But a maternity hospital in Kabul “Evacuation operations in
ning blitz and condemned the airport for evacuation. in an interview with ABC in which they killed women Kabul will not be wrapping
the attack. News, he would not give de- and infants. up in 36 hours. We will con-
A former Royal Marine who tails. tinue to evacuate as many
Western officials had warned runs an animal shelter in Af- The Taliban have fought people as we can until the
of a major attack, urging peo- ghanistan says he and his staff Late Wednesday, the U.S. against Islamic State militants end of the mission,” he said
ple to leave the airport, but were caught up in the after- Embassy warned citizens at in Afghanistan, where the in a tweet.
that advice went largely un- math of the blast near the air- three airport gates to leave Taliban have wrested back
heeded by Afghans desperate port. immediately due to an un- control nearly 20 years after The Taliban have said they’ll
to escape the country in the specified security threat. they were ousted in a U.S.- allow Afghans to leave via
last few days of an American- “All of a sudden we heard Australia, Britain and New led invasion. The Americans commercial flights after the
led evacuation before the gunshots and our vehicle Zealand also advised their went in following the 9/11 deadline next week, but it re-
U.S. officially ends its 20- was targeted, had our driver citizens Thursday not to go attacks, which al-Qaida or- mains unclear which airlines
year presence on Aug. 31. not turned around he would to the airport. chestrated while being shel- would return to an airport
have been shot in the head by tered by the group. controlled by the militants.
Emergency, an Italian charity a man with an AK-47,” Paul Taliban spokesman Zabihul- Turkish presidential spokes-
that operates hospitals in Af- “Pen” Farthing told Britain’s lah Mujahid denied that any Amid the warnings and the man Ibrahim Kalin said talks
ghanistan, said it had received Press Association news agen- attack was imminent at the pending American with- were underway between
at least 60 patients wounded cy. airport, where the group’s drawal, Canada ended its his country and the Taliban
in the airport attack, in ad- fighters have deployed and evacuations, and European about allowing Turkish civil-
dition to 10 who were dead Farthing is trying to get staff occasionally used heavy- nations halted or prepared to ian experts to help run the
when they arrived. of his Nowzad charity out of handed tactics to control the stop their own operations. facility.