No fewer than five people were confirmed dead as a result of chaos at Kabul airport yesterday as hundreds of people tried to forcibly board evacuation flights meant for embassy workers.
This followed the invasion of Kabul by Taliban fighters on Sunday. Ashraf Gani, Afghanistan president, had fled the country as fighters entered the presidential palace.
In the ensuing chaos, thousands of Afghans headed for the airport in the hope of catching a flight out of the country.
But Afghanistan’s civil aviation authority announced a temporary cancellation of flights from the capital city of Kabul, leaving thousands of people stranded and many crowded on the tarmac.
The aviation authority had warned that the massive rush of passengers to the airport in the chaotic situation could lead to looting and disorderly conduct.
In 2001, U.S-led forces removed the Taliban from power, but the group has returned, asking to take over the central government.
On August 6, they took control of Zaranj, the regional capital, and have, in the past few weeks, claimed over 20 of Afghanistan’s 34 provincial capitals.
