Afghanistan: Firefight Between Western And Afghan Forces Breaks Out At Kabul Airport
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One Afghan guard was killed and three others have been injured after unidentified gunmen reportedly broke out into a violent shooting match at Kabul’s airport.
Shots were returned by Western security forces, Afghan guards and US and German forces as they attempted to disarm the unidentified shooters at the North Gate of Kabul airport in Afghanistan on the morning of August 23.
News of the fight was shared by the German military, who announced the death on Twitter. The force did not specify whether the Afghan person who died was one of the Taliban fighters deployed to guard the airport.
The fight comes amid ongoing chaos at Kabul airport, where thousands of Afghans have fled in an attempt to escape the country following the takeover of the Taliban last week.
Just yesterday, Taliban fighters beat back crowds at the airport as desperate residents caused a crush at the gates ahead of the approaching deadline for the withdrawal of foreign troops on August 31.
A senior legal adviser to the Taliban leadership told Reuters foreign forces in Afghanistan have not sought to extend the deadline to leave the country, NDTV reports, though prime minister Boris Johnson and G7 leaders are expected to plead with Biden to delay the US withdrawal in a virtual meeting of world leaders set to take place tomorrow, August 24.
Biden has acknowledged the situation in Afghanistan is rapidly changing, and in a White House briefing on Sunday he stressed that the evacuation was not going to be easy.
He said the efforts to evacuate thousands were going to be ‘hard and painful’ and would have been ‘no matter when it began’.
Biden added: ‘We have a long way to go and a lot could still go wrong.’
The president went on to say his hope is that US forces will not have to extend their stay in the country, but that there will likely be discussions regarding how much progress has been made in the coming days.
If you’d like to help those who’ve been affected by the recent devastating events unfolding in Afghanistan, you can make a donation to the UN Refugee Agency United Kingdom here.
Topics: News, Afghanistan, Airport, Joe Biden, Kabul
