Afghanistan: Kabul Chaos As Women ‘Throw Their Babies Over Razor Wire, Asking Soldiers To Take Them’
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Desperate evacuation efforts in Kabul have reportedly led to some women throwing ‘their babies over razor wire’ in a bid to have British soldiers take care of them.
A number of nations are taking part in the mission to safely remove their own citizens as well as vulnerable locals from Afghanistan after the Taliban took control of Kabul on Sunday, August 15, with planes full of evacuees helping to remove thousands of people in recent days.
The US has reportedly removed the majority of fleeing Afghans, having already taken more than 5,000 people as part of Washington’s pledge to evacuate 22,000 vulnerable Afghans and all of its 15,000 Americans, while the UK is aiming to remove approximately 1,000 people per day.
British soldiers assisting in the mission are residing inside the walls of the compound at Kabul airport, which is currently being controlled by the US, though the roads leading to the terminals are controlled by the Taliban.
The insurgents are making it difficult for people to reach the airport, especially those who do not have the right to travel, but residents’ desperation to escape means that families, often with young children, have risked their lives by attempting to evade gunfire and aggressive Taliban soldiers to reach the airport.
The two armies are separated only by a makeshift barricade, with soldiers reportedly forced to block the roads with cars and razor wire to stem the chaos, though one senior officer told Sky News the threatening wire does not compare with the determination of some residents.
He said memories of the blockade will live with some of his soldiers for the rest of their lives, explaining: ‘It was terrible, women were throwing their babies over the razor wire, asking the soldiers to take them, some got caught in the wire. I’m worried for my men, I’m counselling some, everyone cried last night.’
The officer explained there is a method in place for helping the evacuees, with soldiers checking passports and paperwork before directing people to the entry gate to be processed.
Without the right paperwork, soldiers are unfortunately forced to turn people away and send families back through the barbed wire.
The UK government has promised a new scheme that will see up to 20,000 Afghans offered a route to set up home in the UK, though only 5,000 people will be eligible for the scheme in the first year.
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Topics: News, Afghanistan, Airport, Evacuation, Kabul
