The following is the latest development of the chaotic evacuation of Western citizens and local allies from Kabul Airport after the Taliban seized control of Afghanistan on August 15.
According to the German military, German and American troops engaged in a gun battle with “unidentified attackers” at Kabul Airport on Monday morning, killing one Afghan guard and injuring three others.
These deaths are the most recent fleeing the country. At least 8 people were killed, some of them were crushed to death, and at least 1 person fell from a moving plane.
Since the Taliban entered Kabul, about 30,000 people have been evacuated to safety.
President Biden said on Sunday that he hopes not to extend the August 31 deadline to end the U.S. military presence and airlift in Afghanistan, but he added that negotiations are ongoing on this possibility.
The European Union and the United Kingdom have called for an extension of the deadline, and the United Kingdom said it will raise this issue at the G7 online meeting on Tuesday.
However, the Taliban warned on Monday that any delays will lead to “consequences.”
Taliban spokesperson Suhail Shaheen told Sky News that the United States’ stay after the agreed deadline would be an “extended occupation”.
On Monday, two flights carrying 226 people arrived at the Belgian Air Force Base outside Brussels, mainly Afghan employees of international missions and their families.
Many families with children with only hand luggage were taken to the bus, and under the escort of the police, they were taken to military bases for health checks and immigration processing.
Foreign Minister Sophie Wilmes said that Operation Red Kite had brought 400 people from Kabul Airport.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian and Defense Minister Florence Pali will travel to the UAE on Monday to visit a base near Abu Dhabi, where the French Air Force has been operating around the clock to support the evacuation.
Le Drian’s delegation stated that Le Drian and Pali will meet with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan of Abu Dhabi, who is the de facto leader of the UAE, to “thank you to the UAE authorities. support”.
So far, France has evacuated approximately 100 French citizens and more than 1,300 Afghans through Abu Dhabi.
According to the Ministry of Defense, the United Kingdom evacuated 5,725 people from Kabul within 10 days, including more than 3,100 Afghans.
Approximately 300 Afghans have landed in Spain, and a military base in the northeast is serving as a reception center for Afghans working in the European Union arriving from Kabul.
The armed forces said on Twitter that Germany has helped nearly 3,000 people to flee Afghanistan, with at least 38 ethnic groups among the evacuees.
infogram: How many people have been evacuated from Afghanistan so far?
Denmark said that more than 650 people have been airlifted, and an aircraft carrying 50 people took off on Sunday, and that the aircraft has ties to the Nordic country.
Sweden announced on Monday that more than 170 people have left Afghanistan, 68 of whom have worked closely with the Swedish Armed Forces and obtained residence permits.
The Swiss Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that Switzerland has evacuated about 100 people with connections to Switzerland, including local Afghan staff and their families.
The first Hungarian plane to participate in the rescue operation landed in Budapest on Sunday night with 173 people on board, bringing the total number of people evacuated from the country close to 200.
20 people were evacuated in Bulgaria, more than 45 people in Romania and 8 people in Austria.
