On Monday, desperate scenes played out at Kabul's international airport as thousands rushed to exit Afghanistan after Taliban leaders took control of the capital, with reports saying five people were killed.
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Afghans crowd at the tarmac of the Kabul airport on August 16, 2021, to flee the country as the Taliban were in control of Afghanistan after President Ashraf Ghani fled the country and conceded the insurgents had won the 20-year war.
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The US military has temporarily suspended air operations at Kabul airport on Monday as its troops attempted to clear Afghans who flooded onto the airfield, which resembled a chaotic bus station as hundreds of people jostled, pushed and shoved to get on to planes in a bid to flee the country. Above, a man pulls a girl to get inside Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul.
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Afghan people climb atop a plane as they wait at the Kabul airport in Kabul on August 16, 2021, after a stunningly swift end to Afghanistan's 20-year war, as thousands of people mobbed the city's airport trying to flee the Taliban rule.
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Young Afghan nationals run beside the US Air Force plane in Kabul.
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While flights at the Kabul airport are closed off to civilian aviation, evacuation flights are still being able to take off, data tracking shows. Above, people move towards the Kabul airport to leave Kabul.
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Afghans and travelers pass through checkpoints at the Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul. At least three people were killed by gunfire Monday morning at the passenger terminal of Hamid Karzai International Airport.
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Afghan people sit along the tarmac as they wait to leave the Kabul airport in Kabul.
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The U.S. announced late Sunday in Washington it was taking steps to secure the airport as it looked to evacuate thousands of American citizens, as well as locally employed staff and their families.
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Women with their children try to get inside Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul.
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With all the land border crossing now under the control of the rebel group, the airport is the last remaining exit point out of the country.
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People try to get into Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul.
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A member of Taliban (C) stands outside Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul.
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People climb atop a plane as they wait at the Kabul airport in Kabul.
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But as panicked visuals from the airport show, there are fears that the option may also close soon. Videos circulating on social media showed hundreds of people swarming the tarmac in an attempt to get on planes.
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Top Taliban leaders, meanwhile, declared victory. The militant group took over the presidential palace Sunday shortly after American-backed President Ashraf Ghani fled the country and said it plans to announce a new "Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan."
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Passengers walk to the departures terminal of Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul.
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"We have never expected to reach such a victory - we should show humbleness in front of Allah," the Taliban's deputy leader, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, said in a video message congratulating his fighters and the nation on Twitter Monday. "Now is the time when we will be tested on how we serve and secure our people, and ensure their good life and future to the best of our ability."
Image Credit: JAWAD SUKHANYAR via REUTERS
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The speed of the Afghan government's collapse shocked NATO allies and prompted condemnation from both sides of the U.S. political divide over how President Joe Biden's administration appeared to be blindsided by the Taliban's easy advance.
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Afghans crowd at the airport as US soldiers stand guard in Kabul on August 16, 2021.
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Dozens of countries issued a joint statement Monday calling "those in positions of power and authority across Afghanistan" to allow Afghans and foreigners to depart safely if they wish, to keep borders open and maintain calm.
Image Credit: AFP
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