Seizure of power in Afghanistan: chaos at Kabul airport

Conditions are chaotic at the airport in the Afghan capital, Kabul. Civilians tried desperately to get into one of the passenger planes, eyewitnesses report deaths.

After the Taliban marched into the Afghan capital Kabul, thousands of people tried to get a place on an evacuation flight that morning. US soldiers assigned to secure the airport fired shots into the air to prevent people from blocking the runway.

The crowd of Afghans seeking help also reached the airport runway. “I’m very scared. You fire a lot of shots in the air,” a witness told the AFP news agency. “I saw a young girl run over and killed,” he said.

Desperate run on machines

Dramatic footage posted on online platforms showed desperate civilians climbing an already crowded and twisted staircase to board a parked passenger plane. Some of them hung their hands on the banister.

Eyewitnesses at Kabul airport report that at least five people were killed in the chaotic conditions there. An eyewitness said five bodies were carried to a cart. Another witness said it was unclear whether they died in the mass panic or whether they were shot.

Many of the people were attracted by rumors or hoaxes on the net. “I read on Facebook that Canada is accepting asylum applications from Afghanistan,” said a man who claims to be a soldier in the Afghan army. He was therefore in danger: “The Taliban are definitely after me,” he said.

Commercial traffic discontinued

Meanwhile, the airport administration stopped commercial air traffic. “There will be no commercial flights from Hamid Karzai Airport to prevent looting and devastation. Please do not go to the airport,” a statement sent to journalists said. The US embassy in Kabul also called on US nationals and Afghans on Twitter not to “travel to the airport”.

Several airlines avoid the airspace over Afghanistan, including the Lufthansa Group with all associated airlines.

The US armed forces had previously taken over air traffic control at Kabul airport. They would be supported by Afghan aid workers, said the spokesman for the US Department of Defense, John Kirby.

More than 60 countries issued a joint statement calling for Afghans and other citizens who want to leave the country to be allowed to leave. Airports and border crossings should also remain open.

The demand was signed by the USA, Germany, Great Britain, France, Canada, Japan, Italy, South Korea, Australia and Qatar, among others. The rulers in Afghanistan are responsible for protecting human life and property and for the immediate restoration of security and civil order.

UN Security Council meets

After the invasion of the Taliban, UN Secretary General António Guterres called on the Islamists to exercise restraint. He is particularly concerned about the future of women and girls in Afghanistan, “whose hard-won rights must be protected,” said Guterres. He called on the Taliban and everyone else involved to “exercise extreme restraint” and allow humanitarian workers unhindered access to the people.

The UN Security Council meets in the afternoon to discuss the situation in Afghanistan. The meeting had been requested by Estonia and Norway. The United Nations are still trying to contribute to a “peaceful solution to the conflict,” said Guterres.