In Pics | Scenes of Kabul airport, Taliban in full control post-US withdrawal
The Taliban were in full control of Kabul's international airport on August 31, after the last U.S. plane left its runway, marking the end of America's longest war and leaving behind a now-quiet airfield and Afghans outside it still hoping to flee the militants' rule.
Associated Press
August 31, 2021 / 13:38 IST
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The Taliban were in full control of Kabul's international airport on August 31, after the last U.S. plane left its runway, marking the end of America's longest war and leaving behind a now-quiet airfield and Afghans outside it still hoping to flee the militants' rule. (Image: AP)
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The United States completed its withdrawal from Afghanistan late on August 30, closing a chapter in military history likely to be remembered for colossal failures, unfulfilled promises and a frantic final exit that cost the lives of more than 180 Afghans and 13 U.S. service members, some barely older than the war. (Image: AP)
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Vehicles carrying the Taliban raced back and forth along the Hamid Karzai International Airport's sole runway on the northern, military side of the airfield. Before dawn broke, heavily armed Taliban fighters walked through hangars, passing some of the seven CH-46 helicopters the State Department used in its evacuations before rendering them unflyable. (Image: AP)
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Taliban fighters draped their white flags over barriers at the airport as others guarded the civilian side of the airfield. (Image: AP)
Inside the terminal, several dozen suitcases and pieces of luggage were left strewn across the floor, apparently left behind in the chaos. Clothes and shoes also were scattered. A poster of Ahmad Shah Massoud, the famed anti-Taliban fighter, had been destroyed. (Image: AP)
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The airport had seen chaotic and deadly scenes since the Taliban blitzed across Afghanistan and took Kabul on Aug. 15. Thousands of Afghans besieged the airport, some falling to their death after desperately hanging onto the side of an American C-17 military cargo jet. Last week, an Islamic State suicide attack at an airport gate killed at least 169 Afghans and 13 U.S. service members. (Image: AP)
