Explosions near Kabul airport: what is known

Ground Report | New Delhi: Explosions near Kabul airport; Two explosions took place on Thursday evening in Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan. The first blast took place outside the AB gate of the international airport, while the second one took place at or near the Baron Hotel, a short distance from the AB gate.

Explosions near Kabul airport

At least 13 people are reported to have died in the first blast. At the same time, the casualties of the second blast are yet to be confirmed. Both explosions were confirmed by Pentagon spokesman John Kirby. At the same time, Kirby also told that American people have died in the blast at the airport.

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Initially, it was reported that there was only one explosion, but later the Turkish Ministry of Defense clarified the information, reporting two terrorist attacks.

As local media outlets clarified, now the United States continues to evacuate those wishing to leave Afghanistan from Kabul. In addition, the Kandahar airport is involved. At the time of publication, 88 thousand people were removed from the country, according to the Pentagon. People are leaving Afghanistan after the Taliban have seized power in the country.

Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu ordered the evacuation of citizens of the CSTO member states from Afghanistan. In total, they managed to take out about 500 people.

Taliban political office

The situation in Afghanistan escalated in early August when the Taliban launched an offensive across the country.

On August 15, they entered Kabul and took control of the presidential palace. Afghan President Ashraf Ghani left the country too, he said, "prevent the massacre."

On the night of August 16, a representative of the Taliban political office, Mohammad Naim, said that the war in Afghanistan was over, and the form of government in the state would become clear in the near future.

ALSO READ: Kabul airport blast: 13 killed, including children

Several countries, including the United States, Britain, and Germany, organized the evacuation of their citizens and Afghans working for foreign missions through the only airport in Kabul. At the same time, the militants warned that the evacuation should be completed by August 31, since it will be banned from September 1.

On the eve of Ukraine's Deputy Foreign Minister Yevgeniy Yenin said that the plane intended for the export of Ukrainians from Afghanistan was seized by unknown persons and other passengers were taken on it to Iran.

However, after that, the department itself denied this message, specifying that the Deputy Foreign Minister generally spoke about the difficulties that diplomats had to face in order to evacuate Ukrainians. The plane landed in the Ukrainian capital on Tuesday.

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