At least 20 killed in twin suicide blasts near Kabul airport; IS hand suspected
KABUL: Two suicide bombers and gunmen targeted crowds massing near the Kabul airport on Thursday, in the waning days of a massive airlift that has drawn thousands of people seeking to flee the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan. At least 20 people, including children, were killed and several wounded, officials said.
The death toll could be as high as 20, a spokesman for the Taliban said. “Our initial information shows between 13 and 20 killed and 52 wounded,” chief spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said. A surgical hospital run by an Italian charity said it was treating more than 60 wounded. A US official said the complex attack was “definitely believed” to have been carried out by the Islamic State group. However, several media reports said 40 people were killed, but the numbers couldn’t be confirmed.
The Russian Foreign Ministry had initially said 13 people died and 15 were wounded. Pentagon spokesman John Kirby also confirmed the blasts, saying one was near an airport entrance and another was a short distance away by a hotel. Several Marines were killed and a number of other American military were wounded, a US official said. It was not clear if those deaths were included in the Russian toll.
Even as the area was hit, the official said evacuation flights continued to take off from Kabul airport, which Western governments earlier warned was a target. One explosion went off in a crowd of people waiting to enter the airport, according to Adam Khan, an Afghan waiting nearby. He said several people appeared to have been killed or wounded, including some who lost body parts. Already, some countries have ended their evacuations and begun to withdraw their soldiers and diplomats, signalling the beginning of the end of one of history’s largest airlifts. The Taliban have pledged not to attack Western forces during the evacuation, but insist the foreign troops must be out by America’s self-imposed deadline of August 31.
The government is committed to “full evacuation” of Indians from Afghanistan, where the situation is “critical”, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Thursday after briefing the leaders during the all-party meet on the Afghan situation.
Asked about the government’s approach towards Taliban, he told reporters that the situation in Afghanistan has not settled down. “You will have to keep patience: Let the situation settle down.”
Besides Jaishankar, Union minister and Leader of the House in Rajya Sabha Piyush Goyal and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi were also present during the briefing on the latest situation in Afghanistan after the Taliban captured power there last week.
As per the evacuation data shared among the participants at the meet, the government has evacuated --175 Embassy Personnel, 263 other Indian Nationals, 112 Afghan Nationals including Hindus
and Sikhs, 15 third country nationals and the total figure stood at 565. The document also said the government also facilitated evacuation of Indians by other agencies. NCP leader Sharad Pawar, Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge, Leader of Congress party in Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, DMK’s TR Baalu, former prime minister H D Deve Gowda, Apna Dal’s Anupriya Patel are among those attending the meet.
Jaishankar said,” on this (Afghanistan) matter all political parties have similar views, we approached the issue with spirit of national unity.”
Meanwhile, in Leh, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla said on Thursday the armed forces would not let political turmoil in any other country affect India.