The vast numbers of people trying to leave Afghanistan since the Taliban took over Kabul can now be seen from space. The Talibans have control of access to the airport
Masses of people desperately trying to leave Kabul airport have created traffic jams which are so big that they can even be seen from space.
The sudden fall of the Afghan capital last Sunday sparked chaos with opponents of the Taliban seeking to leave the country.
Vehicles can be seen queuing up outside Hamid Karzai International Airport, as the US army seeks to evacuate people, in images by Planet Labs.
There are estimated to be around 50,000 people outside the entrances to the airport with the Taliban controlling the way into the airport.
The Talibans have reportedly put up a steel barrier around the airport preventing anyone without a foreign passport from entering, while there are also fears among Westerners that they could be taken hostage and used as bargaining tools in future negotiations.
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Image:
via REUTERS)
Paul Farthing, former marine who is stranded in Kabul said how Brits are being denied entry to the airport.
He tweeted: “It is still a crush of desperate people at Kabul airport, ex-pats still being turned away. Somebody get a grip. Boris Johnson, Dominic Raab, Joe Biden. You created this disaster.”
Planes are now also leaving with few people on board as travellers struggle to get past the security.
So far the UK has taken out 1,000 people of the 7,000 that the government has said need to be evacuated.
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Image:
MARCUS YAM/LOS ANGELES TIMES/REX/Shutterstock)
A Dutch flight left without a single citizen from the Netherlands on board it is claimed.
“The Americans were guarding the gate. I showed my passport and said I was Dutch,” a man reportedly told outlet NOS.
“After saying three times that I was Dutch, he told me to keep my distance otherwise he would shoot.”
Dutch Foreign Minister Sigrid Kaag said that the US army only gave the plane 30 minutes to wait before it had to leave.
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Image:
via REUTERS)
But another Dutch plane did take off on Wednesday with 35 nationals, the Netherlands defence ministry tweeted.
But still there are planes heading across Europe that are less than half full with one German flight having just seven people on board.
The number of people able to flee on the flights are well below the thousands that Western countries have promised, with the US having said it would fly out 9,000 people a day.