US troops fired shots into the air and all commercial flights were cancelled at Kabul airport Monday as thousands of Afghans flooded the tarmac in the hope of catching any flight out after the weekend Taliban takeover.
Footage showed chaos on the runway, with civilians frantically clambering up an already overcrowded and buckling set of airstairs.
It was a desperate bid to board a parked passenger plane and escape the city a day after the government’s collapse.
Panicked families could be seen with overpacked luggage and frightened children while trying to flee Kabul.
READ ALSO: President Of Afghanistan Flees As Taliban Enter Capital City
As a crowd of hundreds watched on, those who successfully climbed the stairs helped others up, while some hung from the stair railings by their hands.
The situation caused such a commotion that the US troops while trying to restore order fired into the air and commercial flights were cancelled.
“I feel very scared here. They are firing lots of shots into the air,” the witness said, asking not to be named in case it jeopardised his chances of leaving.
The US State Department said American troops had secured the perimeter of the airport as they evacuate embassy employees and thousands of Afghans who worked for Washington’s interests since they toppled the Taliban in the wake of the September 11 attacks.
BizWatch Nigeria recalls that the President of Afghanistan, Ashraf Ghani fled on Sunday, effectively ceding power to the Taliban, who have entered the capital Kabul to seal a nationwide military victory in just 10 days.
