Distressing videos of hundreds of Afghan people desperately trying to get out of Kabul amid Taliban takeover have surfaced all over social media. Dramatic clips shared online shows hundreds of men running alongside a US plane as it rolls down the runway, with some clinging to the side of it.
In other footages, civilians frantically clamber up an already overcrowded and buckling set of airstairs.
Crowds watched on, as those who successfully climbed the stairs helped others up, while some hung from the stair railings by their hands.
Recently, a shocking video in which three people who had clung to the underbelly of a US plane falling down from the plane has gone viral.
It appears that frantic Afghans were clinging on to either the undercarriage of the C-17 Globemaster or the landing gear of the transport plane when they got flung out due to the huge G-force exerted during take-off.
"Locals near Kabul airport claim that three young men who were holding themselves tightly on to the tires of an airplane fell on top of people's houses. One of the locals confirmed this and said that the fall of these people made a loud and terrifying noise," tweeted Asvaka News Agency.
The scenes at the airport were reminiscent of the chaos that enveloped Washington's earlier bungled escape from Vietnam in 1975, even as US Secretary of State Antony Blinken rejected the comparison.
Earlier today, at least three people were killed Monday following gunfire at the passenger terminal of Kabul's international airport.
The incident happened after thousands of Afghans gathered at the Kabul airport to seek an evacuation flight amid Taliban's takeover of the country.
Witnesses reported seeing the prone, bloodied bodies lying on the ground just outside the terminal building.
The airport resembled a chaotic bus station as hundreds of people jostled, pushed and shoved to get on to a waiting plane.
Meanwhile, the US military has taken over the security at the Kabul airport to execute the massive airlift of diplomat presence in Afghanistan following the Taliban's takeover of the capital city, The Wall Street Journal reported.
On Sunday the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on informed that the President has sent additional forces to ensure an orderly and safe evacuation of the US diplomatic presence in Kabul.
In other recent development, over 60 countries including the US, United Kingdom, Japan, Germany and Canada on Sunday (local time) urged "all parties" to safeguard the departure of foreign nationals and Afghans who wish to leave the war-torn country, and said that roads, airports and border crossing must remain open.
Afghanistan government has collapsed with President Ashraf Ghani leaving the country and the Taliban's entry into the capital.
Taliban leaders are seeking to portray a moderate stance, with a spokesman telling the Associated Press they want to form an “open, inclusive Islamic government.”
At the same time, the group is talking about declaring a new “Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan” and there are reports it is already curtailing the rights of women. It remains unclear what if any power-sharing arrangements might follow with the remnants of the government of President Ghani.
