TALIBAN fighters opened fire towards a panicking crowd including mums and dads clutching their crying children as thousands continue to surround Kabul airport after the fall of Afghanistan.
Shocking videos appear to show gunmen firing first into the air and then towards a crowd of people as the desperate efforts to escape the new terror regime continue.
One video appears to show a crowd people gathered around men in camouflage fatigues – understood to the Taliban's elite Badri 313 special forces unit – before the shooting begins.
Gunshots then ring out as the armed men attempt to disperse the crowd as the screaming families run for their lives.
And one woman can be seen clutching her crying daughter as the men point their guns at the crowds in background.
Another video shows hundreds of people cowering in a trench near the distinctive walls of the airport as gunfire rings out again and again.
One man can be heard speaking into a megaphone giving orders to the fearful people.
And in a third clip another group of armed men fire into the air as crowds scramble, including one man who is clutching a little girl.
The child screams and cries as the smoke rises, with gunmen seen standing on the walls of the airport overseeing the carnage.
Other footage showed babies and children being handed to soldiers manning security checkpoints at the airport in a desperate bid to get them out of Kabul.
And meanwhile further video showed US soldiers firing into the air and using tear gas to disperse the melee.
Many parents fear for their children's future should they have to live under the boot of thenew Taliban regime.
🔵 Read our Afghanistan live blog for the latest updates
It is the latest in the chilling scenes from the days of chaos at Kabul airport as Afghan people desperately try to escape and the West attempt to evacuate their citizens.
The airport has become the centre of the disruption around the city as thousands remain camped out, desperately hoping they may be able to catch a flight out of Afghanistan.
Unconfirmed reports on social media say several people have been killed as US forces and the Taliban – separated by an unofficial no-man's land – struggle to contain the desperate throngs of people.
I am desperate to leave, I have bad memories of their regime
"I am desperate to leave, I have bad memories of their regime," a 30-year-old who worked for a foreign NGO and tried but failed to reach Kabul airport said.
Another man added: "I went to the airport with my kids and family… the Taliban and Americans were shooting.
"Despite that (the shooting) people were moving forward just because they knew a situation worse than death awaited them outside the airport."
Many nations – including Britain – have already pledged to take refugees who wish to flee the return of the oppressive and brutal Taliban regime.
The hardline Islamists – who use a warped version of Sharia Law – ruled with an iron fist when they last controlled Afghanistan in the 90s.
And many do not wish to return to the days when women were executed for morality crimes, while petty crooks had body parts amputated, and music was banned.
Taliban forces managed to surge back into control of the country after the withdrawal of US forces – rampaging across the country in a matter of weeks.
Shocked onlookers in the West are now asking how could this happen as the Afghan government and army total collapsed in the face of the Taliban advance.
US President Joe Biden is baring the brunt of the blame, but is bullishly defending his decision – claiming this was the only option to extricate his country for a so-called "forever war".
Armed US fighter jets today flew over Kabul to ensure the ongoing security over the chaotic evacuation operation.
Meanwhile, it has been reported British and French special forces have been conducting daring gun runs to rescue trapped diplomats and officials hunkered down across Kabul.
Defiant protesters waved Afghan flags at scattered rallies Thursday to mark the country's independence anniversary, but many faced brutal crackdown from the Taliban.
Taliban leaders have repeatedly vowed not to take revenge against their opponents, while seeking to project an image of tolerance.
But reports of vicious reprisals and ruthless oppression are already emerging across Afghanistan.
The US have accused the Taliban of blocking Afghans access to Kabul airport – but have so far managed to airlift out 5,000 US citizens and Afghans.
Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid has said the new regime would be "positively different" from their 1996-2001 stint.
The United States ultimately led the invasion of Afghanistan to topple the Taliban because they continued to provide sanctuary for Al-Qaeda after the September 11 attacks.
The Taliban have continued to edge towards establishing a government, with co-founder Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar returning from exile and other senior figures meeting ex-president Hamid Karzai and other former government officials.
Timeline of Taliban victory
THE Taliban surged to victory quicker than anyone expected…
April 14 – President Joe Biden announces US troops will withdraw from Afghanistan starting on May 1 and ending on September 11.
May 4 – Taliban fighters launch a major offensive on Afghan forces in southern Helmand and at least six other provinces.
June 7 – Government officials say fighting is raging in 26 of the country's 34 provinces.
June 22 – Taliban fighters launch a series of attacks in the north of the country, far from their traditional strongholds in the south.
July 2 – American troops quietly pull out of their main military base in Afghanistan – Bagram Air Base, ending US involvement in the war.
July 21 – Taliban insurgents control about a half of the country's districts, according to the senior US general, underlining the scale and speed of their advance.
July 25 – US vows to continue to support Afghan troops "in the coming weeks" with intensified airstrikes to help them counter Taliban attacks.
July 26 – The United Nations says nearly 2,400 Afghan civilians were killed or wounded in May and June in escalating violence, the highest number for those months since records started in 2009.
August 6 – Zaranj in the south of the country becomes the first provincial capital to fall to the Taliban in years and many more the ensuing days, including the prized city of Kunduz in the north.
August 13 – Four more provincial capitals fall in a day, including Kandahar, the country's second city and spiritual home of the Taliban. In the west, another key city, Herat, is overrun.
August 14 – The Taliban take the major northern city of Mazar-i-Sharif and, with little resistance, Pul-e-Alam, capital of Logar province just 40 miles south of Kabul.
August 15 – The Taliban take the key eastern city of Jalalabad without a fight, effectively surrounding Kabul.
August 16 – The world watches on as the West desperately tries to evacuate its citizens as the Taliban seize power in Afghanistan.
On Thursday the Taliban acknowledged the nation's independence day recalling the defeat of the British empire in three wars as well as the Russians following their decade-long occupation that ended in 1989.
"It is a matter of great pride for Afghans that their country is on the verge of independence from the American occupation today," a spokesman tweeted.
And meanwhile, a resistance movement is forming led by Afghanistan's vice president Amrullah Saleh who has declared himself the country's rightful leader.
Afghan armed forces are regrouping in Panjshir Valley, an area just 80 miles north of Kabul.
It was reported the country's SAS-trained special forces are among those gathering to attempt to mount a resistance under the traditional banner of the Northern Alliance.
Source: Read Full Article
