Rockets fired at Kabul airport in waning hours of US pullout

Islamic State militants fired a volley of rockets at Kabuls rapidly emptying international airport on Monday with just hours left before a deadline for US forces to withdraw at the end of Americas longest warThe Pentagon is tightlipped about final operations and has not specified when the withdrawal will be completed ahead of Tuesdays deadline But spokesman John Kirby told reporters ldquothere is still timerdquo for Americans to join a massive airlift that has allowed more than 116000 people to leave since the Taliban swept back into power two weeks agoAll day Monday US military cargo jets came and went despite the rocket attack which did not hurt anyone The Taliban released a video shot from the airports grounds saying the Americans had removed or destroyed most of their equipment and that troop numbers were far lower ldquoIt looks like today will be the last dayrdquo one of the unidentified fighters saidWith the departure of the last of its troops the US is ending its 20year war with the Taliban back in power Many Afghans remain fearful of them or further instability and there have been sporadic reports of killings and other abuses in areas under Taliban control despite pledges to restore peace and securityIn the last 24 hours the American military evacuated about 1200 people on 26 C17 flights while two coalition flights flew out 50 others the White House saidThe twoweek airlift has brought scenes of desperation and horror In the early days people desperate to flee Taliban rule flooded onto the tarmac and some fell to their deaths after clinging to a departing aircraft On Thursday an Islamic State suicide attack at an airport gate killed at least 169 Afghans and 13 US service membersAlso ReadAfghanistan Islamic State claims firing rockets near Kabul airportThe extremist group is far more radical than the Taliban who captured most of Afghanistan in a matter of days The two groups have fought each other before and the Taliban have pledged to not harbour terrorist groupsThe Taliban tightened their security cordon around the airport after the attack clearing away massive crowds of Afghans who were desperate to flee the country in the waning days of the USled airlift Taliban fighters are now stationed along a fence near the main runwayA crowd quickly gathered Monday around the remains of a fourdoor sedan used in the rocket attack The car had what appeared to be six homemade rocket tubes mounted in place of its back seatsldquoI was inside the house with my children and other family members Suddenly there were some blasts said Jaiuddin Khan who lives nearby We jumped into the house compound and lay on the groundrdquoSome of the rockets landed across town striking residential apartment blocks witnesses said That neighbourhood is about 3 kilometers under 2 miles from the airport No injuries were reportedFive rockets targeted the airport said Navy Capt Bill Urban a US military spokesman A defensive weapon known as a CRAM mdash a CounterRocket Artillery and Mortar System mdash targeted the rockets in a whirling hail of ammunition he said The system has a distinct drilllike sound that echoed through the city at the time of the attackAn IS statement carried by the groups Amaq media outlet claimed the militants fired six rocketsThe White House said President Joe Biden was briefed on the rocket attackldquoThe president was informed that operations continue uninterrupted at HKIA and has reconfirmed his order that commanders redouble their efforts to prioritize doing whatever is necessary to protect our forces on the groundrdquo the statement said using an acronym for Kabuls airportPlanes took off about every 20 minutes at one point Monday morning One C17 landing in the afternoon shot off flares as it approached mdash a maneuver to protect against heatseeking missiles and a sign the US military remains concerned about surfacetoair missiles loose in the countrySmoke from several fires along the airports perimeter could be seen It wasnt clear what was ablaze although US forces typically destroy material and equipment they dont take with themThe airport had been one of the few ways out for foreigners and Afghans fleeing the Taliban However coalition nations have halted their evacuations in recent days leaving the US military largely alone there with some remaining allied Afghan forcesThe US State Department released a statement Sunday signed by about 100 countries as well as NATO and the European Union saying they had received ldquoassurancesrdquo from the Taliban that people with travel documents would still be able to leaveThe Taliban have said they will allow normal travel after the US withdrawal is completed on Tuesday and they take control of the airport However it is unclear how the militants will run the airport and which commercial carriers will begin flying in given the ongoing security concernsQatar confirmed to The Associated Press on Monday that the Gulf country has been taking part in negotiations about operations at the airport with Afghan and international parties mainly the US and TurkeyQatars Assistant Foreign Minister Lolwa alKhater said its main priority is restoring regular operations while maintaining security at the airport Qatar is a US ally that has long hosted a Taliban political officeThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever