Taliban STOP six planeloads of evacuees, including American citizens, from leaving Afghanistan

SIX planeloads of evacuees, including American citizens, have reportedly been STOPPED from leaving Afghanistan by the Taliban

Michael McCaul, the top Republican on the U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee, from Texas, speaking today, Sunday, September 5, with host Chris Wallace on Fox News, has revealed that the Taliban forces at the airport in the northern Afghani city of Mazar-e-Sharif, has blocked six aircraft full of evacuees from leaving the country.

“We have six airplanes at Mazar Sharif airport, six airplanes with American citizens on them as I speak, also with these interpreters, and the Taliban is holding them hostage for demands right now,’ McCaul told Chris Wallace, adding, “The state has cleared these flights, and the Taliban will not let them leave the airport”.

The congressman would not reveal the source of his information, but insisted that the passengers – including Americans – were being held on the aircraft, effectively as hostages, continuing, “The Taliban will not let them leave the airport”, stating that he was concerned  “they’re going to demand more and more, whether it be cash, or legitimacy as the government of Afghanistan”.

This small airport at Mazar-e-Sharif is 260 miles from the Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul – from where thousands have already flown safely out of Afghanistan – which only recently started dealing with international flights, and an Afghan official is reported as saying the six planes were destined for Doha in Qatar, but did not elaborate on who had chartered them.

McCaul continued, “Since we left the country on Friday, how many Americans have gotten out of Afghanistan?”, to which Wallace asked, “Since we pulled out, how many Afghan allies have gotten out since the Taliban was in complete control of the country?”, with the Texan Republican responding, “Zero, I’m sorry, the answer to your question is zero”.

It is reported that an Afghan official has claimed that there are four planes – on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the subject – and that all the passengers are Afghan citizens, who were being prevented from leaving as they did not possess passports or visas, and that they had been removed from the airport while the problem was being rectified, as reported by dailymail.co.uk.

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Written by

Chris King

Originally from Wales, Chris spent years on the Costa del Sol before moving to the Algarve where he is a web reporter for The Euro Weekly News covering international and Spanish national news. Got a news story you want to share? Then get in touch at editorial@euroweeklynews.com

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