Kabul (Afghanistan): Desperate crowds waited outside Kabul airport on Wednesday, some standing knee-deep in sewage and waving identity documents at Western soldiers, in hopes of being allowed to go beyond the barbed wire fencing and onto a flight out.
They waited as a stream of military planes took off from the airfield as evacuees who were allowed through queue on the tarmac.
A day earlier, U.S. President Joe Biden declared that he is sticking to his Aug. 31 deadline for completing the U.S. pullout as the Taliban insisted he must, ramping up pressure on the already risky airlift from Kabul to get out as many people as possible in the coming days.
European allies pressed for more time but lost the argument, and as a practical matter, they may be forced to end their evacuations a couple of days before the last American troops leave.
Several countries haven't said yet when they plan to end their operations, perhaps hoping to avoid yet another fatal crush at an airport that's one of the last ways out of the country. The Taliban wrested back control of Afghanistan nearly 20 years after they were ousted in a US-led invasion following the 9/11 attacks.
Their return to power has pushed many Afghans to flee, fearing reprisals from the fighters or a return to the brutal rule they imposed when they last ran the country.
AP
