Photos: Taliban seizes control of Kabul airport after US withdrawal from Afghanistan

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Photos: Taliban seizes control of Kabul airport after US withdrawal from Afghanistan

Taliban leaders took a symbolic victory lap, walking across the tarmac to mark their win

Published: August 31, 2021 18:54 Compiled by Devadasan K P, Picture Editor

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KAB AIRPORT 1-1630421264353 — Taliban Badri special force fighters secure the airport in Kabul. The Taliban were in full control of Kabul’s international airport on Tuesday, after the last US plane left its runway, marking the end of America’s longest war. Image Credit: AFP

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KAB AIRPORT 2-1630421267429 — A Taliban member takes photos with a mobile phone at the airport in Kabul. Image Credit: AFP

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KAB AIRPORT 3-1630421271396 — Members of the Taliban Badri 313 military unit walks at the tarmac as they secure the airport premises in Kabul. Vehicles carrying the Taliban raced back and forth along the Hamid Karzai International Airport’s sole runway on the northern, military side of the airfield. Image Credit: AFP

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TEASER KABUL 4-1630421273737 — Before dawn broke, heavily armed Taliban fighters walked through hangars, passing some of the seven CH-46 helicopters the State Department used in its evacuations before rendering them unflyable. Image Credit: AFP

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KAB AIRPORT 5-1630421275583 — Taliban leaders later symbolically walked across the runway, marking their victory while flanked by fighters of the insurgents’ elite Badri unit. Image Credit: REUTERS

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KAB AIRPORT 6-1630421278968 — “The world should have learned its lesson and this is the enjoyable moment of victory,” Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said in a livestream posted by a militant. Above, Taliban Badri special force fighters climb up on a vehcile at the airport in Kabul. Image Credit: AFP

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KAB AIRPORT 7-1630421282295 — Taliban fighters sit in the cockpit of an Afghan Air Force aircraft at the airport in Kabul. Image Credit: AFP

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KAB AIRPORT 8-1630421284082 — “There will be security in Kabul and people should not be concerned,” Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said. In another interview with Afghan state television, Mujahid also discussed restarting operations at the airport, which remains a key way out for those wanting to leave the country. Image Credit: REUTERS

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KAB AIRPORT 9-1630421287159 — “Our technical team will be checking the technical and logistical needs of the airport,’’ he said. “If we are able to fix everything on our own, then we won’t need any help. Above, Taliban members walk past a damaged aircraft at the airport. Image Credit: AFP

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KAB AIRPORT 10-1630421289402 — Taliban fighters stand guard near an Afghan Air Force aircraft at the airport in Kabul. Image Credit: AFP

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KAB AIRPORT 11-1630421292314 — Taliban fighters stand inside an Afghan Air Force aircraft. Image Credit: AFP

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KAB AIRPORT 13-1630421295221 — Members of the Taliban Badri 313 military unit stands guard next to a Afghan Air Force aircraft at the airport in Kabul. Image Credit: AFP

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KAB AIRPORT 14-1630421299513 — Taliban fighters draped their white flags over barriers at the airport as others guarded the civilian side of the airfield. Inside the terminal, several dozen suitcases and pieces of luggage were left strewn across the floor, apparently left behind in the chaos. Clothes and shoes also were scattered. A poster of Ahmad Shah Massoud, the famed anti-Taliban fighter, had been destroyed. Image Credit: AFP

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KAB AIRPORT 16-1630421302869 — Belongings of Afghans who left the country are seen at the tarmac of the airport in Kabul. The airport had seen chaotic and deadly scenes since the Taliban blitzed across Afghanistan and took Kabul on August 15. Image Credit: AFP

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KAB AIRPORT 17-1630421304739 — Thousands of Afghans besieged the airport, some falling to their death after desperately hanging onto the side of an American C-17 military cargo jet. Last week, a Daesh suicide attack at an airport gate killed at least 169 Afghans and 13 US service members. Image Credit: REUTERS

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