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29th Aug 2021

Joe Biden warns of “highly likely” terror attack as US enters final phase of evacuations from Kabul

Clara Kelly

The US embassy has warned of a “specific, credible threat” at Kabul Airport.

The US military has entered the final phase of evacuations from Kabul as US President Joe Biden has warned of a “highly likely” terror attack at Kabul Airport.

Taliban officials have said that they are ready to take over the airport after US forces give the “final nod” as all evacuations must be completed by Tuesday.

Biden also vowed to keep up air strikes against the Islamic extremist group, ISKP or Isis-K, whose suicide bombing at the Kabul airport on Thursday killed at least 170 Afghans.

He said that the US drone strike that killed two Islamic State targets in retaliation for the terror attack on Thursday, would not be the last action from the US.

The US embassy in Kabul issued a warning of a “specific, credible threat” on Sunday following a warning on Saturday that any citizens should “immediately” leave Kabul airport and surrounding areas.

Biden warned on Saturday that another terrorist attack in Kabul was highly likely in the next 24 to 36 hours.

Meanwhile, a Taliban official told Reuters on Sunday that the Taliban and US forces are aiming for a swift handover of Kabul Airport.

“We are waiting for the final nod from the Americans to secure full control over Kabul airport,” the official said.

Commercial flights have mostly been suspended, stranding Afghans and other foreign nationals in the country as evacuations continue.

The Taliban declared the war in Afghanistan was over last Monday and has since taken control of the presidential palace, with the elected president having fled the country.

Afghans now suddenly face the prospect of complete domination by the Taliban again, after the group – in just a matter of days – took the rest of the country in its grip.

The Islamist group was able to seize control after most foreign troops pulled out.

With fears the Taliban could reimpose the brutal regime they enforced prior to the war in 2001, Afghans and foreigners alike have been searching for a way out of the country.

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