Turkey evacuates citizens stranded in Afghanistan

ANKARA

Turkey has evacuated 42 of its nationals from Afghanistan, where they were stranded following the Taliban takeover of Kabul and chaos at Hamid Karzai International Airport.

According to a Turkish Air Force Command statement, 22 Turkish citizens were returned to the country on Wednesday, while 20 others were taken to Islamabad, Pakistan's capital, and will return later.

Flights were suspended at Afghanistan's main international airport in Kabul on Monday, as crowds of people anxiously waited at its gates in hopes of leaving the country.

A day after Afghanistan's capital fell to the Taliban, US and Afghan forces surrounded the airport, along with Taliban fighters, as gunshots were fired into the air to disperse the crowd.

On Monday night, a Turkish military plane was dispatched to Kabul to pick up the stranded citizens. However, due to the chaos, the military plane was unable to land at the airport and was redirected to Islamabad.

On Tuesday, the plane safely landed in Kabul, transporting 42 Turkish people from Afghanistan to Pakistan.