Live updates: US service members and Afghans killed in blasts near Kabul airport

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Rebecca CohenAug 27, 2021, 01:51 IST
Live updates: US service members and Afghans killed in blasts near Kabul airport

Smoke rises from explosion outside the airport in Kabul, Afghanistan, Thursday, Aug. 26, 2021AP Photo/Wali Sabawoon

  • At least two explosions went off in Kabul near the airport on Thursday.
  • The first blast was at the Abbey Gate of the amid Karzai International Airport, the second was at the Baron Hotel nearby.
  • Eleven Marines and one Navy medic lost their lives in the attacks, the Associated Press reported.

At least two blasts near the airport in Kabul on Thursday have caused multiple American and Afghan casualties.

Eleven Marines and one Navy medic lost their lives in the attacks, the Associated Press reported.

The two explosions, one at the Abbey Gate outside of the airport and the other at the Baron Hotel nearby, are believed to have been carried out by ISIS, according to US officials.

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US troops were killed in an explosive attack at Kabul's airport, Pentagon says

US troops were killed in an explosive attack at Kabul's airport, Pentagon says
US soldiers stand guard behind barbed wire as Afghans sit on a roadside near the military part of the airport in Kabul on August 20, 2021, hoping to flee from the country after the Taliban's military takeover of Afghanistan WAKIL KOHSAR/AFP via Getty Images

Multiple US service members were killed in the deadly attacks at the Kabul airport on Thursday.

Gen. Kenneth McKenzie, head of US Central Command, said in a press conference on Thursday, that at least 12 US service members were killed, and 15 others were wounded.

Thursday's deaths mark the first US military combat deaths in Afghanistan since February 2020.


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A map of the Kabul airport shows the choke points that make people trying to flee Afghanistan so vulnerable to attacks

A map of the Kabul airport shows the choke points that make people trying to flee Afghanistan so vulnerable to attacks
Skye Gould/Insider

A map of the Kabul airport clearly shows the overcrowded areas that were vulnerable to attacks like the ones seen on Thursday.

The Abbey Gate was flooded with desperate Afghans attempting to flee the country.

The Baron Hotel was being used by Canada and the United Kingdom to collect Afghans approved for evacuation. Last week, American helicopters transported 169 Americans from the hotel to the airport.


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What is ISIS-K? The Islamic State's Afghanistan affiliate is the Taliban's enemy and threatens US evacuations

What is ISIS-K? The Islamic State's Afghanistan affiliate is the Taliban's enemy and threatens US evacuations
Members of ISIS-K stand in front of their weapons as they surrendered to the government in Jalalabad, Nangarhar, Afghanistan on November 17, 2019. Wali Sabawoon/Getty Images

ISIS-K, the Islamic State's Afghanistan affiliate, is thought to be behind deadly bombings in Kabul on Thursday.

ISIS-K — the Islamic State in Khorasan Province or ISIS-Khorasan — are known to be sworn enemies of the Taliban.

They remain a threat as evacuations in Kabul continue over the next five days.


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There were multiple explosions during a 'complex attack' outside Kabul airport amid evacuations, Pentagon says

There were multiple explosions during a 'complex attack' outside Kabul airport amid evacuations, Pentagon says
People who want to flee the country continue to wait around Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, Afghanistan on August 25, 2021. Haroon Sabawoon/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

There were at least two explosions just outside the Kabul airport as Americans and Afghans waited to flee the country.

The Pentagon confirmed that it was "a complex attack" that resulted in US and civilian casualties and is warning of more potential terrorist attacks.

The first explosion took place at the Abbey Gate and the second was at the nearby Baron Hotel.


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The lucky ones: Photos show Afghans arriving in Virginia after evacuating Kabul

The lucky ones: Photos show Afghans arriving in Virginia after evacuating Kabul
Jose Luis Magana / Associated Press

More than 8,600 lucky Afghans arrived at Dulles International Airport in Virginia as of Wednesday, according to Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam.

The evacuees were then taken to Dulles Expo Center in Fairfax County, a 100,000-square-foot convention center that was turned into a shelter.

But the shelter is only temporary. After they have been given medical assistance, they will wait to be taken to military installations across the US.


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Germany, Canada, and Belgium have finished evacuating people from Afghanistan as the US scrambles to get people out of Kabul

Germany, Canada, and Belgium have finished evacuating people from Afghanistan as the US scrambles to get people out of Kabul
Men stand behind barbed wire fencing at the Kabul airport. SHAKIB RAHMANI/AFP via Getty

As the US faces a hard evacuation deadline of August 31, Germany, Canada, Poland, and Belgium have completed their evacuation missions from Kabul.

The Czech Republic finished their evacuation efforts last week, and France is set to complete theirs before the US.


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The US has 5 more days to get people out of Afghanistan, but Taliban and ISIS attacks are preventing people from reaching the airport

The US has 5 more days to get people out of Afghanistan, but Taliban and ISIS attacks are preventing people from reaching the airport
People who want to flee the country continue to wait around Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, Afghanistan on August 24, 2021. Haroon Sabawoon/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

The Biden Administration has five days until the evacuation deadline of August 31, which the president chose not to extend on Tuesday.

But mounting threats and two bomb attacks are making the situation in Kabul even direr than it already was.

Multiple American and Afghan casualties have been reported as a result of Thursday's blasts.


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