The Dangerous Road to the Kabul Airport
While American forces have taken control of Kabul’s airport, chaos dominates just outside. As thousands desperately try to flee Afghanistan, Taliban fighters have blocked entrances, fired rifles and beaten some people in the crowds.
Kabul
North Gate
N
Entrance
Military side
East Gate
Runway
KABUL INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
Abbey Gate
Civilian side
Passenger terminal
Entrance
Taliban fired shots
from guard tower
Entrance
Main entrance
Military entrance guarded
by Afghan forces
Most violence here,
Taliban fired shots
Crowds gathered
trying to escape city
Many Taliban patrols
along Airport Road
Airport Road
Taliban checkpoint
American officials told U.S. citizens
and others they could not promise
safe passage to the airport.
U.S. Embassy
FORMER GREEN ZONE
U.K. Embassy
French Embassy
Ministry of Defense
Chinese Embassy
Presidential palace
Kabul
AFGHANISTAN
1 MILE
Kabul
North Gate
N
Entrance
Military side
Runway
East Gate
KABUL INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
Abbey Gate
Civilian side
Passenger terminal
Entrance
Taliban fired shots
from guard tower
Main entrance
Entrance
Most violence here,
Taliban fired shots
Military entrance guarded
by Afghan forces
Crowds gathered
trying to escape city
Many Taliban patrols
along Airport Road
Airport Road
Taliban checkpoint
American officials told U.S. citizens
and others they could not promise
safe passage to the airport.
U.S. Embassy
FORMER GREEN ZONE
U.K. Embassy
French Embassy
Ministry of Defense
Chinese Embassy
Presidential palace
Kabul
AFGHANISTAN
1 MILE
Kabul
North Gate
Entrance
N
Military side
Runway
East Gate
KABUL INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
Abbey Gate
Passenger terminal
Civilian side
Entrance
Taliban fired shots
from guard tower
Entrance
Main entrance
Military entrance guarded
by Afghan forces
Most violence here,
Taliban fired shots
Crowds gathered
trying to escape city
Airport Road
Many Taliban patrols
along Airport Road
Taliban checkpoint
American officials told U.S. citizens
and others they could not promise
safe passage to the airport.
U.S. Embassy
FORMER GREEN ZONE
U.K. Embassy
French Embassy
Ministry of Defense
Chinese Embassy
Presidential palace
Kabul
AFGHANISTAN
1 MILE
Kabul
North Gate
N
Entrance
Military side
East Gate
KABUL INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
Runway
Abbey Gate
Passenger terminal
Civilian side
Entrance
Taliban fired
shots from
guard tower
Entrance
Main entrance
Military entrance
guarded by
Afghan forces
Most violence here,
Taliban fired shots
Crowds gathered
trying to escape city
Airport Road
Many Taliban patrols
along Airport Road
Taliban checkpoint
American officials told U.S. citizens
and others they could not promise
safe passage to the airport.
U.S. Embassy
FORMER GREEN ZONE
U.K. Embassy
French Embassy
Ministry of Defense
Chinese Embassy
Presidential palace
Kabul
AFGHANISTAN
1 MILE
Kabul
North Gate
N
Entrance
Military side
East Gate
Runway
KABUL INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
Abbey Gate
Civilian side
Passenger terminal
Entrance
Taliban fired shots
from guard tower
Entrance
Main entrance
Military entrance guarded
by Afghan forces
Most violence here,
Taliban fired shots
Crowds gathered
trying to escape city
Many Taliban patrols
along Airport Road
Airport Road
Taliban checkpoint
American officials told U.S. citizens
and others they could not promise
safe passage to the airport.
U.S. Embassy
FORMER GREEN ZONE
U.K. Embassy
French Embassy
Ministry of Defense
Chinese Embassy
Presidential palace
Kabul
AFGHANISTAN
1 MILE
Taliban control the main entrance
Most of the violence has been just outside the airport’s main entrance, where crowds trying to get into the airport met Taliban forces beating them back. There were volleys of rifle fire, along with pushing, pulling and beating with wooden sticks, Kalashnikovs and hoses.
Large crowds, including people camped out and families gathered with children, gathered outside the main gate as Taliban fighters shot rifles into the air. Very few got in.
Camped out on the roads nearby
On the roads surrounding the airport, people camped out, waiting to try to get access to a flight out of the country. Some sat under pine trees on the airport’s perimeter.
Taliban fighters patrolled Airport Road, the main way into the airport. The sound of heavy gunfire echoed through the streets, and some fighters hit people to try to keep them back.
‘This gate is closed,’ a commander says
At an entrance east of the main gates, Taliban fighters positioned themselves on concrete road dividers.
Their commander, a Kalashnikov slung around his shoulder, told the crowds: “This gate is closed. Only foreigners and people with documents are allowed.”