Afghan witness to suicide bomb attack in Kabul says little girl died in his arms



A witness to Thursday morning's suicide bombing outside the Hamid Karzai International Airport described the scene of the terrorist attack on Fox News and said that an infant girl died in his arms.

An Afghan translator for the U.S. Marine Corps identified as "Carl" was at the scene when a suicide bomb attack happened outside the Abbey Gate at Kabul's airport in Afghanistan. The witness said that at least one person, the little girl, died and more were injured, including Americans.

"There was an explosion that happened inside the crowd. A lot of people got hurt," the witness told Fox News. "I got a baby girl that — she was five years old, she died right in my hands."

"I don't know what exactly is going on over here, but I think some of the Americans, they got hurt too. And some people are running around," he added.

The witness clarified that the little girl was not his child, but belonged to someone else.

"I saw her on the ground. I picked her up and I took her to a hospital, but she died," he said.

The witness told Fox News that he was with more injured people and was in the process of taking them to the hospital in his vehicle. He was unsure what caused the explosion.

"They said that it was a suicide bomb that happened inside the crowd, but some people are saying that the U.S. — they were shooting flashbangs and stuff, and it might be they made a mistake or something. I cannot say what exactly happened, but the explosion was very bad. And there are a lot of people who got hurt," he said.

At least three U.S. troops were injured in the terrorist attack, officials said Thursday, and the Pentagon said there is an "unknown number of casualties."

We can confirm that the explosion near the Abbey Gate of the Kabul airport has resulted in an unknown number of cas… https://t.co/EXkV5RcRUA

— John Kirby (@PentagonPresSec) 1629988498.0

Politico reported that an ISIS suicide bomber was responsible for the explosion.

Defense Department spokesman John Kirby confirmed reports of a second explosion at or near the Baron Hotel, which is a short distance from where the first explosion took place.

President Joe Biden is in the situation room at the White House, receiving updates on what is happening in Afghanistan, according to officials.

The witness was one of thousands of Afghan allies who assisted the U.S. military during the 20-year-long war against the Taliban and is now a target for retribution. He had sought to get into the airport to flee the country, fearing for his life.

The Taliban is reportedly searching homes for Afghans who aided Western countries, rounding them up and threatening to kill their families if they don't surrender to arrest.

As of Tuesday, Biden decided that the U.S. will stick with his Aug. 31 deadline to completely withdraw U.S. troops from Afghanistan. The Defense Department insisted that the deadline leaves enough time to get all American citizens out of Afghanistan, but he would not say whether all of the at-risk Afghan allies could be evacuated by then.

The State Department estimates that about 1,500 American citizens are still in Afghanistan. Secretary of State Antony Blinken told reporters Wednesday that 4,500 Americans have been evacuated from Afghanistan in the past 10 days and "we've been in direct contact with approximately 500 additional Americans and provided specific instructions on how to get to the airport safely."

However, the night before Thursday's terrorist attack, the U.S. Embassy in Kabul warned American citizens to avoid traveling to the airport and to leave immediately if they were already there, citing "security threats" outside the airport gates.

It is unclear how the Biden administration intends to rescue those Americans from Afghanistan before his withdrawal deadline if they cannot travel to the airpot, since the president has refused to send in U.S. troops to extract them.

Suicide bombings outside Kabul airport kill, wound 'several' — including US troops



The Pentagon has confirmed that a large explosion has taken place outside the Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, Afghanistan.

"We can confirm an explosion outside Kabul airport. Casualties are unclear at this time. We will provide additional details when we can," tweeted Pentagon press secretary John Kirby Tuesday morning.

We can confirm an explosion outside Kabul airport. Casualties are unclear at this time. We will provide additional details when we can.
— John Kirby (@PentagonPresSec) 1629985491.0

Multiple news outlets have indicated that there are Afghan casualties, but information is still coming in.

Fox News also reported that the large explosion is the result of a suicide bombing, but that information has not yet been confirmed.

In recent days, the U.S., along with several other countries, issued security alerts about the imminent threat of a terrorist attack at the airport.

A British official warned on Thursday that there was "very, very credible reporting of an imminent attack" that could take place within "hours" as Western troops finalize evacuation efforts from Afghanistan.

This is a breaking news story. Check back for updates.

While US confines its evacuations to the airport, British, German, and French forces are reportedly rescuing their citizens in Kabul



The U.S. Department of Defense has restricted its evacuation of American personnel and Afghan civilians who worked for U.S. forces to Kabul's Hamid Karzai International Airport. There is a report that the U.S. government is "counting on the Taliban to help Americans and Afghans get access to the airport." At the same time, British, German, and French special forces are going into the city of Kabul to rescue their citizens.

There have been some chaotic scenes at the Hamid Karzai International Airport ever since the Taliban captured Kabul. The U.S. Embassy in Afghanistan has instructed American citizens to go to the Kabul airport to evacuate the country. However, the U.S. Embassy in Afghanistan has also warned that the "United States government cannot ensure safe passage to the Hamid Karzai International Airport."

A Fox News report stated the 6,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan are "under strict orders" not to leave the Kabul airport to rescue Americans in the city.

"The U.S. government is counting on the Taliban to help Americans and Afghans get access to the airport," the report added.

Fox News host Brett Baier asked Pentagon spokesman John Kirby if there was a deal with the Taliban that restricts U.S. forces from extracting Americans from the city of Kabul.

"No. There's no deal that restricts forces to the airport but Bret, that's where the mission is," Kirby responded. "The troops are there for really two things. One, to keep that airport safe and secure for people and for flight operations and two, to make sure that those flight operations can go as unimpeded as possible with few delays."

Baier pointed out that other nations, such as the U.K., reportedly used their forces to rescue their citizens.

"We have not seen any great impediments to the safe passage that the Taliban have agreed to facilitate," Kirby replied. "Americans are getting through those checkpoints, and they are getting onto the base on the airfield, and they are being flown out of Kabul. I won't speak to potential, future operations that may or may not be conducted. What I can tell you is that the operation that we're conducting now, and that is to keep that airfield open and running and Americans are getting through the lines and they are getting onto planes."


.@BretBaier: "Is there a deal with the Taliban that restricts US forces to the airport?"@PentagonPresSec: "No..."… https://t.co/QenWnv9q7n

— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) 1629412256.0

However, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said during a Wednesday news conference that the U.S. does not have "the capability to go out and collect large numbers of people."

During his news conference Friday, President Biden was asked about sending U.S. troops into Kabul to evacuate Americans who couldn't get to the airport.

"We have no indication that they haven't been able to get in Kabul through the airport," Biden replied. "We've made an agreement with the Taliban thus far, they've allowed them to go through and they're interested in them to go through. So we know of no circumstance where American citizens are carrying an American passport are trying to get through to the airport, but we will do whatever needs to be done to see to that they get to the airport."

Another reporter questioned Biden about the "chaos and violence" around the airport, and asked, "Are you saying unequivocally that any American who wants to get to the airport is getting there and getting past the security barrier and to the planes where they want to go?"

Biden responded, "And the answer is to the best of our knowledge, the Taliban checkpoints, they are letting through people showing American passports. Now, that's a different question when they get into the rush and crowd of all the folks just outside the wall, near the airport."

Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said, "My office has received numerous reports of American citizens and Afghan allies being harassed, beaten, and abused by Taliban thugs. These reports are in addition to the televised scenes of chaos at the airport perimeter."

There are reports that Afghans who worked for the U.S. are fearful of Taliban checkpoints because their previous work with Westerners makes them a prime target for retribution.

While the U.S. says it can't or doesn't need to go into Kabul to rescue Americans, other countries have purportedly accomplished successful missions to extract their citizens.

The Daily Telegraph reported that the U.K. government deployed paratroopers to the streets of Kabul to rescue 200 British nationals.

Germany announced it will send two light helicopters with special forces to Kabul to evacuate Germans at risk or situated in remote regions, according to the Jerusalem Post.

France 24 reported that its military helped more than 200 French nationals, foreign nationals, and Afghans get to the airport.

French President Emmanuel Macron tweeted, "To our armies, police and diplomatic teams who organize these sensitive operations, thank you. We continue."

Près de 200 Afghans qui ont travaillé pour la France ou qui sont menacés viennent d’être évacués de Kaboul. Ainsi q… https://t.co/vSdyVBPACU

— Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron) 1629274300.0

CBS News reported, "U.S. military transport planes have air-lifted around 5,000 people, mostly U.S. citizens and Afghans who once worked for the U.S., out of the country. But there are around 60 to 80,000 left to get out, by President Biden's count, and that includes more than 10,000 Americans."

The Biden administration has made Aug. 31 the deadline to evacuate Americans out of Afghanistan, but on Wednesday, President Biden said the deadline could be extended to "get them all out."