Rockets hit neighbourhood near Kabul airport amid US pullout
Kabul(AP): Rockets struck a neighborhood near Kabul's international airport on Monday amid the ongoing US withdrawal from Afghanistan. It wasn't immediately clear who launched them.
The rockets struck Monday morning in Kabul's Salim Karwan neighborhood, witnesses said. Gunfire immediately followed the explosions but it wasn't immediately clear who was firing.
A witness who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals, said they heard the sound of three explosions and then saw a flash in the sky.
People fled after the blasts, the witness said.
U.S. officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment. U.S. military cargo planes continued their evacuations at the airport after the rocket fire.
In Washington, the White House issued a statement saying officials briefed President Joe Biden on the rocket attack at Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul.
The president was informed that operations continue uninterrupted at HKIA, and has reconfirmed his order that commanders redouble their efforts to prioritize doing whatever is necessary to protect our forces on the ground, the statement said, using an acronym for Kabul's airport.
On Sunday, a U.S. drone strike blew up a vehicle carrying multiple suicide bombers from Afghanistan's Islamic State affiliate on Sunday before they could attack the ongoing military evacuation at Kabul's international airport, American officials said. An Afghan official said three children were killed in the strike.
The U.S. is to withdraw from Afghanistan by Tuesday. By then, the U.S. is set to conclude a massive two-week-long airlift of more than 114,000 Afghans and foreigners and withdraw the last of its troops, ending America's longest war with the Taliban back in power.
The U.S. State Department released a statement Sunday signed by around 100 countries, as well as NATO and the European Union, saying they had received assurances from the Taliban that people with travel documents would still be able to leave the country. The Taliban have said they will allow normal travel after the U.S. withdrawal is completed on Tuesday and they assume control of the airport.
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Hindus have consolidated, BJP will cross 135 seats in WB: Suvendu Adhikari after early trends
Kolkata: Suvendu Adhikari on Monday said he was confident that the Bharatiya Janata Party would form the government in West Bengal as early counting trends began to emerge.
Speaking after initial trends in the ongoing vote counting, Adhikari said the party was expecting to win more than 135 seats in the state.
He also claimed that Hindu votes had consolidated in favour of the BJP, which, according to him, would translate into victory for the party.
Counting of votes is currently underway, and official results are awaited.
