This article will be updated as the story develops.
An explosion rocked the Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul on Thursday as thousands of people were waiting for evacuation flights out of the Taliban-controlled country.
Several outlets reported that the blast occurred at one of the airport’s main entrances, Abbey Gate, and was triggered by at least one ISIS suicide bomber.
"An ISIS suicide bomber was responsible for the explosion, a U.S. official and a person familiar with the situation told POLITICO." https://t.co/n3ucwArW8y
— Josh Caplan (@joshdcaplan) August 26, 2021
The Pentagon confirmed there was an explosion and said there are U.S. military and civilian casualties.
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) August 26, 2021
We can confirm that the explosion near the Abbey Gate of the Kabul airport has resulted in an unknown number of casualties. We will continue to update.
— John Kirby (@PentagonPresSec) August 26, 2021
A second explosion occurred outside of the Baron hotel close to the airport.
“We can confirm that the explosion at the Abbey Gate was the result of a complex attack that resulted in a number of US & civilian casualties. We can also confirm at least one other explosion at or near the Baron Hotel, a short distance from Abbey Gate,” Pentagon press secretary John Kirby wrote.
We can confirm that the explosion at the Abbey Gate was the result of a complex attack that resulted in a number of US & civilian casualties. We can also confirm at least one other explosion at or near the Baron Hotel, a short distance from Abbey Gate. We will continue to update.
— John Kirby (@PentagonPresSec) August 26, 2021
According to the Pentagon, at least 12 U.S. service members, including 11 Marines and one Navy medic, were killed in the two explosions and approximately 15 were injured.
The State Department is ordering Americans to leave the area “immediately.”
Suicide bombing outside the Baron hotel near Abbey Gate is where 169 Americans were rescued late last week by 3 Army chinook helicopters.
— Lucas Tomlinson (@LucasFoxNews) August 26, 2021
State Department warns Americans to leave gates surrounding Kabul airport ‘immediately’ https://t.co/ieSpvHSjuf
— Lucas Tomlinson (@LucasFoxNews) August 25, 2021
As of Wednesday, approximately 1,500 Americans were still waiting to be rescued from Afghanistan following the Biden administration’s botched withdrawal operation earlier this month. Shortly after the Afghan government collapsed and the Taliban took over the capital city, thousands of Americans, Afghan allies, and others flocked to the airport with the hopes of being airlifted out.
Just one day before the explosion, the U.S. Embassy cautioned Americans against traveling to the airport for evacuation until they were specifically told to do so.
“Because of security threats outside the gates of Kabul airport, we are advising U.S. citizens to avoid traveling to the airport and to avoid airport gates at this time unless you receive individual instructions from a U.S. government representative to do so,” the security alert stated.
While some countries such as the United States opted to continue facilitating evacuations despite rising concerns of danger and security threats, other nations such as Belgium, the Netherlands, and Denmark opted out of any further airlifts.
