An Italian military transport plane was attacked while taking off from Kabul's Hamid Karzai International Airport (KBL), a source in the Italian Ministry of Defense told Reuters. The plane was not damaged in the incident.
The C-130KJ aircraft belonging to the Italian Air Force was carrying 100 Afghan civilians from Kabul when it was attacked. The pilots performed evasive maneuvers. However, according to sources quoted by the Italian press, the shots were not aimed at the aircraft, as it was the shots of the Afghan soldiers to disperse the crowd from the airport.
In recent days, Western forces at the airport have feared an attack by the Islamic State's Afghan-Pakistani branch against civilians and evacuating soldiers. Why were they afraid they did not escape, as on August 26, two bombings took place near the airport in Kabul. More than 100 deaths have been reported. European countries are rushing to complete their evacuation operations before the US military leaves on 31 August 2021.
Thousands of people have arrived in Kabul, but the numbers are rising by the hour. People are desperate in their attempt to leave the country before the Taliban ban begins. Official institutions and the world's airlines have joined forces to try to help as many people as possible flee the country conquered by insurgents.