Western forces involve in firefight with unknown assailants at Kabul Airport; 1 Afghan soldier dead, 3 wounded

As thousands of Afghans and foreigners thronged the airport, seeking to flee Taliban rule, the firefight killed one Afghan guard and injured three others, said German armed forces.

German and US forces joined in a gun battle Monday at Kabul airport after an Afghan soldier was fighting unknown assailants.

As thousands of Afghans and foreigners thronged the airport, seeking to flee Taliban rule, an Afghan guard was killed and three others were injured in the firefight, said German armed forces.

"This morning at 4.13 a.m., there was an exchange of fire between Afghan guards and unknown assailants at the North Gate of Kabul airport. An Afghan guard was killed, three others injured," said the German army on Twitter.

"American and German forces participated in further exchange of fire," it said, adding that no German soldiers were injured.

The German army has since flown more than 2,500 people out using military planes.

The airport has been in chaos since the Taliban gained control over the Afghan capital on August 15, thereby leading to the US and international forces trying to evacuate citizens and vulnerable Afghans.

The Taliban took over Afghanistan in a blitz just over a week ago as the United States and NATO withdrew troops after a 20-year war aimed at overthrowing the Taliban and hunting down Al Qaeda after the 9/11 attacks.

Taliban fighters thrashed crowds at the airport a day after seven Afghans were killed in a crush at the gates as the deadline for the withdrawal of foreign troops approaches.

Biden, who last week flagged the possibility of troops remaining longer, said he hoped the airlift would not be extended, but said talks were under way to explore that possibility.

“There’s discussions going among us and the military about extending,” Biden said.

“Let me be clear, the evacuation of thousands from Kabul is going to be hard and painful” and would have been “no matter when it began,” Biden said in a briefing at the White House.

“We have a long way to go and a lot could still go wrong.”

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