Afghanistan crisis: Desperate locals cling to side of US Air Force plane taking off from Kabul

Thousands of Afghans rushed onto the tarmac of Kabul’s international airport Monday, so desperate to escape the Taliban capture of their country that they clung onto an American military jet as it took off. At least seven people died from the chaos on the tarmac, U.S. officials said.

The crowds of people rushing the airport came as the Taliban enforced their rule over the wider capital after a lightning advance across the country that took just over a week to dethrone the country’s Western-backed government.

The U.S. military and other Western forces continued to organize evacuations.

The United Nations Security Council held a meeting on Monday to discuss the deteriorating situation in Afghanistan. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called on countries to take Afghan refugees.

“We cannot and must not abandon the Afghan people,” Guterres said.