At least 37 people were killed when Taliban insurgents wearing military uniforms stormed Kandahar airport, triggering pitched gun battles in a lengthy siege as President Ashraf Ghani on Wednesday sought to revive peace talks at a regional conference.
The raid on the sprawling complex, which also houses a joint NATO-Afghan base, is seen as the most serious attack on the largest military installation in southern Afghanistan in 14 years of war. Witnesses said the assailants had taken some families hostage, using them as “human shields” after storming the complex at sundown on Tuesday, slowing down the military’s clearance operation.
“The fighting started around 6:00 pm [Tuesday] and intensified over the night,” 30-year-old university student Izatullah, who lives inside the complex, told AFP.
“Soldiers were calling on Taliban attackers to let women and children go but attackers declined. We could hear children screaming during the fighting.”
More than 20 hours after the siege began, the defence ministry said nine insurgents had been gunned down, one was injured and another was still holding out against the soldiers. “During the battle, 37 innocent Afghans were killed and 35 others injured,” the ministry added.