Seven people in the crowds near Kabul airport died amid the chaos of those fleeing the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan, bringing the total for the last week to 20.
The MoD said in a statement on Sunday that "conditions on the ground remain extremely challenging but we are doing everything we can to manage the situation as safely and securely as possible".
It added, referring to those who died on Saturday: "Our sincere thoughts are with the families of the seven Afghan civilians who have sadly died in crowds in Kabul."
It comes as the Taliban said on Sunday it was seeking "complete" clarity on the exit of foreign forces and admitted that "managing chaos outside Kabul airport" was "a complex task", after it swept to power in the capital city last week.
On Saturday, a Sky News correspondent watched as UK paratroopers began pulling people from the mayhem before medics checked vital signs of those left on the floor after a crush and then covered bodies in white sheets.
Sky Chief Correspondent Stuart Ramsay said he saw at least three bodies after a crush on the edge of the airport. A NATO official has now said that 20 have died in or around Kabul airport in the last seven days.
British soldiers have been inside the airport attempting to help evacuate British people and Afghans with the right to come to the UK.
Thousands of people have gathered outside the gates of the Hamid Karzai International Airport trying to escape from the country, fearful about what would happen following the Taliban's lightning takeover of the country.
UK armed forces minister James Heappey told Sky News that Taliban fighters on the streets of the capital appeared to be martialling people into separate queues for the US and UK evacuations, and it was "making a big difference and allowing us to process people much more quickly".
"That's encouraging," he said, adding: "Today the queue is flowing better... The marshalling the Taliban are doing is making a big difference, so if people are instructed to come forward, we encourage them to do so because we are getting people through.
"This morning, 731 people admitted and processed through handling centre and now ready to fly."
Taliban leaders are set to meet former governors and bureaucrats in more than 20 of Afghanistan's 34 provinces over the next few days, an official of the group said on Sunday.
In the meantime, he said, schools and colleges can open across the country.
The official added: "We are not forcing any former government official to join or prove their allegiance to us, they have a right to leave the country if they would like."
In other developments:
• US military planes have been making diving landings due to a threat from the Islamic State in Afghanistan.
• The German embassy in Kabul echoed US warnings not to approach the airport because of potential security threats.
• The Taliban imposed some order around the airport on Sunday, said witnesses.
• Ex UK PM Tony Blair called US President Joe Biden's decision to pull out US troops "imbecilic".
• Nearly 4,000 Afghan and British nationals have been evacuated, according to the latest figures, along with 17,000 extracted by the US.
• An Afghan woman gave birth on board a US Air Force C-17 flying from the Middle East to Ramstein Air Base in Germany.
Meanwhile, a soldier who was filmed by Sky News holding a baby who'd been passed over razor wire, whose photo has been printed on the front page of nearly every British national newspaper and beamed around the world by the Associated Press wire service, insisted he was just doing his job.
Earlier, as they tweeted a picture of Afghan civilians and British citizens sitting in the hold of a military transport plane which was evacuating them to the UK, the MoD said it could not be prouder of UK troops.
It said: "The entire Defence community could not be prouder of the work being done right now by @BritishArmy @RoyalAirForce @RoyalNavy @RoyalMarines in Kabul. Everyday they are saving lives."
Josep Borrell, the EU's foreign policy chief, told the AFP news agency that it was "mathematically impossible" for the US to evacuate all Afghans with travel permits by the 31 August deadline.
In a statement issued by the Foreign Office on Saturday night, Sir Laurie Bristow, who is in Kabul, said: "The scale of this effort is enormous and is without a doubt the biggest international challenge I have worked on as a diplomat.
"Lives are at stake and I am incredibly proud of the tenacious efforts of my team during these challenging times, with military and civilian staff working together to successfully evacuate thousands of people in the last week."
https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMidmh0dHBzOi8vbmV3cy5za3kuY29tL3N0b3J5L2FmZ2hhbmlzdGFuLXNldmVuLXBlb3BsZS1raWxsZWQtaW4tY3Jvd2QtbmVhci1rYWJ1bC1haXJwb3J0LXVrLW1pbmlzdHJ5LW9mLWRlZmVuY2UtMTIzODc2MTHSAXpodHRwczovL25ld3Muc2t5LmNvbS9zdG9yeS9hbXAvYWZnaGFuaXN0YW4tc2V2ZW4tcGVvcGxlLWtpbGxlZC1pbi1jcm93ZC1uZWFyLWthYnVsLWFpcnBvcnQtdWstbWluaXN0cnktb2YtZGVmZW5jZS0xMjM4NzYxMQ?oc=5
2021-08-22 09:26:50Z
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