An ex-Royal Marine who was near to the deadly explosions close to Kabul airport has said his vehicle was targeted by a gunman amid the chaos.
Pen Farthing, who founded the Nowzad animal shelter, is aiming to get 200 dogs and cats out of the country alongside his staff.
He was outside the airport in a car when the terror attack happened, killing at least 13 people, including children.
He said: ‘We’re fine but everything is chaos here at the moment.
‘All of a sudden we heard gunshots and our vehicle was targeted, had our driver not turned around he would have been shot in the head by a man with an AK-47.
‘We’ve been in the airport, and back out of the airport; the whole thing’s a mess.
‘There’s not much more I can say at the moment, I need to make sure the animals and everyone is safe.’
At least two explosions are believed to have gone off as thousands waited outside Kabul airport to be evacuated.
The first explosion outside the Baron Hotel is believed to have been a suicide bomber, while the second blast at nearby Abbey Gate was likely a car bomb, defence sources said.
A US official has said the attack is ‘definitely’ believed to have been carried out by the Islamic State group.
Up to three US troops are believed to have been injured in the explosions, as well as Taliban guards.
Boris Johnson will chair an emergency COBRA meeting later this afternoon to discuss the crisis.
It is not yet clear how the incident will impact efforts to evacuate foreign nationals and Afghans out of the country.
Mr Farthing said this morning that he had been stuck outside Kabul airport with his animals and staff for 10 hours.
He made a midnight dash to the airport with his 25 Afghan staff and their families after Defence Secretary Ben Wallace agreed to let him land a private charter flight, funded by donations, to fly them all to Britain.
There had been criticism about prioritising animals over people, but approval was given for the flight.
However, a plane expected to fly from Luton Airport to rescue the crew had to be cancelled today amid safety concerns.
Wildlife campaigner Dominic Dyer told the BBC the volatile situation in the country meant the mission was ‘too dangerous’ and that the private flight company ‘could not enter Kabul airspace safely’.
He said a plane in a country neighbouring Afghanistan will now be used to get them out of the capital, but it could only land once Mr Farthing was inside the airport.
Mr Farthing made a direct appeal to the Taliban on Twitter earlier today, asking them to let his crew through.
Since the Taliban takeover in the capital, Mr Farthing has campaigned to have his staff, their families and the animals flown out in a charter plane, in a plan he has called Operation Ark.
Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said earlier this week he was not prepared to prioritise animals ahead of people ‘in real danger’. He then said if the charity’s founder got to the airport with his staff and animals, he would seek a slot for the chartered flight.
Speaking to Sky News on Thursday morning, the Armed Forces Minister James Heappey said British troops cannot move ‘desperate Afghans’ out of the way to bring the former Royal Marine to the front of the queue at Kabul airport.
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2021-08-26 14:45:00Z
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