Photos have emerged on social media showing over 600 Afghan refugees crammed into a US Air Force plane. As reported by <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/asia/south-asia/afghanistan-airport-images-kabul-plane-b1903709.html">The Independent</a>, the images show "roughly 640" Afghans being evacuated from the capital city of Kabul after Taliban forces forced Afghan President Ashraf Ghani to flee the country on Sunday, along with many high-ranking officials. Per <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/08/16/chaotic-scenes-at-kabul-airport-as-afghans-flee-taliban.html">CNBC</a>, the Taliban entered the presidential palace in Kabul and declared the war "over". The toppling led to civilians rushing to Kabul's Hamid Karzai International Airport - crowding runways and holding on to planes in an apparent attempt to flee the country. Now, footage has emerged on social media showing hundreds of evacuated refugees crammed inside a US Air Force C-17 Globemaster II cargo jet. [[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/DefenseOne/status/1427395255788244992/]] [[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/simran/status/1427365549177282566]] Speaking to military news site <a href="https://www.defenseone.com/policy/2021/08/inside-reach-871-us-c-17-packed-640-people-trying-escape-taliban/184563/">Defense One</a> - which obtained the image - a defense official revealed: “The crew made the decision to go. "Approximately 640 Afghan civilians disembarked the aircraft when it arrived at its destination." The official added that the flight was one of several that took off with hundreds of people on board. Defense One adds that the jet traveled from Kabul to the Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar. The images come after video footage from the Hamid Karzai International Airport showed people hanging onto a US Air Force plane as it was taxiing on the runway: [[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/AdityaRajKaul/status/1427205356409614336]] On Monday (August 17), President Biden said at a press conference that he stands by his decision to pull US forces out of Afghanistan. [[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/ABC/status/1427362349430751241]] Speaking about leadership in the country, the President said: <blockquote>"American troops cannot and should not be fighting in a war and dying in a war that Afghan forces are not willing to fight for themselves.  We spent over a trillion dollars.  We trained and equipped an Afghan military force of some 300,000 strong — incredibly well equipped — a force larger in size than the militaries of many of our NATO allies.  "We gave them every tool they could need.  We paid their salaries, provided for the maintenance of their air force — something the Taliban doesn’t have.  Taliban does not have an air force.  We provided close air support.  "We gave them every chance to determine their own future.  What we could not provide them was the will to fight for that future."</blockquote> <h6>Featured image credit: PJF Military Collection / Alamy</h6>

Photos show '640 Afghan refugees' crammed into US Air Force plane

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