Rockets fired in Kabul amid US withdrawal

Moscow welcomes French president's call for 'safe zone' in Afghan capital

Rocket fire apparently targeting Kabul's international airport struck a nearby neighborhood on Monday, the eve of the deadline for the United States' troops to withdraw from its longest war after the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan.

The rockets attached to a sedan were fired toward the airport from Khair Khana Minia locality, according to witness Sayyad Mohammad.

Later, a US official said US antimissile defenses intercepted as many as five rockets early on Monday, Reuters reported.

There were no reports of casualties yet, and no group has claimed responsibility for the attack.

Afghan media said Monday's rocket attack was launched from the back of a vehicle. The Pajhwok news agency said several rockets struck different parts of the Afghan capital.

US officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment. US military cargo planes continued their evacuations at the airport after the rocket fire.

In Washington, the White House issued a statement saying officials briefed US President Joe Biden on "the rocket attack at Hamid Karzai International Airport" in Kabul.

The withdrawal would "continue uninterrupted" at the airport and the president ordered that "commanders redouble their efforts to prioritize doing whatever is necessary to protect our forces on the ground", the statement said.

In Moscow, the Kremlin on Monday welcomed French President Emmanuel Macron's proposal to create a "safe zone" in Kabul to protect humanitarian operations.

"This is certainly a proposal that must be discussed," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, adding that it was "very important" to discuss all aspects of "such a zone".

France and the United Kingdom would urge the United Nations on Monday to work for the creation of this secure area to "allow humanitarian work to continue", Macron said on Sunday.

France ended its evacuation efforts on Friday, Britain did so on Saturday and the US is set to complete its efforts on Tuesday.

The French leader said that such a safe zone would allow the international community "to maintain pressure on the Taliban".

Russia for its part last week airlifted several hundred of its citizens and those of neighboring states as the security situation deteriorated.

Potential threats

President Vladimir Putin has warned that militants could use the unstable situation in Afghanistan to enter neighboring countries under the guise of seeking asylum.

On Sunday, a US drone strike blew up a vehicle carrying Islamic State suicide bombers before they could attack the ongoing military evacuation at Kabul's airport, US officials said. However, the Taliban said the strike killed several people－including civilians and three children, sparking anger over the civilian casualties.

It came after an IS suicide bomb outside the airport on Thursday killed 13 US troops and scores of Afghan civilians.

US Central Command said it was investigating reports of civilian casualties from Sunday's strike.

The drone attack killed seven people, Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid told China's CGTN on Monday, criticizing the US action on foreign soil as unlawful.

"We condemn such attacks because it is illegal to carry out arbitrary attacks in other countries. If there was any potential threat, it should have been reported to us, not an arbitrary attack that has resulted in civilian casualties," Mujahid said in a written response to a question about the airstrikes.

Meanwhile, a relative of one of the deceased said nine members of one family were killed in the attack, including six children.

"We are not ISIS and this was a family home－where my brothers lived with their families," said the man.

The number of US troops at the airport had fallen below 4,000 over the weekend, and White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said that the US has the capacity to evacuate them.

He said the US does not currently plan an embassy presence in Kabul after the withdrawal but will ensure "safe passage for any American citizen, any legal permanent resident" after Tuesday, as well as for "those Afghans who helped us".

By Tuesday, the US is set to conclude a massive two-week-long airlift of more than 114,000 Afghans and foreigners and withdraw the last of its troops.

Xinhua and agencies contributed to this story.