A Pentagon spokesman did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The Washington Post first reported the news.
Pentagon spokesman John Kirby told reporters Monday that the Defense Department has temporarily suspended military and civilian flights in an effort to clear the runway of desperate civilians who have rushed to the airport.
While Kirby could not confirm an investigation into civilian deaths related to C-17 flights departing from the airport, he told reporters Monday that he expected the administration to investigate the incident.
The Pentagon has so far sent about 5,000 additional troops to Kabul to help secure the airport so that thousands of US citizens, embassy staff and vulnerable Afghans can leave the country safely. Officials expected the United States to have 3,000 troops on the ground at the airport by Monday. The rest will fly by in the next few days.
According to Major General Hank Taylor, Deputy Director of the Joint Chiefs of Staff for Regional Operations and Forces Management. .
Kirby confirmed earlier today that US forces responded to “hostile threats” after two militants were killed in two separate incidents. He said a US soldier was wounded in the incident but was unable to confirm the person’s condition late Monday.
Meanwhile, more than 600 other Afghans swarmed C-17s — a number believed to be one of the most flown ever in the Army’s massive cargo plane, the Defense Ministry said.
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