Centcom chief met Taliban leaders in Doha

WASHINGTON: The US military commanders were in regular communication with Taliban leaders to keep Kabul’s airport secure for evacuations.

Gen. Frank McKenzie, commander of US Central Command, visited the Hamid Karzai International Airport on Tuesday, according to a release from US Central Command. Ahead of his visit on Tuesday, the US general met with Taliban senior leaders in Doha Sunday and cautioned the leaders “against interference in our evacuation, and made it clear to them that any attack would be met with overwhelming force in the defense of our forces,” the release said.

McKenzie engaged with “US military leaders on the ground” at HKIA today, the release said.“I saw firsthand our defensive lay down and the work our forces are doing toefficiently operate the airfield while ensuring the safe movement of civilians and diplomats who are leaving Kabul,” McKenzie said in the release.

McKenzie said US military air traffic controllers and “ground handlers are rapidly scaling up operations to ensure the smooth flow of military reinforcements to the airport and the evacuation of US and partner civilians in coordination” with the State Department, the release said. The airfield is currently secure and “open to civilian air traffic,” the release said.

Meanwhile, the US Air Force Office of Special Investigations is opening an investigation into human remains found in the wheel well of a C-17 that took off from Kabul’s international airport, the Air Force said in a statement.

The remains were discovered after the plane landed at Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar. The crew made the decision to take off because of the deteriorating security situation at the airport after hundreds of Afghans breached the perimeter and surrounded the C-17. Video of Afghans running with the plane went viral, as did video of appearing to show Afghan civilians falling from the side of the plane in mid-air after desperately trying to hold on.