The faces, many male but with some women and children, look up towards the camera, their expressions a mixture of anxiety and possibly some relief.
The image was initially obtained by the US defence analysis website, Defense One, but was released by the US Air Mobility Command public affairs office on Tuesday.
On Sunday, panicked civilians had scrambled up the loading ramp, Defense One quoted a US official as saying, but the crew decided it was best to take off rather than force the Afghans off the plane. The number onboard – 640 – is among the highest carried by that type of plane, a C-17 Globemaster. It’s approaching, though still some way off, the record for the number of people transported by any plane – an Israeli Boeing 747 carrying more than 1,000 Jewish migrants from Ethiopia in 1991.
The US defence official quoted by Defense One, says the flight from Kabul to Qatar was one of several which managed to extract hundreds of Afghans from Kabul. The photo stands in contrast to the chaotic images which emerged from Kabul airport on Monday as it was overrun by Afghans terrified at the prospect of Taliban rule. US soldiers struggled to keep control.
News Source : New york times
