The first international commercial flight since the Taliban took over Afghanistan landed in Kabul on Monday.
The flight departed from Islamabad, Pakistan, and landed at Hamid Karzai International Airport, which reopened after the U.S. and coalition forces used it to evacuate more than 120,000 people from Afghanistan who were at risk under the Taliban regime.
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“There was hardly anyone on the plane, around 10 people … maybe more staff than passengers,” an Agence France-Presse journalist aboard the flight said, according to the outlet. Approximately 100 passengers were waiting to get on flights returning to Islamabad, airport ground staff told AFP.
“It was a special chartered commercial flight,” airline spokesman Abdullah H. Khan told Reuters. “We also accommodated other individuals who wanted to leave Afghanistan since we had space on the plane.”
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Some outbound flights to Qatar have carried evacuees unable to leave before the U.S. and their coalition allies withdrew troops from Afghanistan at the end of August.
How the airports are operated will provide a test for the Taliban as they resume their reign in Afghanistan. U.S. and NATO allies have said the Taliban must meet various humanitarian and social benchmarks to garner international support.
