UAE aviation authority bans flights to Afghanistan

Chaos on the runway at Kabul airport stopped civilian and military planes landing or taking off

Afghan families walk past aircraft at Hamid Karzai International Airport as thousands try to flee the Taliban. Getty Images

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The United Arab Emirates' aviation authorities halted all flights to Afghanistan on Monday.

The decision followed the takeover of Kabul's Hamid Karzai International Airport, as chaos reigned in the capital, with planes unable to land or take off.

The UAE's General Civil Aviation Authority said the flight ban followed the "latest developments in Afghanistan, and assessing the current situation in co-ordination with the concerned authorities and national carriers in the UAE, in order to ensure the safe operation of airlines in the country".

"The General Authority of Civil Aviation also confirmed that it places the security and safety of civil aviation at the top of its list of priorities," it said.

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Afghan women, holding placards, gather to demand the protection of women's rights in front of the Presidential Palace in Kabul, Afghanistan.

Updated: August 17, 2021, 4:01 AM