A video showing an Afghan baby being handed to U.S. troops over a razor-wired wall went viral, adding to the already disturbing images of the situation in Afghanistan.
The baby was lifted over the wall into Kabul Airport. There are other images of children being lifted over the barrier to get them to safety.
Watch the video below:
The video sparked a strong reaction from some on Twitter.
Nothing but heartbreaking scenes from #Afghanistan. A baby is pulled over a wall by U.S. soldiers. The Afghans are truly running for their lives. Life under the #Taliban. pic.twitter.com/bnVN3LoceT
— Steve Hanke (@steve_hanke) August 19, 2021
There are Afghan children and babies being passed to people at Kabul airport. This is where we're at, America.
— Holly Dagres (@hdagres) August 19, 2021
You can hang your head in shame later… Right now we need YOU to call your reps and demand ALL Afghans in danger, not just SIV, be evacuated. pic.twitter.com/mxkRp4jLOg
It’s heart wrenching to see Afghans passing their babies through crowds of strangers in hope of getting them out of the country they love and call home.
— Allen Ellison (@AllenLEllison) August 19, 2021
The chaos & fear of people is a testament to the international community’s role in AFG’s downfall & their subsequent abandonment of Afghan people. The future for AFG has bn decided for its people without its people’s vote & now they live at the mercy of a terrorist group. #Kabul pic.twitter.com/k4bevc2eHE
— Omar Haidari (@OmarHaidari1) August 19, 2021
CNN played the video during a segment Friday morning as the network’s Clarissa Ward reported on the heartbreaking stories of women being separated from their families.
“People telling us awful stories of being separated from their families. Being crushed. I spoke to one soldier who said that a woman has been trampled almost to death… Babies being thrown over the razor wire,” Ward said.
She added, “Because to avoid them getting crushed and to try to get them out safely. One U.S. soldier told me his buddy actually caught the baby and had to go and find the family to give the baby back.”
Watch her comments below:
https://twitter.com/brikeilarcnn/status/1428663600076541954
CNN’s Brianna Keilar pressed White House communications director Kate Bedingfield on whether the Biden administration is going to get people out of Afghanistan, as IJR reported.
“We are doing everything we can to get as many people out who want to get out before the August 31 deadline. That is the sole focus of the President of the United States and his team right now. They are doing everything operationally within their capacity to get out,” Bedingfield said.
She continued, “The one thing I would want your viewers to take on… is whenever we began a mass evacuation like this, it was going to trigger chaos.”
The Department of Defense has evacuated roughly 7,000 people since August 14 and 12,000 people since the end of July, a White House official reported.