Kabul airport reopened for evacuation operations: US General

Washington: Following a breakdown in security on the tarmac that interrupted evacuation operations, a US general said that Kabul's airport has been reopened early Tuesday Afghanistan time after being closed for hours by US forces

The airport reopened at 1935 GMT Monday, said Major General Hank Taylor, a logistics specialist on the Pentagon's Joint Chiefs of Staff.

He said a C-17 transport aircraft had landed with US Marines aboard, and a second one loaded with an army unit was to land soon, to help establish security for the airport.

Taylor said the United States was "in charge of air traffic control" at Hamid Karzai International Airport (HKIA) for military and commercial flights.

He added that there were already about 2,500 US troops in Kabul to help organize the evacuation of thousands of Americans and Afghans who worked for them as translators and in other jobs.