The Latest: US warns of credible threat at Kabul airport

KABUL, Afghanistan - The U.S. State Department is urging all Americans in the vicinity of the Afghanistan's Kabul airport to leave the area immediately because of a specific, credible threat.

The warning early Sunday morning says U.S. citizens should avoid traveling to the airport and avoid all airport gates at this time. It specifically noted the South (Airport Circle) gate, the new Ministry of the Interior, and the gate near the Panjshir Petrol station on the northwest side of the airport.

A suicide bombing at the airport on Thursday killed at least 169 Afghans and 13 U.S. service members.

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LONDON - The final British troops have left Kabul, ending the country's 20-year military involvement in Afghanistan.

The government said late Saturday that about 1,000 troops who had been running an airlift of British nationals and Afghan civilians have departed on flights from Kabul airport. Most countries apart from the United States had already left.

Britain says it has evacuated about 15,000 people from Kabul since the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan in mid-August, but that as many as 1,100 Afghans entitled to come to the U.K. have been left behind.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson praised the 'œheroic'ť evacuation effort. Saying the two-decade deployment has been worthwhile despite its chaotic end, Johnson says this was 'œa moment to reflect on everything we have sacrificed and everything we have achieved in the last two decades.'ť

Some 150,000 British troops served in Afghanistan in the years after the 2001 invasion that set out to remove al-Qaida from the country, and 457 U.K. personnel died ther

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MORE ON AFGHANISTAN:

- Afghanistan's economic crisis deepens as airlift winds down

- GOP rift widens amid growing hostility to Afghan refugees

- Taliban success in Afghanistan seen as boost for extremists

- Explainer: How dangerous is Afghanistan's Islamic State?

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- Find more AP coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/afghanistan

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HERE'S WHAT ELSE IS HAPPENING:

ZAGREB, Croatia - Croatian police say 19 Afghan citizens evacuated from their country because of the threat from the Taliban have landed in Croatia.

A police statement says the group arriving Saturday evening included three families with 10 children and a single man.

Police say the evacuees are people with links to the European Union delegation in Kabul and their families and have expressed intent to seek asylum in Croatia.

They will be housed in a camp for vulnerable groups since they include minors. No other details are immediately available.

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WASHINGTON -- President Joe Biden said that a retaliatory drone strike he ordered to be carried out against the Islamic State group's affiliate in Afghanistan would not be his 'œlast'ť response to the group for carrying out a deadly attack against U.S. troops and Afghan civilians near the Kabul airport.

Biden said in a statement Saturday he discussed the strike with top military commanders, who briefed him on the ongoing evacuation of Afghans and U.S. citizens from the airport, which is set to wind down on Tuesday.

The president said commanders told him that another attack 'œis highly likely in the next 24-36 hours.'ť

Two IS members were killed and another was wounded in the drone strike early Saturday in eastern Afghanistan.

'œI said we would go after the group responsible for the attack on our troops and innocent civilians in Kabul, and we have,'ť Biden said. 'œWe will continue to hunt down any person involved in that heinous attack and make them pay.'ť

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BERLIN - German Chancellor Angela Merkel has spoken with both British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte to discuss the situation in Afghanistan and the status of evacuation efforts from the country.

Merkel's office said the three leaders 'œwere in agreement'ť on Saturday that evacuating citizens, local workers and those in need of protection 'œwill continue to be a top priority,'ť as will humanitarian aid for refugees and the local population.

Merkel spokesman Steffen Seibert said that in her conversations with both Johnson and Rutte, Merkel discussed the security situation for diplomatic personnel and spoke about 'œpossible political and diplomatic options.'ť

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PARIS - France is holding discussions with the Taliban and Qatar with a view to retrieving Afghans on France's list for evacuation who could not get out before France shut down operations at Kabul airport the night before.

French President Emmanuel Macron said the talks Saturday 'œremain fragile and very provisional.'ť He spoke at a news conference in Baghdad during the first leg of a two-day visit to Iraq. The emir of Qatar was among leaders present at a regional summit centered on Iraq co-organized by France.

'œOur goal is that in the days, weeks months ahead '¦ (France could) proceed with targeted evacuation operations of these men and women whom we identified,'ť Macron said, suggesting that airlines could be used 'œwith security conditions that remain to be defined.'ť He did not further elaborate.

Such operations would necessarily take place in a 'œdifferent framework'ť from the mass evacuations headed by the United States, which is set to pull out of Kabul on Tuesday. France made its last flight out Friday.

The operations France envisages would be 'œsystematically negotiated with the Taliban,'ť in particular the security aspect.

Macron also set out three 'œessential prerequisites'ť for discussing any future political relations with the Taliban, including that they 'œabsolutely respect'ť humanitarian rights and the right of Afghans who want to leave to seek protection be able to do so, notably artists, intellectuals, journalists and women. He said the Taliban must also respect a 'œred line'ť regarding all terrorist groups and respect human rights, in particular the dignity of women.

The French ambassador to Kabul, evacuated Friday, is to continue working in Paris in that function.

Since mid-August, France evacuated about 2,830 people, the great majority of them Afghans on some 15 flights after pulling out 630 personnel and their families in the spring. France, which withdrew its troops from Afghanistan at the end of 2014, had also previously taken in 830 people working for the French army.

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WASHINGTON - The Pentagon has released the names of the 13 American service members killed in a suicide bombing at the Kabul airport.

They include 11 Marines, one Navy sailor who was assigned to a Marine Corps unit, and an Army Special Forces soldier. They died in an attack claimed by the Islamic State group's Afghanistan affiliate, which also killed at least 170 Afghans.

The 11 Marines are Staff Sgt. Darin T. Hoover, 31, of Salt Lake City, Utah; Sgt. Johanny Rosariopichardo, 25, of Lawrence, Massachusetts; Sgt. Nicole L. Gee, 23, of Sacramento, California; Cpl. Hunter Lopez, 22, of Indio, California; Cpl. Daegan W. Page, 23, of Omaha, Nebraska; Cpl. Humberto A. Sanchez, 22, of Logansport, Indiana; Lance Cpl. David L. Espinoza, 20, of Rio Bravo, Texas; Lance Cpl. Jared M. Schmitz, 20, of St. Charles, Missouri; Lance Cpl. Rylee J. McCollum, 20, of Jackson, Wyoming; Lance Cpl. Dylan R. Merola, 20, of Rancho Cucamonga, California, and Lance Cpl. Kareem M. Nikoui, 20, of Norco, California. Also killed were Navy Hospitalman Maxton W. Soviak, 22, of Berlin Heights, Ohio, and Army Staff Sgt. Ryan C. Knauss, 23, of Corryton, Tennessee.

The Pentagon said Saturday their remains were being flown to the United States.

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ISTANBUL '“ Turkish media says an evacuation flight from Afghanistan has landed in the U.K. with an extra passenger - after cabin crew delivered a baby girl mid-air.

When the traditional cry of 'œIs there a doctor on the flight?'ť went unanswered on Saturday, Turkish Airlines staff helped 26-year-old Afghan Soman Noori give birth at 30,000 feet, Demiroren News Agency said.

Soman and her husband had been evacuated from Kabul to Dubai, United Arab Emirates, where they caught a flight to Birmingham.

Shortly after the plane took off on Friday night, Soman's labor pains started and crew members stepped in to deliver the couple's third child.

The flight landed in Kuwait as a precautionary measure and mother and baby were deemed healthy enough to carry on to the U.K.

The baby girl was named Havva, which translates as Eve in English.

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LONDON - Britain's defense ministry says the final U.K. evacuation flight for Afghan nationals has left Kabul, as the country's ambassador announced that it's 'œtime to close this phase of the operation.'ť

The U.K. military says further flights over the weekend will bring home British troops and diplomats, though they may also carry some remaining U.K. or Afghan civilians.

Britain's ambassador to Afghanistan, Laurie Bristow, said from Kabul airport it was 'œtime to close this phase of the operation now.'ť

'œBut we haven't forgotten the people who still need to leave,'ť he said in a video posted on Twitter. 'œWe'll continue to do everything we can to help them. Nor have we forgotten the brave, decent people of Afghanistan. They deserve to live in peace and security.'ť

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KABUL, Afghanistan - The Taliban have deployed extra forces around Kabul's airport to prevent large crowds from gathering after a deadly suicide attack two days earlier.

The massive U.S.-led airlift is winding down ahead of an Aug. 31 deadline, with many allies having completed their own operations.

The Taliban on Saturday set up new layers of checkpoints on roads leading to the airport, some manned by uniformed fighters with Humvees and night-vision goggles captured from Afghan security forces.

Areas where large crowds have massed for the past two weeks were largely empty. A suicide attack Thursday by an Islamic State affiliate killed 169 Afghans and 13 U.S. service members, and there are concerns that the group could strike again.

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KABUL, Afghanistan - Hundreds of Afghans have protested outside a bank in Kabul as others form long lines at cash machines.

The protesters Saturday at New Kabul Bank included many civil servants demanding their salaries, which they said had not been paid for the past three to six months.

They said even though banks reopened three days ago no one has been able to withdraw cash. ATM machines are still operating, but withdrawals are limited to around $200 every 24 hours, contributing to the formation of long lines.

Meanwhile, a U.N. agency warned that a worsening drought could leave millions in need of humanitarian aid.

The economic crisis could give Western nations leverage as they urge Afghanistan's new rulers to form an inclusive government and allow people to leave after the planned withdrawal of all U.S. forces on Aug. 31.

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ROME - A NATO diplomat who helped coordinate evacuations at Kabul airport says the organization will try its best to get those who were left behind to safety.

Stefano Pontecorvo spoke to reporters at Rome's main airport Saturday morning shortly after disembarking from an Italian Air Force plane that carried out Italy's final evacuation of Afghan civilians.

'œWe crossed the line between possible and impossible to get in (to the airport) everybody we could, keep the airport running, to coordinate whatever'ť was doable given the situation, said Pontecorvo, who is NATO's senior civilian representative to Afghanistan.

But Pontecorvo said he was "unsatisfied because we left a few behind, which we are not abandoning, but we will strive our best'ť to get them to safety.

Referring to Thursday's Islamic State attack outside the airport perimeter, Pontecorvo also praised 'œthe generosity of the servicemen, who under threat, went to the gate and pulled family after family'ť inside the facility.

He referred to the 13 members of the U.S. military whose lives were lost, saying 'œeven having lost in that way 12 brothers and one sister, in a couple of hours (the U.S. military) had the airport and everything else back running so we could get people out.'ť

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TEHRAN, Iran - Iran's supreme leader has called the situation in Afghanistan a tragedy and blamed the U.S. for the problems there.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in his first official meeting with new president Ebrahim Raisi's Cabinet on Saturday said 'œthe tragedies in Afghanistan are deeply affecting human beings (and were) made by America.'ť

'œThe hardships they are suffering, the incidents that are happening, Thursday's incident, such killings, all by America,'ť he said.

At the Kabul airport, thousands are still gathering in hope of fleeing the country after the Taliban takeover, even after a suicide attack Thursday killed 169 Afghans and 13 U.S. service members and amid warnings of more attacks. A massive U.S.-led airlift is winding down

Khamenei said Americans 'œoccupied'ť Afghanistan for 20 years.

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LONDON - Britain is starting to bring its troops home from Afghanistan as the country's evacuation operation at Kabul airport ends.

A Royal Air Force plane carrying soldiers landed at the RAF Brize Norton air base northwest of London on Saturday morning. The troops are part of a contingent of 1,000 that has been based in Kabul to help run the airlift.

Flights bringing U.K. citizens and Afghans have largely ended, though the head of the armed forces, Gen. Nick Carter, said there would be a 'œvery few'ť more on Saturday.

Britain says it has evacuated more than 14,500 people from Kabul in the past two weeks, but that as many as 1,000 Afghans entitled to come to the U.K. have been left behind.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson promised Friday to 'œshift heaven and earth'ť to get more people from Afghanistan to Britain by other means, though no concrete details have been offered.

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ROME - Italy's final evacuation flight of refugees from Afghanistan has landed at Rome's Leonardo da Vinci airport.

The Italian Air Force C-130J with 58 Afghan citizens aboard arrived Saturday morning, some 17 hours after it departed from the Kabul airport and after a planned stopover.

Also aboard were Italy's consul and a NATO diplomat who had coordinated evacuations at the Kabul airport.

Italian Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio said Italy was prepared to work with the United Nations and with countries bordering Afghanistan on what he described as the 'œmore difficult phase.'ť

He said that consisted of efforts to evacuate other Afghan citizens who worked with Italy's military during its 20-year presence in Afghanistan but weren't able to get into Kabul airport in time for the evacuation flights. He didn't say how many still were eligible for evacuation to Italy.

Rescuing those citizens 'œwould give them the same possibility'ť of starting a new life outside their homeland, Di Maio said in a brief statement at Rome's airport. He said the 4,890 Afghans evacuated by Italy's air force in 87 flights was the highest number of any European Union nation.

Italy's remaining soldiers left on a separate flight from Kabul on Friday night. That air force flight went to Kuwait and the troops are due back in Italy early next week.

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ROME - A U.N. agency is warning that worsening drought in Afghanistan threatens the livelihoods of more than 7 million people.

The Rome-based Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) on Saturday issued an appeal for humanitarian assistance. Adding to the plight of what the agency termed 'œsevere drought'ť are the economic impact of COVID-19 and widespread internal displacement of Afghans amid enduring conflict.

Earlier this month, the U.N. World Food Program, another Rome-based agency, estimated that some 14 million people - roughly one out of every three Afghans - urgently need food assistance.

The FAO said crucial help is needed ahead of the winter wheat planting season, which begins in a month in many areas.

FAO's representative in Afghanistan, Richard Trenchard, said in a statement that 'œdisaster looms'ť if sufficient help doesn't materialize for the next winter wheat season.

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WASHINGTON - The United States military struck back at the Islamic State on Saturday, bombing an IS member in Afghanistan less than 48 hours after a devastating suicide bombing claimed by the group killed as many as 169 Afghans and 13 American service members at the Kabul airport.

U.S. Central Command said the U.S. conducted a drone strike against an Islamic State member in Nangarhar believed to be involved in planning attacks against the U.S. in Kabul. The strike killed one individual, and spokesman Navy Capt. William Urban said they knew of no civilian casualties.

It wasn't clear if that individual was involved specifically in the Thursday suicide blast outside the gates of the Kabul airport, where crowds of Afghans were desperately trying to get in as part of the ongoing evacuation from the country after the Taliban's rapid takeover.

The airstrike fulfilled a vow President Joe Biden made to the nation Thursday when he said the perpetrators of the attack would not be able to hide. 'œWe will hunt you down and make you pay,'ť he said. Pentagon leaders told reporters Friday that they were prepared for whatever retaliatory action the president ordered.

'œWe have options there right now,'ť said Maj. Gen. Hank Taylor of the Pentagon's Joint Staff.