On Wednesday, CNN chief international correspondent Clarissa Ward was reporting on the ground in the Afghan capitol of Kabul, chronicling the unfolding chaos after the Taliban took over the country.
Ward said her crew was “accosted” near the Kabul Airport – with fighters running up on the crew with guns and violence in mind.
Here's the moment that @clarissaward and crew were confronted by the Taliban on the streets of Kabul. pic.twitter.com/2ueKYbR8xg
— Oliver Darcy (@oliverdarcy) August 18, 2021
Ward: ‘We Are Clearly Western… It’s A Very Dicey Situation’
Ward was describing the situation near the Kabul airport, where masses of Afghans are trying to get through in the hopes of getting a flight out of the country.
Video footage showed a man releasing the safety on his AK-47 and running through a crowd. Next a Taliban fighter charged Ward and her producer, hoisting the butt of his gun.
“You can see that some of these Taliban fighters, they’re just hopped up on adrenaline or I don’t know what,” Ward said. “It’s a very dicey situation.”
“It’s completely unpredictable,” Ward said. “To me, it’s a miracle that more people haven’t been seriously hurt.”
Ward added, “When the fighters are told we have permission to report, they lower their weapons and let us pass.”
During an interview with Jake Tapper on his CNN program “The Lead,” the reporter said her crew had been “exposed to all sorts of insanity.”
“And you can imagine, Jake, I mean, this is us,” Ward said. “We are a news crew. We are clearly Western.”
Ward – despite working for CNN – has had her moment in the sun since the Taliban takeover.
She’s donned the traditional garb of the region and continued to report on the ground despite the absence of security provided by U.S. forces in a dangerous and hostile area that surely must be terrifying for a Western woman.
Our story from the madness outside Kabul airport where we witnessed Taliban fighters whipping people, shooting into the crowd and amazing producer @BrentSwailsCNN had a very close call https://t.co/YJZKCdCFAa
— Clarissa Ward (@clarissaward) August 19, 2021
Ward Still Reporting
“And still, we were exposed to all sorts of insanity,” Ward noted. “If you’re an ordinary Afghan trying to get past those Taliban guards and trying to get into the airport, I mean, I just don’t see how you’re able to do it.”
She continued, “I don’t see how you’re able to really get in unless you have some kind of a contact or a connection or you’re able to arrange something somehow.”
“Frankly, Jake, there’s no real hope,” Ward said.
Now is the time to support and share the sources you trust.
The Political Insider ranks #16 on Feedspot’s “Top 70 Conservative Political Blogs, Websites & Influencers in 2021.”