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At least five killed at Kabul airport - witnesses

A member of Taliban stands guard as people walk at the entrance gate of Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul

KABUL (Reuters) - At least five people were killed in Kabul airport as hundreds of people tried to forcibly enter planes leaving the Afghan capital, witnesses told Reuters.

One witness said he had seen the bodies of five people being taken to a vehicle. Another witness said it was not clear whether the victims were killed by gunshots or in a stampede.

U.S. troops, who are in charge of the airport, earlier fired in the air to scatter the crowd, a U.S. official said.

Officials were not immediately available to comment on the deaths.

(Reporting by Rupam Jain, Writing by Raju Gopalakrishnan; Editing by Giles Elgood)