Blinken denies Taliban blocking Americans from leaving Mazar-i-Sharif

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Qatari Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani hold a joint news conference at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Doha, Qatar September 7, 2021. Olivier Douliery/Pool via REUTERS

DOHA (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken denied on Tuesday reports that the Taliban had blocked Americans attempting to fly out of of a northern Afghan city, but said the group had not allowed charter flights to depart because some people lacked valid travel documents.

Reports have emerged over the past few days that 1,000 people, including Americans, had been stuck at Mazar-i-Sharif airport https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/some-1000-people-awaiting-taliban-flight-clearance-mazar-i-sharif-new-york-times-2021-09-05 for days awaiting clearance for their charter flights to leave.