Afghan Youth National Soccer Team Member Found Dead Near US Transport Plane Landing Gear

Zaki Anwari, a youth national soccer team player who died while trying to board a US military transport plane to escape Afghanistan.
[Photo by BBC]

[Asia Economy Reporter Seoyoung Kwon] Amid the Taliban's takeover of Afghanistan, it has been revealed that one of the civilians who died after clinging to a U.S. military transport plane was a teenage youth national soccer team player.

On the 19th (local time), major foreign media outlets including CNN reported, citing a statement from the local Sports Authority, that Zaki Anwari (19), a youth national soccer team player, was confirmed to have died after clinging to a U.S. military C-17 transport plane. Anwari's body was found near the landing gear where the plane's wheels retract.

Anwari was a promising player who began his youth soccer national team career at the age of 16 in 2018. The Sports Authority stated in their announcement, "We have lost one of the youth soccer players from the national team," adding, "He fell during the flight while seeking a better future."

Tragic news continues to emerge locally from those attempting to escape Afghanistan. On the 16th, at Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, two civilians clinging to a U.S. military C-17 transport plane fell to their deaths. Videos capturing the airport scene at that time spread widely through various media, online communities, and social networking services (SNS), shocking many.

Additionally, on the 18th, more civilians were found who had fallen after clinging to the wheels of a transport plane taking off from Kabul airport. These were boys aged 16 and 17 who had supported their younger siblings and mother by selling fruit. It is presumed that after the Taliban's takeover, they clung to the outside of the transport plane in an attempt to flee Afghanistan and suffered accidents.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.