Charter plane of Afghanistan evacuees stuck at Abu Dhabi airport

US authorities bar charter plane of 117 US citizens and Afghan evacuees from entry after flight from Kabul.

United States authorities have denied landing permission to a charter flight carrying 117 US citizens and Afghan evacuees now stuck in security at Abu Dhabi’s international airport, an organiser of the flight said.

The group of evacuees are all US citizens, permanent legal residents, or special immigrant visa applicants including 59 children under the age of 18, said Stan Bunner, a lawyer in Naples, Florida and former US military veteran, on Wednesday.

“Why these US citizens can’t get back to the United States and why they are stuck at this airport is beyond me,” Bunner told Al Jazeera.