Pakistan's PIA to Restart Commercial Flights to Kabul on Monday

ISLAMABAD - Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) will resume flights from Islamabad to Kabul next week, a spokesperson told AFP Saturday, becoming the first foreign commercial service since the Taliban seized power last month.

Kabul airport was severely damaged during a chaotic evacuation of more than 120,000 people that ended with the withdrawal of US forces on Aug. 30. The Taliban have been scrambling to get it operating again with Qatari technical assistance. "We have got all technical clearances for flight operations," PIA spokesperson Abdullah Hafeez Khan told AFP. "Our first commercial plane... is scheduled to fly from Islamabad to Kabul on September 13."