One Afghan soldier killed, others wounded in gunfire at Kabul airport

One Afghan soldier was killed and others were wounded after a firefight just outside the Kabul airport Sunday night.

U.S. Central Command's spokesperson, Navy Capt. William Urban, said in a statement on Monday that "an unknown hostile actor fired upon Afghan security forces involved in monitoring access to the gate. The Afghans returned fire, and in keeping with their right of self-defense, so too did U.S. and coalition troops.

"One member of the Afghan forces was killed by the hostile actor; several Afghans were wounded during the exchange. The wounded are being treated at an airfield hospital and are reported to be in stable condition."

Six patients from the airport were treated with gunshot wounds, according to an Italian humanitarian organization that operates in Afghanistan hospitals, the Associated Press reported.

Pentagon press secretary John Kirby answered a question regarding the incident, saying that officials "cannot rule out who the hostile actor was," according to The Hill.

"Our focus was on making sure that we could maintain security at the airport," Kirby continued. "It was maintained. Sadly it resulted in the life of one Afghan soldier and wounded several others."

The violence occurred as the U.S. and its allies are evacuating their citizens and Afghans who have aided them during the 20-year war in Afghanistan. The deadline for U.S. forces to pull out of Afghanistan is Aug. 31, but President Biden is open to extending it if necessary.

"Our hope is we will not have to extend, but there are going to be discussions," Biden said this week, The Hill reported.

Taliban spokesman Suhail Shaheen told Sky News in an interview that the Aug. 31 deadline is a "red line" and if the U.S. extends it, it would "provoke a reaction," according to the AP.