The first rescue mission carrying Afghan evacuees has landed safely in the UK after escaping the Taliban – as thousands remain trapped in Kabul and fearing for their lives.

The RAF plane, which also carried stranded Brits, touched down in Brize Norton in Oxfordshire at about 11pm on Tuesday.

People were pictured peering through the plane windows and giving photographers on the tarmac below a thumbs-ups before disembarking the Voyager A330 aircraft.

British troops are racing to evacuate around 6,000 people from Afghanistan via the capital Kabul, which fell to the Taliban on Sunday.

The first flight of British nationals and embassy staff arrived at the base on Sunday night, and more carrying Afghan interpreters and other eligible locals are expected in the coming days.

It comes after horrifying scenes on Monday as crowds desperate to flee the Taliban were filmed chasing down jets along the runway and clinging onto the wheels of a US military plane.

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