"Get back, get back," screamed the British soldier at a crowd gathered in front of the secure compound where those being evacuated by the UK embassy are taken before flying out.

In front of him, many frantically waved their British passports in the air, hoping to be allowed through but a group of Afghan security guards wielding rubber hoses tried to push them back.

Many in the crowd had not received any indication they would be evacuated, but had pitched up in any case, desperate for a route out of Afghanistan. Others, however, had received emails from the embassy telling them arrive here, and wait to be processed for a flight.

They include Helmand Khan, an Uber driver from west London, who had arrived with his young children in Afghanistan a few months back to visit relatives. He thrusts a handful of British passports towards me. "For the last three days I'm trying to go inside," he tells me in despair, with his two young sons by his side.

Also here is Khalid, a former interpreter for the British army. His wife gave birth to a child just two weeks ago, and he's terrified the baby could die in such scenes. "I've been here since the morning," he says, "the Taliban lashed me on the back on my way."