Afghanistan crisis live updates: US warns citizens to stay away from Kabul airport due to potential threats

ens of members of armed uprising groups attacked the Pol-e-Hesar district of northern Baghlan province in Afghanistan and cleared them of the Taliban. Ever since the Taliban toppled all but Panjsher province on August 15, the fighters were engaged in their first armed conflict which erupted between them and the people's uprising. Local residents claim two other districts -- Deh Salah and Qasaan -- have also been taken back from the Taliban, Afghan media reported.

Many people in west London with family members trying to get out of Afghanistan are seeking advice and information from a local organization set up to support Afghan and Central Asian refugees 20 years ago. Afghanistan & Central Asian Association has received hundreds of emotional telephone calls in recent days from people in Afghanistan, including vacationing British Afghans caught up in the sudden and chaotic turn of events.

Afghan government employees in Kabul were blocked by Taliban militants from returning to work on Saturday, the first day of the working week. Only a few private telecommunication companies have been operating in the past few days. Workers at the offices of the Ministry of Rural Rehabilitation in Kabul were, however, allowed to enter after showing their ID cards, an employee said. Most roads in the capital were largely deserted save for Taliban checkpoints and patrolling militants.

"Because of potential security threats outside the gates at the Kabul airport, we are advising US citizens to avoid travelling to the airport and to avoid airport gates at this time unless you receive individual instructions from a US government representative to do so," an advisory said.

EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Saturday that the European Union has not recognised the Taliban nor is it holding political talks with them. Von der Leyen said she would propose an increase to the 57 million euros in humanitarian aid which the Commission had allocated this year for Afghanistan, stressing that the funds were tied to respect of human rights, good treatment of minorities and respect for the rights of women and girls.

Abdullah Abdullah, a senior leader of the ousted Afghan government, and former Afghan President Hamid Karzai met 'so-called' acting Taliban governor of Kabul, Abdul Rahman Mansour, on Saturday. They discussed the priority of protecting the lives, property and dignity of Kabul citizens. Abdullah told the Taliban's acting Kabul governor that "In order to return to normality in the capital Kabul, it is imperative that citizens...feel safe and secure," according to a statement by Abdullah Abdullah's office. The acting governor pledged to "do everything possible for the security of the people of Kabul," Abdullah's office said.

"We have heard of some cases of atrocities and crimes against civilians," said a Taliban official on condition of anonymity. "If (members of the Taliban) are doing these law and order problems, they will be investigated," he said. "We can understand the panic, stress and anxiety. People think we will not be accountable, but that will not be the case."

The new government structure would not be a democracy by Western definitions, but it will protect everyone's rights, the Taliban said.

"The security situation around Kabul airport has worsened significantly in the last hours. A large number of people in front of the airport and sometimes violent confrontations are hindering access to the airport in Kabul," the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA) said in a statement. Switzerland said on Friday it had organised a charter flight to Uzbekistan to back up the evacuation of people from Afghanistan.

Taliban officials in the restive Herat province have banned co-education in government and private universities, describing it as the 'root of all evils in society'. The decision was taken after a meeting between varsity professors, owners of private institutions, and Taliban authorities, Khaama Press News Agency reported on Saturday. This is the first 'fatwa' issued by the Taliban after its swift takeover of Afghanistan last week.

Italy says its military has evacuated nearly 1,000 Afghan citizens out of Kabul over the last five days. The Defense Ministry said that two flights carrying 207 Afghans arrived Saturday in Rome from Kuwait, which Italy is using as a staging ground for the Kabul evacuations.

Jammu and Kashmir LG Manoj Sinha on Saturday urged Union Minister of State (MoS) for External Affairs V Muraleedharan again for the immediate evacuation of professors from Jammu and Kashmir employed in an Afghanistan university. These professors from J-K's Kulgam were teaching at Bakhtar University in Kabul.

With anti-Pakistan protests erupting across several countries against Islamabad's proxy role in Afghanistan and helping the Taliban, army Chief General Bajwa said that his country will continue to play its role in bringing peace and stability to Afghanistan. Addressing cadets at the Pakistan Military Academy at Kakul on Friday, Gen Bajwa said: "We expect the Taliban will honour their promises regarding the rights of women." "We have consistently made it clear to the international community that it must play a role in finding a peaceful solution to Afghanistan," the Pakistan Army Chief was quoted as saying

Other senior Taliban leaders seen in the capital in recent days include Khalil Haqqani -- one of America's most wanted terrorists with a $5 million bounty on his head. Pro-Taliban social media feeds showed Haqqani meeting Gulbuddin Hekmatyar -- a former bitter rival during the brutal civil war of the early 1990s, but still influential in Afghan politics. A senior Taliban official told AFP that Baradar would meet "jihadi leaders and politicians for an inclusive government set-up".

The Taliban have not kidnapped any foreigner, although some of them are being questioned before being allowed to leave Afghanistan, an official of the Islamist militant group said on Saturday.