Afghanistan may be governed by a council now that the Taliban have taken over, while Islamist group’s supreme leader Haibatullah Akhundzada would likely remain in overall charge, a senior member of the group said.
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, who fled the country, through a Facebook video denied claims by his country's ambassador to Tajikistan that he had stolen millions of dollars from state funds.
Here are the latest developments:
Several killed amid firing by Taliban and stampede during rally in Afghan city
Several people were killed on Thursday in the Afghan city of Asadabad on Thursday when Taliban fighters fired on people waving the national flag at an Independence Day rally, a witness said, a day after three people were killed in a similar protest.
The protests by people waving the Afghan flag, in some cases after tearing down white Taliban flags according to media, are the first signs of popular opposition to the Taliban since their stunning advance across the country and capture of the capital, Kabul, on Sunday.
It was unclear if the casualties in Asadabad resulted from the firing or from the stampede that it triggered, witness Mohammed Salim said from the eastern city, the capital of Kunar province.
Afghans protest Taliban in emerging challenge to their rule
Afghan protesters defied the Taliban for a second day Thursday, waving their national flag in scattered demonstrations that were met with renewed violence by the militants who are facing growing challenges to their rule.
A U.N. official warned of dire food shortages in this nation of 38 million people reliant on imports and experts said the country was severely short on cash, highlighting that the Taliban face the same problems as the civilian government they dethroned without the level of international aid it enjoyed.
In light of these challenges, the militants have moved quickly to suppress any dissent, despite their promises that they have become more moderate since they last imposed draconian rule on Afghanistan. Many fear the Taliban will succeed in erasing two decades of efforts to expand women’s and human rights and remake the country. - AP
On our Independence Day, we Afghans feel like prisoners: Former Afghan journalist
Cooped up inside his Kabul home with his family since the Taliban took over the capital city, Akhtarabir Akhtar, who eagerly waits to celebrate August 19 to mark the Independence Day of his beloved Afghanistan, says instead of festivities, fear and an uneasy calm rule the streets.
Mr. Akhtar, a former journalist, is not a stranger to the fear of being targeted, but the chain of events in the past few days has given him sleepless nights.
"August 19 is our Independence Day and we celebrate this occasion every year with feast and much gaiety. People decorate their homes and plant country flags, make merry, go to decked-up bazaars, wear colourful national clothes and do the national dance 'Attan'. All of that is missing today," the 54-year-old told PTI over phone from Kabul. - PTI
No country can 'ignore' Pakistan as it convinced Afghan Taliban to talk to US: Interior Minister
“No country can ‘ignore’ Pakistan as it convinced the Afghan Taliban to hold dialogue with the US,” Pak Interior Minister Sheikh Rasheed Ahmed has said as he boasted of Islamabad's significant role in ensuring peace in Afghanistan.
“Pakistan’s efforts for the peace process in Afghanistan would be remembered for long,” he said on Wednesday. - PTI
Afghan IOC member seeks US help to evacuate female athletes
Afghanistan's International Olympic Committee (IOC) member Samira Asghari has called on the United States to help evacuate the country's top female athletes and coaching staff "before it is too late" following the Taliban takeover of her nation.
During their 1996-2001 rule, guided by Islamic law, the Taliban stopped women from working. Girls were not allowed to go to school and women had to wear burqas to go out, and then only when accompanied by a male relative.
The Taliban have said they will respect the rights of women within the framework of Islamic law.
However, former basketball captain Asghari said she feared for the safety of female athletes.
"Afghanistan national female athletes, coaches and their entourage need your help, we must get them out of Talibans hands ... Please do something before it is too late," the 27-year-old tweeted on Wednesday, tagging the U.S. basketball federation, U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee and U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan. —Reuters
Dutch military plane evacuates from Kabul
A Dutch military transport plane has arrived in Amsterdam carrying people evacuated from Kabul.
The Ministry of Defense says that a C-17 plane landed late Wednesday night at Schiphol airport. On board were 35 Dutch nationals along with citizens from Belgium, Germany and the United Kingdom.
The government says it has now airlifted 50 Dutch nationals out of Kabul. A Dutch consular crisis team along with dozens of troops to protect the personnel flew into the Afghan capital on Wednesday. - PTI
India's national security challenges becoming complex: Rajnath
Without directly referring to the Taliban, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said, "Today, the security scenario in the whole world is changing very fast. Because of this, the challenges to our national security are increasing and becoming complex. There are constant changes in the global geopolitical situation," Singh said.
Mr. Singh's comments came amid growing concerns in India and elsewhere over the Taliban sweeping across Afghanistan this month and seizing control following the collapse of the US-backed government.
He pitched for a strong, capable and completely 'self-reliant' defense industry in the country. - PTI
Uttarakhand govt asks people to submit details of stranded kin in Afghanistan
As part of efforts to ensure safe return of Uttarakhand natives stuck in Afghanistan, the State government has asked people whose relatives are stranded to give details of their kin to the district administration.
Additional Chief Secretary Anand Bardhan has asked people to provide the district administration documents like names of their relatives stranded in Afghanistan, their passports and other relevant details. -PTI
Poland to deploy 100 troops for Kabul evacuation
Poland's president has approved the deployment of a 100-person military contingent to Afghanistan to help secure the evacuation of Polish citizens and the citizens of other countries in coordination with allies.
President Andrzej Duda signed the order late Wednesday for the mission, and which is to last until September 16. -PTI
Taliban celebrates Independence Day
The Taliban celebrated Afghanistan's Independence Day on Thursday by declaring it had beaten "the arrogant of power of the world" in the United States.
Thursday marked Afghanistan’s Independence Day, which commemorates the 1919 treaty that ended British rule in the central Asian nation.
“Fortunately, today we are celebrating the anniversary of independence from Britain," the Taliban said. "We at the same time as a result of our jihadi resistance forced another arrogant of power of the world, the United States, to fail and retreat from our holy territory of Afghanistan.” - AP
EAM Jaishankar and U.K. counterpart Raab agree to work together on Afghanistan
External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and his British counterpart Dominic Raab have exchanged views on the developments in Afghanistan and agreed to work together to tackle shared security threats, support refugees and ease the humanitarian plight of ordinary Afghans.
Mr. Jaishankar arrived in New York on August 16 to chair meetings in the U.N. Security Council on technology and peacekeeping and on counter-terrorism under India’s current presidency of the Council.
During his visit, he held bilateral meetings and discussions with U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and other Foreign Ministers, focusing on the situation in Afghanistan.
Human rights think-tank appeals to NHRC for protection of Afghans landing in India
A Delhi-based human rights think-tank has appealed to the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) to ensure protection of Afghan nationals who have fled the war-torn nation to India in the wake of the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan, and grant them refugee status.
The Rights & Risks Analysis Group (RRAG) on Wednesday submitted its appeal to the NHRC. - PTI
Iran talks about Afghanistan with China, Russia
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi has discussed the situation in Afghanistan with his Chinese and Russian counterparts.
The Iranian president's website, president.ir, reported on Wednesday that he talked on the phone with Chinese President Xi Jinping and told him Iran was ready to cooperate with China in establishing security, stability and peace in Afghanistan, as well as on issues regarding the development, progress and prosperity for Afghans. - AP
31 Afghan refugees held in Peshawar for raising anti-Pak slogans, ransacking public property
Thirty-one Afghan refugees were arrested for allegedly raising anti-Pakistan slogans and ransacking public property in Peshawar late Wednesday night, police said.
According to an FIR registered in the Town police station, some Afghan refugees blocked the main university road at Bab-e-Peshawar in Hayatabad while protesting against Talibanisation in Afghanistan.
They raised anti-Pakistan slogans and ransacked public property. - PTI
Food agency warns of hunger in Afghan conflict
The head of the UN food agency in Afghanistan has said that a humanitarian crisis is unfolding with 14 million people facing severe hunger following the Taliban takeover of the country.
Mary Ellen McGroarty, the World Food Program's country director, said in a video briefing to UN correspondents from Kabul on Wednesday that the conflict in Afghanistan, the nation's second severe drought in three years, and the social and economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic have pushed an already dire situation into a “catastrophe". - AP
Democratic-led committees vow investigations on Afghanistan
Democratic-led congressional committees are vowing to press President Joe Biden's administration on what went wrong as the Taliban swept to power in Afghanistan and the United States left scores of Americans and thousands who helped them over the years in grave danger.
“The Committee will seek a full accounting for these shortcomings as well as assess why the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces collapsed so quickly,” Sen Bob Menendez, D-N J, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee said in a statement. - AP
CNN reporter Clarissa Ward says Kabul colleague nearly pistol-whipped
Clarissa Ward described on Wednesday how a member of her CNN crew was nearly pistol-whipped by a Taliban fighter as they were covering a tumultuous scene outside the airport in Kabul.
“I've covered all sorts of crazy situations,” Ms Ward said in a report that aired on CNN. “This was mayhem. This was nuts.”
Biden says troops will stay in Afghanistan till all Americans are evacuated
U.S. President Joe Biden said on Wednesday that he is committed to keeping U.S. troops in Afghanistan until every American is evacuated, even if that means maintaining a military presence there beyond his Aug. 31 deadline for withdrawal.
He also pushed back against criticism that the U.S. should have done more to plan for the evacuation and withdrawal, which has been marked by scenes of violence and chaos as thousands attempted to flee while the Taliban advanced.
No democracy, only Sharia law in Afghanistan, says the Taliban
Afghanistan may be governed by a council now that the Taliban have taken over, while Islamist group’s supreme leader Haibatullah Akhundzada would likely remain in overall charge, a senior member of the group said.
Many issues regarding how the Taliban would run Afghanistan have yet to be finalised, Waheedullah Hashimi, who has access to the group’s decision-making, said in an interview. But Afghanistan would not be a democracy, he added. “We will not discuss what type of political system should we apply in Afghanistan because it is clear. It is Sharia law and that is it.”