Afghanistan-Taliban crisis Highlights: Taliban urge Afghan unity as protests spread to Kabul

Shabnam Dawran, a news anchor with state channel RTA Pushto, has released a video saying she went to her office and was told to return home, despite assurances by the Taliban that women would be allowed to work under their rule

Afghan woman TV news anchor stopped from working.

Shabnam Dawran, a news anchor with state channel RTA Pushto, has released a video saying she went to her office and was told to return home, despite assurances by the Taliban that women would be allowed to work under their rule pic.twitter.com/DUL5dpfist

— AFP News Agency (@AFP) August 20, 2021

China has played a constructive role in promoting peace and reconciliation in Afghanistan and is welcome to contribute to the rebuilding of the country, Taliban spokesman Suhail Shaheen told Chinese state media.

In dealing with the Taliban, an increasingly powerful China may be able to leverage the fact that unlike Russia and the United States, it has not fought in Afghanistan.

"China is a big country with a huge economy and capacity - I think they can play a very big role in the rebuilding, rehabilitation, reconstruction of Afghanistan," Shaheen told CGTN television in an interview late on Thursday. (AP)

Protesters took to the streets to rally against Taliban rule for the second day Thursday, this time marching in Kabul, including near the presidential palace.

At one demonstration in the city, about 200 people had gathered before the Taliban broke it up violently. The Taliban announced a curfew in the southeastern city of Khost, also on Thursday, after protests there. Authorities did not say how long it would be in effect.

It was a remarkable display of defiance, coming just one day after violence broke out at protests in two other cities, with Taliban members shooting into crowds and beating demonstrators.

It was also further evidence that while tens of thousands are now seeking escape, there were many more left behind and determined to have a voice in the kind of country in which they live. Read the full report here.

A delegation of prominent Afghan leaders and officials has warned that a Taliban government will not survive for long if it repeats past mistakes.

The delegation, headed by Afghan parliament speaker, Mir Rehman Rehmani, spoke to reporters in Islamabad on Thursday, after meeting Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan and other government and military officials this week. The Afghans arrived in the Pakistani capital on Monday, a day after the Taliban swept into Kabul and took over Afghanistan.

A former Afghan vice president, Mohammad Younis Qanooni, said the future government in Afghanistan should be inclusive, with the participation of all ethnic groups. (AP)

Some of the first evacuees from Afghanistan to arrive in Germany shared their stories with DW.

"It's getting worse every day. I couldn't do anything for my family. What shall I do? I can only save us. I can't save my family," one evacuee said in tears.

A woman said her experience was "terrifying" as "soldiers fired shots to scare people away from entering the airport." "If you grow up in safety, you cannot imagine what happens there, with the small children, it was so horrible — crowds of people trampling over each other," another woman said in tears.

The Biden administration has suspended all arms sales to the government of Afghanistan following the Taliban takeover of the country. In a notice to defence contractors posted Wednesday, the State Department's Political/Military Affairs Bureau said pending or undelivered arms transfers to Afghanistan had been put under review.

"In light of rapidly evolving circumstances in Afghanistan, the Directorate of Defense Sales Controls is reviewing all pending and issued export licenses and other approvals to determine their suitability in furthering world peace, national security and the foreign policy of the United States," it said. (AP)

What is happening in Afghanistan and how will the Taliban rule impact India? Join us for a live chat on Twitter Spaces now with speakers Nirupama Subramanian and Shubhajit Roy.

What is happening in #Afghanistan and how will the #Taliban rule impact India? Join us for a live chat on Twitter Spaces now with speakers Nirupama Subramanian and Shubhajit Roy. Join in! pic.twitter.com/egQkJbfazk

— The Indian Express (@IndianExpress) August 19, 2021

President Joe Biden says the Taliban have not changed but are going through an 'existential crisis' about whether they want legitimacy on the global stage as they've taken over Afghanistan. In an interview on ABC's 'Good Morning America,' Biden said that he's "not sure" the Taliban want to be 'recognized by the international community as being a legitimate government.

The International Monetary Fund today said the new Taliban government in Afghanistan will not 'at the current time' be allowed to access loans or other resources.

In a statement Wednesday, the IMF said it would be guided by the views of the international community. "There is currently a lack of clarity within the international community regarding recognition of a government in Afghanistan, as a consequence of which the country cannot access SDRs or other IMF resources," the statement said.

As is always the case, the IMF is guided by the views of the int'l community. There is currently a lack of clarity within the int'l community regarding recognition of a government in Afghanistan, as a consequence of which the country cannot access SDRs or other IMF resources.

— Gerry Rice (@IMFSpokesperson) August 18, 2021

The Taliban must decide whether it wants to be recognized by the international community, US President Joe Biden said in an ABC interview aired on Thursday, adding that he did not think the group had changed its fundamental beliefs.

Romania’s foreign ministry says that a military aircraft has evacuated a single Romanian citizen from Kabul airport to Islamabad. It said in a statement that “the particularly difficult security conditions in Kabul meant that the access of other groups of Romanian citizens to the airport could not be achieved.”

Flag-waving protesters took to several Afghan cities on Thursday and several people were killed when Taliban fighters fired on a crowd, a witness told news agency Reuters, in the first popular opposition to the militants since they seized the capital. "Our flag our identity," a crowd of men and some women waving black, red, and green national flags shouted in Kabul, a video clip posted on social media showed.

Today, a large number of people are marching in front of the entrance of the Presidential Palace ARG in Kabul Jan, in which a large number of women and youth are participating, chanting slogans in favor of their country and national flag.#IndependenceDayAfghanistan pic.twitter.com/wTIoQ2N0Kc

— Ihtesham Afghan (@IhteshamAfghan) August 19, 2021

Several people were killed on Thursday in the Afghan city of Asadabad when Taliban fighters fired on people waving the national flag at an Independence Day rally, news agency Reuters reported citing a witness. The incident occurred a day after three people were killed in a similar protest in Jalalabad.

Noting that India's national security challenges are increasing and becoming "complex" in view of the changing geopolitical situation globally, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday strongly pitched for a strong, capable and completely 'self-reliant' defense industry in the country. Singh's comments came amid growing concerns in India and elsewhere over the Taliban sweeping across Afghanistan this month, seizing control of Afghanistan following the collapse of the US-backed government. "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, without making specific references. (PTI)

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. The information can also be provided to the district administration on helpline number 112, Bardhan said.

The state government is making all efforts with the help from the Centre to ensure safe return of people from Uttarakhand stranded in Afghanistan, he said. Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami has also assured people of the state that their relatives stuck in Afghanistan will soon return home safely. (PTI)

When the Taliban swept over Afghanistan, Russia was ready for the rapid developments after working methodically for years to lay the groundwork for relations with the group that it still officially considers a terrorist organisation.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov emphasised this week that Moscow was "in no rush" to recognize the Taliban as the new rulers of Afghanistan, but he added there were "encouraging signals" of their readiness to let other political forces join the government and allow girls into schools.

The Taliban was added to the Russian list of terrorist organizations in 2003, and Moscow has not yet moved to remove the group from the list.

Any contact with such groups is punishable under Russian law, but the Foreign Ministry has responded to questions about the seeming contradiction by saying that its exchanges with the Taliban are essential for international efforts to stabilize Afghanistan. (AP)

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, but challenges to their rule ranging from running the country's frozen government to potentially facing armed opposition began to emerge.

From ATMs being out of cash to worries about food across this nation of 38 million people reliant on imports, the Taliban face all the challenges of the civilian government they dethroned without the level of international aid it enjoyed. Meanwhile, opposition figures fleeing to Afghanistan's Panjshir Valley now talk of launching an armed resistance under the banner of the Northern Alliance, which allied with the U.S. during the 2001 invasion.

The Taliban so far have offered no plans for the government they plan to lead, other than to say it will be guided by Shariah, or Islamic, law. But the pressure continues to grow. (AP)

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.

Jaishankar arrived in New York on Monday to chair meetings in the UN 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 UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and other foreign ministers, focusing on the situation in Afghanistan.

"Welcome the conversation today with UK Foreign Secretary @DominicRaab. Exchanged views on the Afghanistan developments and the immediate challenges," Jaishankar tweeted after his meeting with his British counterpart on Wednesday. (PTI)

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," Ward said in a report that aired on CNN. "This was mayhem. This was nuts."

The network's chief international correspondent has been probably the most visible reporter covering the rapid fall of Afghanistan to Taliban fighters. Perhaps inevitably, that has made her words and even her wardrobe a topic of social media conversation. (AP)

The United Nations has moved about 100 of its personnel from Afghanistan to Kazakhstan in view of the 'security and other constraints' in Kabul and they will return to the country as conditions permit, according to the spokesman of the UN chief. The Taliban took control of Afghanistan on Sunday.

Their sudden victory, which comes as the US withdraws from the country following a 20-year-war, has sparked chaos at Kabul's airport, from where America and allied nations are trying to safely evacuate thousands of citizens and allies.

Stephane Dujarric, Spokesman for the Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, told reporters on Wednesday that the group of about 100 UN personnel from across the system travelled from Kabul to Almaty, where they will continue their work remotely. He said the UN thanks the Government of Kazakhstan for the offer to host a temporary remote office of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan. (PTI)

The warnings were clear: The Afghan government would likely fall once U.S. troops pulled out. But intelligence agencies and ultimately President Joe Biden missed how quickly it would happen, losing weeks that could have been used for evacuations and spurring a foreign policy crisis.

Without a sense that the country could collapse so quickly, the administration heard out Afghan President Ashraf Ghani when he met face-to-face with Biden in June.

Biden says Ghani pressed him to hold off on any urgent evacuation of Americans, arguing that it would be inviting the Taliban to advance more quickly -- as it turned out they did anyway -- and telling the Afghan army to give up. It was an ask that Biden heeded, despite more than a decade of deep-rooted skepticism of the competence of the Afghan government and military, marred by widespread corruption and mismanagement. (AP)

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 anger from members of both parties is palpable and will test an administration seeking to notch signature domestic policy achievements on infrastructure, health and social programs before next year's midterm election. Several hearings are likely this summer and fall, plunging Biden's national security team into a bipartisan cross-examination that will be unlike anything they've faced during the president's first year in office.

Sen Bob Menendez, D-N J, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said lawmakers will investigate what he described as the 'Biden administration's flawed execution of the US withdrawal.' (AP)

A group of Afghan nationals were seen gathered outside the Australian embassy  in New Delhi seeking immigration visas today. 

Afghan nationals gather outside Australian Embassy in New Delhi

"I heard that Australian Govt has announced to accept refugees & grant them immigration visas. But the embassy here is not giving us any clear answer. I don't know what to do," says Syed Abdullah, an Afghan national pic.twitter.com/RzCOg05Ypd

— ANI (@ANI) August 19, 2021

Despite the chaotic end to its presence in Afghanistan, the United States still has control over billions of dollars belonging to the Afghan central bank, money that Washington is making sure remains out of the reach of the Taliban.

With the Taliban now in control in Kabul, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Wednesday said New Delhi is “very carefully” following the developments in Afghanistan and India’s focus is on ensuring the security and safe return of Indian nationals still in the war-torn country.

Jaishankar, addressing reporters at the UN Security Council stakeout after chairing an open-debate on peacekeeping under India’s current UNSC Presidency, said “that (situation in Afghanistan) is really what has been very much the focus of my own engagements here, talking to the UN Secretary General and other colleagues who are here as well as the US Secretary of State.” (PTI)

The United Nations has moved about 100 of its personnel from Afghanistan to Kazakhstan in view of the "security and other constraints" in Kabul and they will return to the country as conditions permit, according to the spokesman of the UN chief. The Taliban took control of Afghanistan on Sunday. Their sudden victory, which comes as the US withdraws from the country following a 20-year-war, has sparked chaos at Kabul's airport, from where America and allied nations are trying to safely evacuate thousands of citizens and allies. Stephane Dujarric, Spokesman for the Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, told reporters on Wednesday that the group of about 100 UN personnel from across the system travelled from Kabul to Almaty, where they will continue their work remotely.

The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said late Wednesday that domestic air carriers and civilian pilots can fly into Kabul to conduct evacuation or relief flights with prior U.S. Defense Department approval. In a statement, the FAA said that without prior approval, US carriers cannot fly over Afghanistan airspace or fly into Kabul. The FAA cited "a lack of high altitude air traffic control services. "All relief flights into Kabul "must have permission" from the Defense Department. (Reuters)

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. The police rushed to the protest site to disperse the mob but the protesters started pelting stones at them and in the process, some policemen suffered injuries. The police said eight protesters were arrested. (PTI)

Educated young women, former US military translators and other Afghans most at-risk from the Taliban appealed to the Biden administration to get them on evacuation flights as the US struggled on Wednesday to bring order to the continuing chaos at the Kabul airport. Afghans in danger because of their work with the American military, and Americans scrambling to get them out, also pleaded with Washington to cut the red tape that they say could strand thousands of vulnerable Afghans if US forces withdraw as planned in the coming days. "If we don't sort this out, we'll literally be condemning people to death," said Marina Kielpinski LeGree, the American head of a nonprofit, Ascend. The organisation's young Afghan female colleagues were in the mass of people waiting for flights at the airport in the wake of days of tear gas and gunshots. (AP)

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". McGroarty said over 40 per cent of crops have been lost and livestock devastated by the drought, hundreds of thousands of people were displaced as the Taliban advanced, and winter is fast approaching.