Firstpost
  • Home
  • Video Shows
    Vantage Firstpost America Firstpost Africa First Sports
  • World
    US News
  • Explainers
  • News
    India Opinion Cricket Tech Entertainment Sports Health Photostories
  • Asia Cup 2025
Apple Incorporated Modi ji Justin Trudeau Trending

Sections

  • Home
  • Live TV
  • Videos
  • Shows
  • World
  • India
  • Explainers
  • Opinion
  • Sports
  • Cricket
  • Health
  • Tech/Auto
  • Entertainment
  • Web Stories
  • Business
  • Impact Shorts

Shows

  • Vantage
  • Firstpost America
  • Firstpost Africa
  • First Sports
  • Fast and Factual
  • Between The Lines
  • Flashback
  • Live TV

Events

  • Raisina Dialogue
  • Independence Day
  • Champions Trophy
  • Delhi Elections 2025
  • Budget 2025
  • US Elections 2024
  • Firstpost Defence Summit
Trending:
  • Charlie Kirk shot dead
  • Nepal protests
  • Russia-Poland tension
  • Israeli strikes in Qatar
  • Larry Ellison
  • Apple event
  • Sunjay Kapur inheritance row
fp-logo
Afghanistan-Taliban Crisis Updates: Over 2,000 diplomats, civilians evacuated from country as Taliban promise peace
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter
Apple Incorporated Modi ji Justin Trudeau Trending

Sections

  • Home
  • Live TV
  • Videos
  • Shows
  • World
  • India
  • Explainers
  • Opinion
  • Sports
  • Cricket
  • Health
  • Tech/Auto
  • Entertainment
  • Web Stories
  • Business
  • Impact Shorts

Shows

  • Vantage
  • Firstpost America
  • Firstpost Africa
  • First Sports
  • Fast and Factual
  • Between The Lines
  • Flashback
  • Live TV

Events

  • Raisina Dialogue
  • Independence Day
  • Champions Trophy
  • Delhi Elections 2025
  • Budget 2025
  • US Elections 2024
  • Firstpost Defence Summit
  • Home
  • World
  • Afghanistan-Taliban Crisis Updates: Over 2,000 diplomats, civilians evacuated from country as Taliban promise peace

Afghanistan-Taliban Crisis Updates: Over 2,000 diplomats, civilians evacuated from country as Taliban promise peace

FP Staff • August 18, 2021, 18:22:26 IST
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter

Afghanistan Taliban crisis live News updates: The Taliban have said they want peace, will not take revenge against old enemies and will respect the rights of women within the framework of Islamic law.

Advertisement
Afghanistan-Taliban Crisis Updates: Over 2,000 diplomats, civilians evacuated from country as Taliban promise peace
August 18, 2021, 18:07:49 (IST)
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter

Opposition figures gather in Panjshir Valley

Videos from the Panjshir Valley north of Kabul, a stronghold of the Northern Alliance militias that allied with the US against the Taliban in 2001, appear to show potential opposition figures gathering there. According to the Associated Press, it is the only province that hasn’t yet fallen to the Taliban.

Those figures include members of the deposed government — Vice President Amrullah Saleh, who asserted on Twitter that he is the country’s rightful president and Defense Minister Gen. Bismillah Mohammadi — as well as Ahmad Massoud, the son of the slain Northern Alliance leader Ahmad Shah Massoud. It’s unclear if they intend to challenge to the Taliban, who seized most of the country in a matter of days last week.

August 18, 2021, 17:57:59 (IST)
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter

Fearing Afghan refugee influx, Turkey reinforces border

Fearing a new refugee crisis, Turkey is sending soldiers to reinforce its border with Iran in order to stop a potential influx of Afghans fleeing the Taliban insurgency.

Irregular arrivals are already up as Afghans who fled weeks and months ago show up at Turkey’s rugged border area after a long trek across Iran. A group of Afghans encountered by The Associated Press near the border said they had deserted the Afghan military and fled the country as the Taliban offensive accelerated.

“We came out of necessity. The Taliban have attacked our country and now they control it, we hope that the Turkish government (accept us),” one of them, Feroz Seddiqi, told the AP. He explained that they had scaled a mountain to reach Turkey, enduring thirst and hunger.

Nesar Ahmad, another member of the group, said they also experienced looting by thieves who took away their money and mobile phones.

-AP

August 18, 2021, 17:29:33 (IST)
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter

EU must accept Afghans, some may face ‘revenge’, says European Parliament chief

The European Union has a responsibility to accept Afghan refugees and cannot leave people who worked for the bloc in Afghanistan to “face revenge”, European Parliament President David Sassoli said on Wednesday, reports Reuters. He said refugees arriving from Afghanistan, which is now in the hands of the Taliban, should be distributed evenly among EU member states.

August 18, 2021, 17:12:43 (IST)
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter

Afghan central bank says $9 billion reserves abroad

Afghanistan’s central bank governor says that the country has some $9 billion in reserves abroad and not in physical cash inside the country. Ajmal Ahmady, the head of Afghanistan’s Central Bank, wrote on Twitter on Wednesday that the majority of that — some $7 billion — is being held in U.S. Federal Reserve bonds, assets and gold.

Ahmady says Afghanistan’s holding of physical U.S. dollars “is close to zero” as the country did not receive a planned cash shipment amid the Taliban offensive that swept the country last week. “The next shipment never arrived,” he wrote. “Seems like our partners had good intelligence as to what was going to happen.”

He noted the lack of U.S. dollars likely will see the afghani depreciate and inflation rise, hurting the poor in the country. Getting access to those reserves likely will be complicated by the U.S. government considering the Taliban a sanctioned terror group. The “Taliban won militarily – but now have to govern,” he wrote. “It is not easy.

-AP

First, total DAB reserves were approximately $9.0 billion as of last week.

But this does not mean that DAB held $9.0 billion physically in our vault.

As per international standards, most assets are held in safe, liquid assets such as Treasuries and gold https://t.co/onpttXyTv7

— Ajmal Ahmady (@aahmady) August 18, 2021
More from World
US, China reach TikTok framework deal, Trump teases Friday call with Xi US, China reach TikTok framework deal, Trump teases Friday call with Xi ‘Bullying, economic coercion’: China slams Trump pressure on Europe for 100% tariff over Russian oil ‘Bullying, economic coercion’: China slams Trump pressure on Europe for 100% tariff over Russian oil
August 18, 2021, 16:55:03 (IST)
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter

Will decide on recognising Taliban regime in Afghanistan only after govt formation: China

China on Wednesday said it will decide on extending diplomatic recognition to the Taliban in Afghanistan only after the formation of the government in the country, which it hoped would be “open, inclusive and broadly representative”.

China’s position on the Afghan issue is consistent and clear," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian told a media briefing here answering a question when will China accord diplomatic recognition to the Taliban insurgents, which has taken control of Afghanistan. If we have to recognise a government, the first thing is that we will need to wait until the government is formed," he said.

-PTI

August 18, 2021, 16:31:16 (IST)
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter

2 killed, 12 injured in protests over Afghanistan national flag in Jalalabad

At least two people have been reported killed and 12 injured in a shoot out during the protests in Jalalabad, reports Al Jazeera. According to TOLO News, a group of locals took to the street as they demanded the restoration of Afghan national flag in place of the Taliban flag. Reports claimed that Taliban fighters fired at some of the demonstrators leading to at least two deaths.

Advertisement
August 18, 2021, 16:00:25 (IST)
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter

Afghan Embassy in Tajikistan requests Interpol police to detain Ashraf Ghani

The Afghan embassy in Tajikistan has requested the Interpol police to detain Afghanistan’s ousted president Ashraf Ghani and his aides Hamdallah Moheb and Fazl Mahmoud Fazli, TOLO News reported. They have been charged with stealing public funds in order, and their detention is requested to retrieve the people’s wealth, the report added.

August 18, 2021, 15:53:54 (IST)
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter

No unilateral recognition of Taliban, UK PM Johnson tells Imran Khan

Any recognition of the new government in Afghanistan should happen on an “international, not unilateral” basis, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has told his Pakistan counterpart Imran Khan, as they discussed the unfolding situation in the crisis-torn country.

As part of a series of phone calls with world leaders to push for a coordinated strategy for the crisis in the region, Johnson spoke to Khan on Tuesday afternoon ahead of a call with US President Joe Biden. 

“The Prime Minister stressed his commitment to work with international partners to avoid a humanitarian disaster in Afghanistan and the wider region,” said the Downing Street read-out of the call. “The Prime Minister underlined that any recognition of the new government in Afghanistan to happen on an international, not unilateral basis,” the statement reads.

-PTI

August 18, 2021, 15:16:01 (IST)
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter

Taliban fighters open fire at protesters waving national flag in Jalalabad

In Afghanistan’s Jalalabad, people took to the streets on Wednesday demanding the reinstallation of Afghanistan’s flag on offices instead of the Taliban’s flag.

However, the Taliban fighters opened fire at the protesters, according to local news agency Pajhwok Afghan News. The Taliban fighters also beat up some journalists who were covering the protest and there have been reports of casualties.

In videos shared on social media, hundreds of people could be seen taking out a march carrying Afghanistan’s flag. Gunshots could be heard in the background as the protesters dispersed from the area.

#Taliban firing on protesters in Jalalabad city and beaten some video journalists. #Afghanidtan pic.twitter.com/AbM2JHg9I2

— Pajhwok Afghan News (@pajhwok) August 18, 2021
August 18, 2021, 15:07:25 (IST)
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter

France airlifts scores of Afghans out of Kabul

France said on Wednesday it had evacuated almost 200 Afghan nationals from Kabul overnight as it steps up airlifts out of the Afghan capital following the Taliban takeover.

The French military is taking people out of Kabul on military planes to Abu Dhabi, from where they are to be flown on passenger aircraft to Paris. A first contingent of 41 French and foreign nationals arrived in France on Monday.

“Nearly 200 Afghans who worked for France or who are under threat have just been evacuated from Kabul, as well as French and foreign nationals,” President Emmanuel Macron said in a tweet, adding that the operations would continue. 

-AFP

Près de 200 Afghans qui ont travaillé pour la France ou qui sont menacés viennent d’être évacués de Kaboul. Ainsi que des Français et des ressortissants étrangers. À nos armées, policiers et équipes diplomatiques qui organisent ces opérations sensibles, merci. On continue. pic.twitter.com/xHSreTLOLI

— Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron) August 18, 2021
August 18, 2021, 14:48:07 (IST)
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter

UK has evacuated over 2,000 Afghans since Taliban takeover, says Boris Johnson

Britain has evacuated more than 2,000 Afghans since the Taliban takeover, Prime Minister Boris Johnson told lawmakers on Wednesday, as parliament was recalled to discuss the crisis.

“We have so far secured the safe return of 306 UK nationals and 2,052 Afghan nationals as part of our resettlement programme,” he said, adding that 2,000 more Afghan applications were complete, and “many more” being processed.

-AFP

August 18, 2021, 14:27:49 (IST)
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter

Taliban meets with Afghan politicians in Kabul today

Anas Haqqani, a member of the Taliban’s political office, and other Taliban members on Wednesday met with Abdul Rab Rasoul Sayyaf, the leader of the Dawat-e-Islami party and former mujaheddin commander, in Kabul today, ToloNews reported citing unnamed sources.

Haqqani also met with Hamid Karzai, an Afghan politician and former president, and Abdullah Abdullah, head of the High Council for National Reconciliation.

Photos: Anas Haqqani, a member of the Taliban's political office, met with Hamid Karzai and Abdullah Abdullah in #Kabul today, sources said. #Afghanistan pic.twitter.com/mndPU3lq1h

— TOLOnews (@TOLOnews) August 18, 2021
Advertisement
August 18, 2021, 14:16:14 (IST)
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter

Taliban could be different this time, says Britain’s army chief

The world should give the Taliban the space to form a new government in Afghanistan and may discover that the insurgents cast as militants by the West for decades have become more reasonable, the head of the British army said on Wednesday, as per Reuters.

Nick Carter, Britain’s chief of the defence staff, said he was in contact with former Afghan President Hamid Karzai who Carter said would meet the Taliban on Wednesday.

“We have to be patient, we have to hold our nerve and we have to give them the space to form a government and we have to give them the space to show their credentials,” Carter told the BBC. “It may be that this Taliban is a different Taliban to the one that people remember from the 1990s.”

August 18, 2021, 14:05:41 (IST)
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter

Taliban Mujahids blame law and order breakdown under previous govt for attacks on ex-govt employees

Kabul residents say groups of armed men have been going door-to-door seeking out individuals who worked with the ousted government and security forces, but it was unclear if the gunmen were Taliban or criminals posing as militants. Mujahid blamed the security breakdown on the former government, saying the Taliban only entered Kabul in order to restore law and order after the police melted away.

August 18, 2021, 13:54:45 (IST)
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter

Taliban attack women, children at Kabul airport despite peace promise: Report

The Taliban vowed Tuesday to respect women’s rights, forgive those who fought them and ensure Afghanistan does not become a haven for terrorists as part of a publicity blitz aimed at reassuring world powers and a fearful population

However, some ground reports showed the Islamist group in a different light. Reports suggested the militants were going door-to-door, rounding up those who had worked with the Afghan armed forces or government. Exclusive video obtained by Fox News showed a convoy of Taliban fighters roaring down a street, then opening fire in Kabul looking for ex-government workers. 

A Los Angeles Times reporter tweeted images of injured Afghans, including children, who were beaten and whipped for trying to escape via the Kabul airport. 

August 18, 2021, 13:26:37 (IST)
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter

Taliban leadership arrives in Kandahar

Mawlawi Khairullah Khairkhwah, a member of the Taliban’s political office in Doha, confirmed that Taliban deputy leader Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar and eight other Taliban members arrived in Kandahar on Tuesday from Qatar

August 18, 2021, 13:09:41 (IST)
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter

How Taliban escorts accompanied Indian diplomats to safety

Outside the main iron gate of the Indian embassy in Kabul, a group of Taliban fighters waited — armed with machine guns and rocket-propelled grenade launchers.

Inside the compound were 150 Indian diplomats and nationals — growing increasingly nervous as they watched news of the Taliban tightening their grip on the capital, which they took a day earlier without a fight.

Their position was a precarious one.

Pakistan has long been the Taliban’s biggest supporter, using the country for so-called strategic depth in never-ending battles — real and diplomatic — with arch-rival India.

India in turn, strongly backed the government that took over when the Taliban were ousted, earning them hatred and enmity from the hardline Islamist group.

But the Taliban fighters outside the Indian embassy weren’t there to extract revenge, but rather to escort them to Kabul airport, where a military aircraft was on standby to evacuate them after New Delhi decided to shut its mission.

August 18, 2021, 12:48:55 (IST)
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter

‘Waiting for them to come and kill me’: One of Afghanistan’s first women mayors after Taliban’s sweeping win

One of Afghanistan’s first female mayors said that she is waiting for the Taliban to come and kill her as the Islamic militants reached the capital, Kabul.

“I’m sitting here waiting for them to come. There is no one to help me or my family. I’m just sitting with them and my husband. And they will come for people like me and kill me,” Zarifa Ghafari, the mayor of Maidan Shar, told the British newspaper Inews. “I can’t leave my family. And anyway, where would I go?”

Advertisement
August 18, 2021, 12:44:54 (IST)
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter

Imran Khan urges international community to stay engaged to support Afghan people economically

Asserting that Pakistan is reaching out to all Afghan leaders for a peaceful settlement of the current crisis in the neighbouring nation, Prime Minister Imran Khan has urged the international community to stay engaged, particularly to support the people of the war-ravaged nation economically.

The Prime Minister’s Office in a late night statement on Tuesday said Khan received a telephone call from German Chancellor Angela Merkel and the two leaders exchanged views on the rapidly evolving situation in Afghanistan.

Pakistan is reaching out to all Afghan leaders, Khan told Merkel and urged that “the international community must also stay engaged, particularly to support the people of Afghanistan economically”.

Merkel was the third European leader to call Khan to discuss the Afghan crisis. Earlier, Khan received telephone calls from his British counterpart Boris Johnson and Denmark Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen. Both the calls focused on the evolving situation in Afghanistan.

August 18, 2021, 12:37:39 (IST)
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter

Watch: Taliban leadership arrives in Kandahar amid chants of Allahu Akbar

Earlier, the Taliban had told news agency Reuters that their leaders will show themselves to the world, unlike during the past 20 years, when its leaders have lived largely in secret. 

“Slowly, gradually, the world will see all our leaders, there will be no shadow of secrecy,” the senior Taliban official, who declined to be identified, told news agency Reuters.

The official said Taliban members had been ordered not to celebrate their recent sweep of the country, which brought them to the capital, Kabul, on August 15, and added that civilians should hand over weapons and ammunition

Video: Taliban leaders arrive in the southern province of Kandahar on Tuesday night. #Afghanistan pic.twitter.com/uzO3wTRsuX

— TOLOnews (@TOLOnews) August 18, 2021
August 18, 2021, 12:28:27 (IST)
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter

Afghanistan then vs now: Two images show the start difference made during 20 yrs of US-backed rule

#Afghanistan then and now. Two images show how much the cityscape changed under a US-backed govt flush with development aide | Follow the latest updates on #AfghanistanCrisis here. https://t.co/qFwC7GmTH0 pic.twitter.com/2wMU3rMxnu

— Firstpost (@firstpost) August 18, 2021
August 18, 2021, 12:23:01 (IST)
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter

India welcome to complete development projects in Afghanistan, says Taliban

Taliban has said that India is welcome to complete its reconstruction and infrastructure projects in the country. The statement was made by Taliban spokesman Suhail Shaheen during a TV interview with Pakistan’s Hum News channel

August 18, 2021, 12:06:01 (IST)
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter

‘Dream-like furniture, posh office buildings’: Taliban fighters encounter Afghan cities remade in their absence

Ezanullah, one of the thousands of young Taliban fighters from the countryside who rode into Afghanistan’s capital over the weekend, had never seen anything like it.

The paved streets of Kabul were lined with towering apartment blocks, glass office buildings and shopping malls. The plush furniture inside the Interior Ministry was like “something I thought of in a dream,” said the 22-year-old fighter from the country’s mountainous east.

He said he plans to ask his commander if he can stay. “I don’t want to leave,” he said. The encounter highlights how much Kabul and other Afghan cities have changed in the 20 years since the Taliban, who mainly hail from rugged rural areas, last ruled the country. An entire generation of Afghans has come of age under a modernizing, Western-backed government flush with development aid.

August 18, 2021, 11:47:02 (IST)
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter

Watch: Afghan women protest on streets after Taliban takeover

صورة غير نمطية في أفغانستان.
أول مظاهرة نسائية بعد حركة طالبان الى العاصمة كابل.@abuhilalah @khanfarw pic.twitter.com/XKQprFjcht

— Hameed (@Hameedshah23) August 17, 2021
Advertisement
August 18, 2021, 11:38:53 (IST)
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter

Who is Abdul Ali Mazari, the Hazara leader whose statue was destroyed by Taliban?

Mazari was a Hazara leader who was executed by the Taliban in 1995. Taliban, over the years, has been repeatedly attacking the Hazaras.

The Hazaras are an ethnic group mainly concentrated in the mountainous central region of Afghanistan known as Hazarajat.

The Hazaras are said to be descendants of Genghis Khan, the founder of the Mongol empire, and the Mongol soldiers who swept through the region in the 13th century.

Hazara sources have also confirmed that Salima Mazari, one of the few female district governors in the country, is now under Taliban custody. She is the Hazara district Governor of Chaharkint, Balkh.

August 18, 2021, 11:36:00 (IST)
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter

Taliban destroys slain Hazara leader’s statue

The Taliban have blown up Hazara leader Abdul Ali Mazari’s statue in Bamiyan, a grim reminder of the destruction of Bamiyan Buddhas during its previous tenure

Taliban blows up slain Hazara leader Abdul Ali Mazari's statue in Bamiyan

Read @ANI Story | https://t.co/oqm6au6uN4#Taliban #Taliban 2.0 pic.twitter.com/ZEB4OQRS7H

— ANI Digital (@ani_digital) August 18, 2021
August 18, 2021, 11:06:58 (IST)
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter

Taliban burn down amusement park after ousting US-backed govt, shows viral video

The Bokhdi Amusement Park was set on fire by Taliban insurgents in Begha, Sheberghan. The reason is that the statues/idols standing there are in Public access Idols are illegal in Islam, This is the logic of the Taliban's brutal emirate. The homeland is occupied.#Afghanistan pic.twitter.com/MBuYsQQbxk

— Ihtesham Afghan (@IhteshamAfghan) August 17, 2021
August 18, 2021, 10:32:07 (IST)
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter

Joe Biden’s approval rating hits all-time low after Taliban takeover

US President Joe Biden’s approval rating dropped by 7 percentage points and hit its lowest as Taliban swept across Afghanistan despite years of US investments and intervention in efforts to turn that country into a democracy. 

It was found that only 46 percent of American adults approved of Biden’s performance in office, the lowest recorded in weekly polls that started when Biden took office in January. 

Biden’s hurried withdrawal from Afghanistan that triggered this crisis is being questioned, provided there were enough intel inputs to predict the country’s fate.

August 18, 2021, 10:27:46 (IST)
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter

UNHRC to hold special session on Afghanistan on 24 Aug

🔴 BREAKING

The United Nations Human Rights Council is holding a special session on #Afghanistan on 24 August 2021.#SS31 ▶️ https://t.co/mO7Mv7tnu8 pic.twitter.com/LDptIxfqex

— UN Human Rights Council (@UN_HRC) August 17, 2021
August 18, 2021, 10:18:17 (IST)
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter

Jaishankar discusses Afghan situation in bilateral meetings with UNSG, counterparts

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar discussed the situation in Afghanistan after the Taliban seized power in Kabul in his bilateral meetings here, including with UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres.

Jaishankar arrived in New York Monday as the UN Security Council held an emergency meeting on the situation in Afghanistan, the second time in just over the 10 days that the powerful UN body met under India’s Presidency for the month of August to discuss the unravelling situation in the war-torn country.

Good to meet UN Secretary General @antonioguterres. Our discussions focused on Afghanistan, following upon the Securiy Council meeting yesterday. pic.twitter.com/EsCQVQfuIJ

— Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) August 17, 2021
Advertisement
August 18, 2021, 10:09:33 (IST)
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter

US intel agencies had warned of prospect of Taliban takeover of Afghanistan’

US intelligence agencies had warned of the prospect of a Taliban takeover of Afghanistan and a rapid collapse of the Afghan military, raising questions as to why the Joe Biden administration seemed “ill-prepared to deal with the Taliban’s final push into Kabul”, according to a leading American daily. The New York Times said that according to classified assessments by American spy agencies over the summer, there was the grim prospect of a Taliban takeover of Afghanistan.

The assessment warned of the “rapid collapse of the Afghan military, even as President Biden and his advisers said publicly that was unlikely to happen as quickly.” 

The drumbeat of warnings over the summer raise questions about why Biden administration officials, and military planners in Afghanistan, seemed ill-prepared to deal with the Taliban’s final push into Kabul, including a failure to ensure security at the main airport and rushing thousands more troops back to the country to protect the United States’ final exit," the report said.

Afghanistan-Taliban Crisis LIVE Updates: The Afghan embassy in Tajikistan has requested the Interpol police to detain Afghanistan’s ousted president Ashraf Ghani and his aides Hamdallah Moheb and Fazl Mahmoud Fazli, TOLO News reported. They have been charged with stealing public funds in order, and their detention is requested to retrieve the people’s wealth, the report added. In Afghanistan’s Jalalabad, people took to the streets on Wednesday demanding the reinstallation of Afghanistan’s flag on offices instead of the Taliban’s flag. However, the Taliban fighters opened fire at the protesters, according to local news agency Pajhwok Afghan News. The Taliban fighters also beat up some journalists who were covering the protest and there have been reports of casualties. Anas Haqqani, a member of the Taliban’s political office, and other Taliban members on Wednesday met with Abdul Rab Rasoul Sayyaf, the leader of the Dawat-e-Islami party and former mujaheddin commander, in Kabul today, ToloNews reported citing unnamed sources. Haqqani also met with Hamid Karzai, an Afghan politician and former president, and Abdullah Abdullah, head of the High Council for National Reconciliation. Kabul residents say groups of armed men have been going door-to-door seeking out individuals who worked with the ousted government and security forces, but it was unclear if the gunmen were Taliban or criminals posing as militants Mawlawi Khairullah Khairkhwah, a member of the Taliban’s political office in Doha, confirmed that Taliban deputy leader Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar and eight other Taliban members arrived in Kandahar on Tuesday from Qatar Taliban has said that India is welcome to complete its reconstruction and infrastructure projects in the country. The statement was made by Taliban spokesman Suhail Shaheen during a TV interview with Pakistan’s Hum News channel US President Joe Biden’s approval rating dropped by 7 percentage points and hit its lowest as Taliban swept across Afghanistan despite years of US investments and intervention in efforts to turn that country into a democracy. US intelligence agencies had warned of the prospect of a Taliban takeover of Afghanistan and a rapid collapse of the Afghan military, raising questions as to why the Joe Biden administration seemed “ill-prepared to deal with the Taliban’s final push into Kabul”, according to a leading American daily. The New York Times said that according to classified assessments by American spy agencies over the summer, there was the grim prospect of a Taliban takeover of Afghanistan. The assessment warned of the “rapid collapse of the Afghan military, even as President Biden and his advisers said publicly that was unlikely to happen as quickly.” “By July, many intelligence reports grew more pessimistic, questioning whether any Afghan security forces would muster serious resistance and whether the government could hold on in Kabul, the capital. The drumbeat of warnings over the summer raise questions about why Biden administration officials, and military planners in Afghanistan, seemed ill-prepared to deal with the Taliban’s final push into Kabul, including a failure to ensure security at the main airport and rushing thousands more troops back to the country to protect the United States’ final exit,” the report said. A CIA report in July noted that security forces and central government had lost control of the roads leading to Kabul and “assessed that the viability of the central government was in serious jeopardy,” the NYT report said, adding that other reports by the State Department’s intelligence and research division also noted the failure of Afghan forces to fight the Taliban and “suggested the deteriorating security conditions could lead to the collapse of the government.” The business of intelligence is not to say you know on August 15 the Afghan government’s going to fall, a former staff director for the House Intelligence Committee Timothy Bergreen said. But what everybody knew is that without the stiffening of the international forces and specifically our forces, the Afghans were incapable of defending or governing themselves, Bergreen said. Further, the NYT said Afghanistan received little attention in the annual threat assessment released in April by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence; “but the brief discussion was dire, noting the Taliban was confident it could achieve a military victory. The Taliban is likely to make gains on the battlefield, and the Afghan government will struggle to hold the Taliban at bay if the coalition withdraws support, the report said. Even as President Biden said on July 8 that the Afghan government was unlikely to fall and there would be no chaotic evacuations of Americans, the NYT said according to one report in July, when Afghan districts were falling into the hands of the Taliban, “laid out the growing risks to Kabul, noting that the Afghan government was unprepared for a Taliban assault.” “Intelligence agencies predicted that should the Taliban seize cities, a cascading collapse could happen rapidly and the Afghan security forces were at high risk of falling apart. It is unclear whether other reports during this period presented a more optimistic picture about the ability of the Afghan military and the government in Kabul to withstand the Taliban,” it said. The report noted that before July, consensus among intelligence agencies was that the “Afghan government could hang on for as long as two years, which would have left ample time for an orderly exit. On April 27, when the State Department ordered the departure of non-essential personnel from the embassy in Kabul, the overall intelligence assessment was still that a Taliban takeover was at least 18 months away, according to administration officials.” However, the report, citing a senior administration official, said that even by July, as the “situation grew more volatile, intelligence agencies never offered a clear prediction of an imminent Taliban takeover.” The official said their assessments were not given a high confidence judgment, the agencies’ highest level of certainty, the report said. It added that in recent months, assessments about the situation in Afghanistan became ever more pessimistic as the Taliban made larger gains. “The reports this summer questioned in stark terms the will of Afghan security forces to fight and the ability of the Kabul government to hold power. With each report of mass desertions, a former official said, the Afghan government looked less stable, the report added.

End of Liveblog
Latest News
Find us on YouTube
Subscribe
End of Liveblog

Impact Shorts

French MPs call for social media ban for under-15s, digital curfew for teenagers

French MPs call for social media ban for under-15s, digital curfew for teenagers

A French committee suggests banning social media for kids under 15 and a nighttime digital curfew for teens 15-18. The report cites concerns about TikTok's effects on minors. President Macron backs the ban, akin to Australia's proposed law.

More Impact Shorts

Top Stories

Charlie Kirk, shot dead in Utah, once said gun deaths are 'worth it' to save Second Amendment

Charlie Kirk, shot dead in Utah, once said gun deaths are 'worth it' to save Second Amendment

From governance to tourism, how Gen-Z protests have damaged Nepal

From governance to tourism, how Gen-Z protests have damaged Nepal

Did Russia deliberately send drones into Poland’s airspace?

Did Russia deliberately send drones into Poland’s airspace?

Netanyahu ‘killed any hope’ for Israeli hostages: Qatar PM after Doha strike

Netanyahu ‘killed any hope’ for Israeli hostages: Qatar PM after Doha strike

Charlie Kirk, shot dead in Utah, once said gun deaths are 'worth it' to save Second Amendment

Charlie Kirk, shot dead in Utah, once said gun deaths are 'worth it' to save Second Amendment

From governance to tourism, how Gen-Z protests have damaged Nepal

From governance to tourism, how Gen-Z protests have damaged Nepal

Did Russia deliberately send drones into Poland’s airspace?

Did Russia deliberately send drones into Poland’s airspace?

Netanyahu ‘killed any hope’ for Israeli hostages: Qatar PM after Doha strike

Netanyahu ‘killed any hope’ for Israeli hostages: Qatar PM after Doha strike

Top Shows

Vantage Firstpost America Firstpost Africa First Sports

QUICK LINKS

  • Trump-Zelenskyy meeting
Latest News About Firstpost
Most Searched Categories
  • Web Stories
  • World
  • India
  • Explainers
  • Opinion
  • Sports
  • Cricket
  • Tech/Auto
  • Entertainment
  • IPL 2025
NETWORK18 SITES
  • News18
  • Money Control
  • CNBC TV18
  • Forbes India
  • Advertise with us
  • Sitemap
Firstpost Logo

is on YouTube

Subscribe Now

Copyright @ 2024. Firstpost - All Rights Reserved

About Us Contact Us Privacy Policy Cookie Policy Terms Of Use
Home Video Shorts Live TV