Afghanistan crisis: Facebook bans Taliban, Johnson plans G7 meet, and more

Facebook is ‘proactively’ removing Taliban content

A Facebook executive said the social media giant is “proactively” removing content from its platforms that promotes the Taliban. The group is on the company’s list of dangerous organisations so any content promoting or representing it is banned, Adam Mosseri, head of Facebook’s photo-sharing app Instagram, said 

Johnson plans G7 meet on Afghanistan

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson intends to host a virtual meeting of G7 leaders to tackle the deteriorating situation in Afghanistan and has stepped up efforts to evacuate UK nationals and others from Kabul.

Germany ending development aid to Afghan 

Germany is ending development aid to Afghanistan in light of the Taliban’s takeover there, said German Development Minister Gerd Mueller.

Qatar foreign minister meets Taliban delegation

Qatar’s Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani met a Taliban delegation in capital Doha led by Mulla Abdul Ghani Baradar and discussed “a peaceful transfer of power” in Afghanistan.

Afghan leaders failed to stand up, says Nato chief

Jens Stoltenberg, the secretary general of the Nato military alliance, has blamed the swift collapse of Afghanistan’s armed forces on a failure of leadership in the country. 

Russia: Taliban openness a ‘positive signal’

Russia views recent Taliban statements signalling openness and inclusion as a “positive signal,” Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov tells forum in Kaliningrad.

UN issues a non-return advisory for Afghanistan

UNHCR has released yesterday a non-return advisory for Afghanistan, calling for a bar on forced returns of Afghan nationals, including asylum seekers who have had their claims rejected.