LIVE: 5,800 US troops now in Kabul to help with evacuations, says official

Afghanistan crisis LIVE updates: Taliban's sudden victory, which comes as the US withdraws from the country following a 20-year-war, has sparked chaos

12:44 AM

Joe Biden pledges to Americans in Kabul: 'We will get you home'

US President Joe Biden is pledging to Americans still trapped in Afghanistan: We will get you home.

 

Biden's comments at a White House news conference Friday come as the U.S. government struggles to ramp up a massive airlift clearing Americans and other foreigners and vulnerable Afghans through the Kabul airport, rescuing them from a Taliban takeover of the country.

 

Biden is facing criticism for a chaotic and often violent scene outside the airport and crowds struggle to reach safety inside.

12:06 AM

Western countries should not interfere in Afghanistan: Vladimir Putin

Russian President Vladimir Putin has demanded that Western countries should not interfere in Afghanistan after the fall of Kabul, saying they "must stop the irresponsible policy of imposing foreign values from abroad".

 

He also said he hoped the Taliban would "guarantee the security of locals and foreign diplomats" and that the country would not break apart following the withdrawal of US-led forces, Guardian reported.

 

"You can't call it a success," Putin said when asked about the US-led intervention in Afghanistan, which was launched in 2001 after the 9/11 terrorist attacks in New York and Washington DC. "But it's not in our interests right now to stand on this point and talk about this as a failure. We were interested in the situation in the country being stable."

10:46 PM

Taliban took Afghanistan but faces cash squeeze

The Taliban face a frontal challenge in cementing control of Afghanistan: Money. Despite their dominant military blitz over the past week, the Taliban lack access to billions of dollars from their central bank and the International Monetary Fund that would keep the country running during a turbulent shakeup.

 

Those funds are largely controlled by the US and international institutions, a possible leverage point as tense evacuations proceed from the airport in the capital of Kabul. Tens of thousands of people remain to be evacuated ahead of the United States' August 31 deadline to withdraw its troops from the country.

 

But the Taliban also do not currently have institutional structures to receive the money a sign of the challenges it might confront as it tries to govern an economy that has urbanized and tripled in size since they were last in power two decades ago. The shortfall could lead to an economic crisis that would only fuel a deeper humanitarian one for the roughly 36 million Afghans expected to stay in the country.

10:32 PM

NATO commits to center efforts on evacuations from Kabul

NATO foreign ministers on Friday committed to focus on ensuring the safe evacuation from Afghanistan of their citizens and of Afghans deemed at risk after the country's takeover by the Taliban.

 

They also insisted that the new rulers in Kabul would have to make sure that the nation does not become a center for terrorism.

 

Any future Afghan government must adhere to Afghanistan's international obligations and ensure that Afghanistan never again serves as a safe haven for terrorists, a statement from the alliance said. Foreign ministers from the 30-nation alliance met in a videoconference to assess the chaotic situation in Afghanistan and coordinate efforts to extract their nationals and key local staff from the country.

10:13 PM

Jaishankar holds talks on Afghanistan with Qatari counterpart in Doha

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Friday held talks with his Qatari counterpart Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani on the situation in Afghanistan as he made a stopover in Doha on his way back from the US. Qatar's capital Doha has been the venue for the intra-Afghan peace talks and the Gulf country has emerged as a crucial player in facilitating the Afghan peace process.

 

"Met Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani @MBA_AlThani_DPM & FM Qatar during my stop over in Doha. Had useful exchange of views on Afghanistan," Jaishankar tweeted.

 

Earlier this month, Qatari special envoy for conflict resolution Mutlaq bin Majed Al-Qahtani visited India.

10:06 PM

UK foreign minister defends handling of Afghan crisis

UK Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab was forced to go on the defensive on Friday after it emerged that a phone call between him and his counterpart in the now-collapsed Afghan government failed to take place as the Taliban stormed towards Kabul over the weekend.

9:48 PM

Taliban carrying out 'organised searches' for journalists, says German broadcaster

German broadcaster Deutsche Welle reported that the Taliban are carrying out 'organised searches' for journalists after Chancellor Angela Merkel described the terrorist outfit's takeover of Afghanistan as "bitter, dramatic and terrible." Citing DW News, CNN reported that that Taliban searching for a German broadcast journalist in Afghanistan shot dead a member of his family and seriously injured another.

9:36 PM

NATO ministers call for end to Taliban violence

NATO foreign ministers vowed on Friday to center their efforts on assuring the safe evacuation from Afghanistan of citizens from the alliance's member countries and allies, as well and Afghans deemed at risk after the takeover by the Taliban.

8:55 PM

Nepal evacuates 275 of its citizens from Afghanistan

The Nepal government has evacuated an additional 275 of its nationals from Afghanistan, taking the total number of evacuees from the crisis-hit nation to 470, the foreign ministry said here on Friday, PTI reported.

 

Like several other nations, Nepal has also been making efforts to bring back its citizens stuck in Afghanistan following the fall of Kabul to Taliban earlier this week.

 

The process to evacuate the Nepalese nationals staying in Afghanistan in connection with employment at various organisations has been continued, said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a statement.

8:34 PM

Afghanistan must not become a 'gathering place' for terrorism again: Chinese Foreign Minister

China has said Afghanistan must not become a "gathering place" for terrorism again and should be supported in its resolute fight against the scourge after the Taliban insurgents swept to power in the war-torn country, PTI reported.

China has been striking what observers call a nuanced stand on the evolving situation in Afghanistan after its takeover by the Taliban, calling on the militant group to shun terrorism and form an inclusive Islamic government with all parties and ethnic groups.

8:33 PM

Italian general laments NATO's Afghan retreat

A retired Italian general who commanded Italy's initial contingent in western Afghanistan in 2001 says NATO's retreat should have been planned for winter, after the end of the Taliban's so-called fighting season, AP reported.

Gen. Giorgio Battisti, in an interview on Sky TG24 TV Friday, also said the U.S. air base at Bagram should have been left operating during withdrawal to help evacuate civilians.

7:26 PM

5,800 US troops now in Kabul to help with evacuations, says official

There are currently about 5,800 U.S. troops at the airport in Kabul to help with evacuation efforts, a U.S. official said on Friday. U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has ordered about 6,000 troops to Kabul, a number that is expected to be reached in the coming days.

 

7:12 PM

Shahjahanpur youth trapped in Afghanistan

A youth from the district is trapped in Afghanistan and awaiting return to his native place, his family member said here on Friday, PTI reported.

Jeet Bahdur Thapa (30), a resident of Chinaur here, had gone to Afghanistan for job two-and-a-half-years ago.

He worked as a helper at a company in Kabul.

7:11 PM

Britain's top diplomat on not calling Afghan FM

Britain's embattled foreign minister has defended his decision not to call while on vacation his Afghan counterpart about the evacuation of translators who had helped British forces, AP reported.

Dominic Raab has come under increasing pressure to resign for failing to follow the advice of officials in his department to make a call to Hanif Atmar on Aug. 13, while he was vacationing on the Greek island of Crete.

Two days later, the Taliban took over Afghanistan, 20 years after they had been ousted from power, and Raab headed back to the U.K. after cutting his vacation short to deal with the crisis.

7:10 PM

Poland to airlift 300 Afghans with links to NATO

Poland's prime minister says his government has taken on the responsibility as a NATO member to organise the evacuation of some 300 Afghans who have cooperated with the military alliance, AP reported.

Mateusz Morawiecki said Friday on Facebook that following his talks with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, Poland will be evacuating from Kabul 300 Afghans who in recent years cooperated with NATO. He did not elaborate what that cooperation entailed.

They will be brought to Poland and then on to other NATO countries, which Morawiecki did not name.

6:35 PM

Refugee group: 32 Afghans trapped between Poland and Belarus

A Polish refugee rights group said Friday that 32 people who fled Afghanistan have been trapped for 12 days in an area between Poland and Belarus while caught up in a standoff between the two countries, AP reported.

The group, Fundacja Ocalenie, called on Polish authorities to allow the people to apply for refugee status in Poland, saying they have the right to do so.

Polish authorities are refusing to let them in, and Belarusian guards will not let them return.

6:23 PM

Fitch Solutions says 10%-20% GDP collapse possible for Afghanistan

A collapse in Afghanistan's gross domestic product of 10% to 20% cannot be ruled out following the Taliban's takeover of the country, the research and risk analysis arm of rating agency Fitch told Reuters.
 

"It is hard to see how the country will achieve any positive growth this year," Anwita Basu, Head of Asia Country Risk, Fitch Solutions, said on Friday.

5:56 PM

Greek PM, Turkish president to discuss Afghan developments

Greece's prime minister and Turkey's president are to speak on Friday evening to discuss the latest developments in Afghanistan, the Greek prime minister's office announced, as both countries raise concerns about a potential major influx of people fleeing Afghanistan after the Taliban's takeover, AP reported.

 

Greece has repeatedly said it will not allow a repetition of 2015, when hundreds of thousands of people crossed to Greek islands from the nearby Turkish coast before heading through Greece and the Balkans north toward more prosperous countries in the European Union.

 

Greece's prime minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, would be speaking with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan at 7:30 pm local time (1630 GMT), Mitsotakis' office said.

5:54 PM

President Biden is brushing off criticism of his administration's chaotic Afghanistan withdrawal: report

5:53 PM

Informal US refugee network turns to text messages, GoFundMe to rescue Afghans

 The desperate plea was sent via text message from one refugee advocate to another trying to aid frantic evacuations from Afghanistan: "Just got a call for a young mom with her two young kids," it said, "She got through Taliban but being turned away by U.S. forces," Reuters reported.

5:23 PM

Merkel and Putin to discuss Afghanistan, other 'big' issues

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Russian President Vladimir Putin are set to hold talks in Moscow on Friday amid the crisis unfolding in Afghanistan and as Russia's treatment of opposition politician Alexei Navalny and Ukraine remain a source of ongoing tension between the two leaders' countries, AP reported.

Other challenging issues that are certain to play a role in the meeting are a gas pipeline between Russia and Germany opposed by the United States, the repression of dissent in Belarus, and allegations that the Belarusian government has channeled migrants into Latvia, Lithuania and Poland with the aim of destabilizing the European Union.

5:18 PM

Afghans at risk "have no clear way out" - UN refugee agency

Most Afghans are unable to leave their homeland and those who may be in danger "have no clear way out", the United Nations refugee agency said on Friday, Reuters reported.

5:15 PM

US struggles to speed Kabul airlift despite Taliban, chaos: AP

4:27 PM

Afghan women workers hold gathering to air concerns on female representation in future govt

4:23 PM

Maharashtra NGO seeks permission from Modi to 'adopt' stranded Afghan students

4:22 PM

First Australian rescue flight from Afghanistan touches down in Perth

3:52 PM

Republican senators seek accountability from Biden admin for US military equipment seized by Taliban

Over two dozen Republican senators have sought accountability from the Biden administration over billions of dollars worth of US sensitive military equipment seized by the Taliban in Afghanistan and warned about the possibility of the insurgents seeking help from countries like Russia, Pakistan, Iran and China to use them, PTI reported.

 

In the letter to Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin, senators Bill Cassidy, Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz and 22 Senate Republicans expressed grave concern regarding the status of high-tech US military equipment left behind in Afghanistan as a result of "our poorly executed withdrawal" from the country.

 

The Taliban insurgents swept Kabul on Sunday after the US-backed Afghan government collapsed and President Ashraf Ghani fled the country, bringing an unprecedented end to a two-decade campaign in which the US and its allies had tried to transform the war-ravaged nation.

3:52 PM

Local Taliban leaders inspect shut consulates

There are reports that local Taliban leaders are inspecting consulates of various countries located in Kandahar, Herat, Mazhar-e-Sharif and several other cities, it is learnt some local warlords had also reportedly checked some Indian consulates and other nearby buildings, ANI reported.

 

Earlier this month, India had closed all its consulates in Afghanistan and all the Indian staff was evacuated. The Indian embassy in Kabul is functional only and local staff is providing consular service.

 

The Indian embassy in Kabul is totally secure and no one has come or searched the mission, the source told ANI.

3:51 PM

Pakistan determined to play 'positive role' in Afghanistan: Qureshi

Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on Friday said Pakistan is determined to play a "positive role" in Afghanistan as he appealed to the Taliban insurgents and former rulers of the war-ravaged country to formulate an all-inclusive political government after mutual consultations, PTI reported.

Qureshi said that nobody is ready to face bloodshed in Afghanistan and people are looking for peace and stability in the country that has been taken over by the Taliban insurgents.

Pakistan is determined to play its positive role, he said. Our envoy in Afghanistan is also in touch with different Afghan personalities, he said in a statement.

3:23 PM

NATO pledges to speed evacuations from Afghanistan as criticism mounts

More than 18,000 people have been flown out of Kabul since the Taliban took over Afghanistan's capital, a NATO official said on Friday, pledging to redouble evacuation efforts as criticism of the West's handling of the crisis mounted, Reuters reported.