The Taliban must prevent Afghanistan from lapsing back into being a breeding ground for terrorism, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said, adding that members of the alliance have the capacity to respond to future threats.
Afghanistan-Taliban Crisis Highlights: The Taliban have seized power in Afghanistan after the US-backed Afghan government collapsed and President 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. In a Facebook post, Ghani said he had left the country to avoid clashes with the Taliban that would endanger millions of residents of Kabul. He reportedly fled from Kabul with four cars and a helicopter full of cash, Russias state news agency RIA Novosti has reported. Following this, at least seven people, who clung to a US Air Force plane to escape the Taliban rule in Afghanistan, died on August 16 in a melee at the Kabul airport, as hundreds of people scrambled to board flights in a desperate bid to get out of Afghanistan. This included three Afghan nationals, who reportedly fell to death from the sky as they failed in their bid to flee from the country. All commercial flights have been suspended at the Hamid Karzai International Airport, the Afghanistan Civil Aviation Authority has said in a statement. Meanwhile, US President Joe Biden has warned the Taliban of swift and forceful response from the US if they attack American personnel or disrupt their operations in Afghanistan. Earlier on August 15, the spokesman for the Taliban's political office told Al Jazeera TV that the war in Afghanistan is over and that the type of rule and form of new regime will be clear soon. Speaking on the situation, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has said that he is 'deeply concerned' about the situation in Afghanistan and urged the Taliban to exercise utmost restraint.
The Taliban must prevent Afghanistan from lapsing back into being a breeding ground for terrorism, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said, adding that members of the alliance have the capacity to respond to future threats.
PM Modi asks officials at CCS meeting to provide refuge to Sikh, Hindu minorities wanting to come to India from Afghanistan: Govt sources
Due to the dynamic situation, we've begun routing affected flights around Afghanistan airspace. We'll continue to work closely with FAA & IATA to determine how we continue service to markets impacted. The routings for our India flights are the only ones impacted: United Airlines
Taliban is a terrorist organization & is supported by Pakistan. China is also helping them. Taliban may support terrorist activities in Kashmir & provoke Khalistan supporters. I feel we should adopt Israel's counter-terrorism strategy: BJP General Secretary CT Ravi
Canada has no plans to recognize the Taliban as Afghanistan's government following the Islamist movement's takeover of Kabul, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Tuesday.
Britain will work with other countries to avoid a humanitarian disaster in Afghanistan and any recognition of the new government must be on an international basis, Prime Minister Boris Johnson told his Pakistani counterpart on Tuesday. "The Prime Minister stressed his commitment to work with international partners to avoid a humanitarian disaster in Afghanistan and the wider region," a Downing Street spokesperson said after the call with Pakistan's Imran Khan.
The prosecutor of the International Criminal Court on Tuesday called on all parties in the Afghanistan conflict to respect humanitarian law. In a statement, Karim Khan noted that the court may exercise jurisdiction over any genocide, crime against humanity or war crime committed in Afghanistan since it joined the court in 2003.
Pakistan is in touch with other countries and would decide on the recognition of the Taliban government in Afghanistan on the basis of a regional decision, Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry said on Tuesday.Addressing a press conference here after a Cabinet meeting, he said that Pakistan would not take a unilateral decision about the takeover of Kabul by the Taliban. We are in touch with our friends, both in (this) region and internationally, and we will decide accordingly, Chaudhry said.
The Defence Department says US military commanders at the Kabul airport are in touch with Taliban leaders as they coordinate the evacuation effort of US citizens and Afghan allies. Pentagon spokesman John Kirby told reporters at a briefing on Tuesday that necessary interactions with Taliban leaders will continue as the US evacuates people. He said there have been no new hostile encounters with Taliban fighters at the airport.
The Russian ambassador to Afghanistan said he had a constructive and positive meeting with Taliban representatives in Kabul to discuss security for the Russian diplomatic mission. Tuesday's meeting was announced the day before by the Kremlin envoy on Afghanistan, Zamir Kabulov, who also said the Taliban has already started guarding the outside perimeter of the Russian embassy.Ambassador Dmitry Zhirnov told Russian state TV Tuesday that the meeting was dedicated exclusively to the security of the embassy and involved senior Taliban representatives in the city who were accepting the surrender of the remnants of the self-disbanded Afghan national security forces. The meeting was positive and constructive, Zhirnov said. The Taliban representatives said the Taliban has the friendliest ... approach to Russia. They confirmed guarantees of security for the embassy. The meeting was positive and constructive, Zhirnov said.
We want to establish a government that includes all sides, TOLOnews quotes Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid.
In response to question about differences b/w 1990s Taliban & today's, Taliban spox Zabihullah Mujahid said the ideology & beliefs are the same because they're Muslims, but there is a change in terms of experience--they're more experienced & have a different perspective: TOLOnews
Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid also said the insurgents seek no revenge and insisted that everyone had been pardoned, even if they worked with the former government or with foreign forces.
