Afghanistan’s government collapsed on Sunday with President Ashraf Ghani’s flight from the country and the Taliban’s entry into the capital, effectively sealing the insurgents’ control of the country after dozens of cities fell to their lightning advance.
On Sunday evening, former President Hamid Karzai announced on Twitter that he was forming a coordinating council together with Abdullah Abdullah, chairman of the Afghan delegation to peace talks, and Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, the leader of the Hesb-i-Islami party, to manage a peaceful transfer of power. Mr. Karzai called on both government and Taliban forces to act with restraint.
Al Jazeera reported that it had interviewed Taliban fighters who were holding a news conference in the presidential palace in Kabul, the capital. The fighters said they were working to secure Kabul so that leaders in Qatar and outside the capital could return safely. Al Jazeera reported that the fighters had taken down the flag of Afghanistan.
As it became clear that Taliban fighters were entering Kabul and meeting no resistance, thousands of Afghans who had sought refuge there after fleeing the insurgents’ brutal military offensive watched with growing alarm as the local police seemed to fade from their usual checkpoints. The U.S. Embassy warned Americans to not head to the airport in Kabul after reports that the facility was taking fire, and said that the situation was “changing quickly.”
Late in Kabul’s evening, Mr. Ghani released a written statement on Facebook saying he had departed the country to save the capital from further bloodshed. » | Carlotta Gall and Ruhullah Khapalwak | Sunday, August 15, 2021
Le retour des talibans à Kaboul scelle la déroute des Occidentaux : Vingt ans après en avoir été chassés, les combattants islamistes ont repris la capitale afghane. Le président Ashraf Ghani a quitté le pays et reconnu la victoire des talibans. »
Taliban nehmen Kabul ein: Jämpfen wäre sinnlos gewesen: Niemand leistet Gegenwehr, als die Taliban nach Kabul zurückkehren. Die Menschen fürchten die Islamisten, zunächst aber die Gesetzlosigkeit – denn die Tore der Gefängnisse stehen weit offen. »
Afghanistan: amers, les habitants de Kaboul se préparent au retour des interdits et des châtiments corporels : TÉMOIGNAGES - L’immense majorité des Afghans sont piégés dans un pays plus instable que jamais depuis deux décennies. »
