For Afghanistan, the last 24 hours have been a treacherous and sudden change in the times. Everything from the Taliban’s siege of the capital, Kabul, to taliban control of all areas of Kabul, to President Ghani’s departure from Afghanistan, every development goes down in history.
According to the latest news from foreign media, Taliban spokesman Mohammad Naim told Al Jazeera on the 15th that the war in Afghanistan is over and the form of the regime will soon become clear.
At this point, the Afghan people, who have been suffering from war for decades, have once again been pushed to the crossroads of fate. What happened to “Kabul 24 Hours”?.
The Taliban rounded up Kabul
On the morning of 15 August, sporadic gunfire was heard in the Kabul area. Afghan media reported that Taliban forces have completed a siege of Kabul and are on standby on the outskirts of the city.
– Discuss “peaceful transfer of power”
Taliban spokesman Mujahid said on social media the same day, the Taliban has ordered all the group’s militants not to attack Kabul. The group is in Kabul to discuss a “peaceful transfer of power” with the Afghan government.
Afghanistan’s acting interior minister, Abdul Sattar Mirzakul, said the same day that the government will hand over power to the transitional government.
– Prepare for the transition of power
Former Afghan President Hamid Karzai said on social media the same day, Afghanistan has formed a “coordination committee” to prepare for a peaceful transition of power, and responsible for maintaining security, law and order. Members of the Coordinating Committee include Karzai, Abdullah and Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, the leader of the Islamic Party of Afghanistan and a former prime minister. The committee called on Afghan government forces and the Taliban to avoid conflict and chaos.
The Taliban entered Kabul
Later in the day, Mujahid announced on social media that Taliban militants had entered the city to keep the population safe and maintain social order as Afghan security forces in Kabul had given up their responsibilities and dispersed.
– The departure of the President of Afghanistan
Afghan National Reconciliation High Commission Chairman Abdullah 15 on social media, said President Ghani has left Afghanistan. Abdullah posted a video on social media. In the video, he refers to Ghani as “the former president of Afghanistan.” Ghani has agreed to resign, according to Russian and other media reports today. However, this information has not been confirmed by the Afghan presidential palace.
Ghani said in a statement on social media that day that he faced a difficult choice. If he insists on staying, countless of his compatriots will be killed and the capital, Kabul, destroyed, which would be a great disaster. In order to avoid the killing of the people, he decided to leave Afghanistan.
In his statement, Ghani did not specify where he had resigned or where he was going. Ghani, accompanied by some Afghan officials, has travelled to Tajikistan and will travel to other countries thereafter, but it is unclear what his next trip will be, according to media reports such as Tajikistan’s Voice of Asia news agency. This information has not been confirmed by the Afghan presidential palace.
Taliban declare “end of war”
According to foreign media reports, the Taliban political office in Doha spokesman Mohammad Naim 15, told Al Jazeera, the war in Afghanistan has ended, the form of the regime will soon become clear.
The United States stepped up its withdrawal
The U.S. military on the 15th used a number of helicopters from the embassy in Afghanistan to evacuate personnel, its embassy compound on the same day rose a plume of smoke. Some sources said it was the “urgent destruction of sensitive documents” by U.S. diplomats.
NATO said in a statement the same day, NATO will continue to maintain its diplomatic presence in Kabul, and to provide assistance to keep Kabul airport running.
Biden announced in April that U.S. troops in Afghanistan would begin withdrawing by May 1 and completely by September 11. Biden said July 8 that the U.S. military mission in Afghanistan will end on Aug. 31.
Clearly, the United States has “misjudged” the pace of development in Afghanistan. U.S. Secretary of State Blinken 15 guest ABC television program tried to weaken the U.S. personnel from Afghanistan, “the withdrawal of the king” image, said the situation in Afghanistan can not be compared with the “Saigon withdrawal.”
