Afghanistan News highlights: Taliban appoint senior veterans to key ministerial posts

Taliban continue in their efforts to build a governing structure in Kabul. With less than a week to go to the troops withdrawal deadline, Western powers are speeding ahead with evacuations and Afghans are not being allowed to leave the country. Meanwhile, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Wednesday spoke to his British counterpart Dominic Raab on the developments in Afghanistan in the backdrop of the Taliban seizing control of the country. Stay tuned for updates.

US to prioritise evacuations from Kabul until final hours

The US military airlift of Americans and others from Kabul will continue until the final hours of President Joe Biden's Aug. 31 deadline for ending the frantic evacuation from Taliban-controlled Afghanistan, Pentagon officials said Wednesday.

John Kirby, the chief Pentagon spokesman, said more than 4,400 American citizens have been evacuated thus far, an increase of about 400 from Tuesday. More than 80,000 people, mostly Afghans, have been airlifted since Aug. 14, he said.

Harsimrat seeks changes in CAA for 'rehabilitation' of Sikhs, Hindus from Afghanistan

ormer Union minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal on Wednesday urged the Centre to “make changes” in the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) to facilitate the “rehabilitation” of Sikhs and Hindus coming from war-torn Afghanistan to India.

She also said the holy books of the Sikh faith there should be brought to India safely.

Evacuation from Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul

A US Marine provides security for qualified evacuees boarding a US Air Force C-17 Globemaster III in support of the noncombatant evacuation operation at Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul. Credit: Reuters Photo

US lawmakers violate orders with trip to Kabul during airlift

Two US congressmen have revealed that they violated official orders to travel to Kabul during the chaotic airlift that has seen the United States and allies try to evacuate tens of thousands of people fleeing the Taliban.

The revelation by Democratic congressman Seth Moulton and his Republican colleague Peter Meijer prompted an angry statement from the Democratic leader of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi on Tuesday.

Afghanistan's stability in Japan's national interest, Suga says

Afghanistan's stability and reconstruction are closely related to Japan's national interest, Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said on Wednesday, adding that Tokyo will work closely with other countries on Afghanistan.

Taliban appoint senior veterans to key ministerial posts

Afghanistan's Taliban have appointed senior veterans to the posts of finance minister and defence minister, two members of the group said, as it switches focus from a stunning military conquest to how to run a country in crisis.

The movement's unexpectedly swift victory has left it struggling to govern, and alongside established Taliban names at the top, it has turned to several lower-level administrators to keep Kabul running.

The Taliban have not formally announced the appointments, which a commander said were provisional, but Afghanistan's Pajhwok news agency said on Tuesday that Gul Agha had been named as finance minister and Sadr Ibrahim acting interior minister.

(Reuters)

A video grab taken from Afghan TV RTA shows propaganda images of Taliban's Badri 313 Special Forces patrolling streets in an unidentified location in Afghanistan. Credit: AFP Photo

Anticipated Taliban takeover of Afghanistan but timelines surprised us: Bipin Rawat

Chief of Defence Staff Gen Bipin Rawat on Wednesday asserted that any possible terrorist activity flowing out of Taliban-controlled Afghanistan and finding its way into India will be firmly dealt with, and suggested that the Quad nations should boost cooperation in the global war on terrorism.

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Taliban shows off 'special forces' in propaganda blitz

The Taliban has been showing off its own "special forces" on social media, soldiers in new uniforms equipped with looted American equipment who contrast sharply with the image of the usual Afghan insurgent.

Pictures and videos of fighters in the so-called "Badri 313" unit have been posted online for propaganda purposes to underline how the Taliban have better equipped and trained men at their disposal than in the past, experts say.

Members of Afghan girls robotics team arrive in Mexico

Five members of a girls robotics team in Afghanistan were welcomed to Mexico Tuesday after fleeing their Taliban-controlled country.The team members, none of whom were identified for security reasons, were received at the Mexico City airport by Minister of Foreign Affairs Marcelo Ebrard, and four of them gave a press conference shortly after landing.

Plane with 240 evacuated Afghan nationals lands in Budapest: MTI

A plane carrying 240 evacuated Afghan nationals including 126 children landed in the Hungarian capital Budapest on Wednesday, the state news agency MTI reported, citing a statement from the Interior Ministry.

MTI said a convoy carrying the evacuees had left Budapest's international airport to an immigration facility on the Serbian border where they will be placed in quarantine and go through immigration checks.

Russia begins Afghan evacuation, holds military exercises in Tajikistan

Russia began evacuating more than 500 people from Afghanistan on Wednesday while at the same time holding military exercises for its tank forces in neighbouring Tajikistan.

The USexit from Afghanistan is a security headache for Moscow, which sees Central Asia as part of its southern defensive flank and fears radical Islamism spreading into the region. (Reuters)

Britain says Kabul mission to finish by Aug. 31

Britain's foreign minister says he can't give a “precise timeline” about the end of UK evacuation flights from Afghanistan, but the mission will be over by Aug. 31.

Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said “it's clear that the troops will be withdrawn by the end of the month.” (AP)

As thousands flee Afghanistan, some refugees want to go back

From trucks stuffed with carpets, bedding, clothes and even goats, around 200 Afghan refugees look beyond the horizon toward Spin Boldak in their country's south, waiting to return home from Pakistan.

Dreading another period of harsh rule after the Taliban's rapid takeover following the US troop withdrawal, thousands have been desperately trying to flee Afghanistan, with chaotic images emerging from the Kabul airport.

But some families want to repatriate to their homeland, saying the Taliban will bring stability to the war-torn nation. (AFP)

51 evacuees from Afghanistan arrive in Uganda at US request

Uganda's government said that 51 people evacuated from Afghanistan arrived Wednesday in the East African country at the request of the United States.

Authorities said in a statement that the group, transported to Uganda on a chartered flight, arrived early Wednesday.

The statement said they included men, women and children. No further details were immediately given on the evacuees' identities. (AP)

Owing to prevailing security situation in Afghanistan, all Afghan nationals henceforth must travel to India only on e-Visa, the Ministry of Home Affairs has stated.

More Afghan students registered at Mangalore varsity, arrival uncertain

While Afghanistan is on the boil with the country's take over by the Taliban, the number of students registered for various courses offered by Mangalore University for the next academic year has seen a steady rise. However, it is not clear whether the students already enrolled at the university can make it to the campus on time considering the volatile situation in the country, sources at the university said. (PTI)

Russia to evacuate more than 500 citizens from Afghanistan

Russia will use four military transport aircraft to evacuate more than 500 citizens from Afghanistan, Interfax news agency reported on Wednesday, citing Russian Defence Ministry. (Reuters)

Harris in Hanoi as Afghan debacle rumbles

Vice President Kamala Harris began a visit to Vietnam Wednesday to stress US commitment to Asia, a trip critics have slammed as tone-deaf given the parallels with the superpower's evacuations from Saigon and Kabul.

Harris will meet the communist state's president and prime minister in Hanoi, a day after accusing regional giant Beijing of intimidation in the disputed South China Sea. (AFP)

Afghanistan faces humanitarian crisis as airlift deadline looms

Afghanistan's neighbours should open their land borders to allow more people to leave, a NATO country diplomat said on Wednesday, as aid agencies warned of a looming humanitarian crisis under the new Taliban rulers.

"Iran, Pakistan and Tajikistan should be pulling out more people using either air or land routes. It's vital air and land routes are used at a very fast pace," the Kabul-based diplomat told Reuters.

President Joe Biden has said the US is on "a pace" to complete its evacuation mission in Afghanistan by August 31 and doesn't plan to have troops in the country past that date, but the completion of the deadline depends on cooperation from the Taliban.

The US has currently approximately 5,800 troops at the Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul.

“We are currently on a pace to finish (the evacuation mission) by August 31. The sooner we can finish, the better. Each day of operations brings added risk to our troops,” Biden told reporters. (PTI)

16 of 78 evacuees from Afghanistan, who arrived in Delhi on Tuesday, tested positive for Covid-19: NDTV

Influential lawmakers from G-7 want India to be invited to the bloc's meetings on Afghan crisis

Influential lawmakers from the G-7 countries have urged that India should be invited to attend the bloc's meetings that seeks to develop a common and united front for global security and regional stability in the aftermath of the Taliban taking control over Afghanistan.

US Senator Bob Menendez, who is also the Chairman of the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and his counterparts from Italy, France, Germany, Japan, the UK and the European Parliament in a joint statement also said African Union should be invited to attend individual G-7 meetings when appropriate. (PTI)

Afghan all-girl robotics team members land in Mexico

Five members of an all-girl Afghan robotics team arrived in Mexico on Tuesday evening, fleeing an uncertain future at home after the recent collapse of the US-backed government and takeover by the Taliban militant group.

"We give you the warmest welcome to Mexico," Martha Delgado Undersecretary for Multilateral and Human Rights at the Mexican Ministry of Foreign Affairs told the women as she greeted them during a news conference at Mexico City's airport. (Reuters)

This is what Afghan evacuation looks like on the inside

The day our lives fell apart, Sunday, August15, I received a call from a close friend in Kabul. Usually cool and confident, vital skills for a community leader in a complex, conflict-ridden place like Afghanistan, my friend now whispered in desperation. “I need to get out,” he said. “Help me.” In the background, I could hear the city bustling nervously as millions of people absorbed the fact of the Taliban’s conquest.

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Taliban say want Afghans not to leave, expects foreign evacuations to end by August 31

The Taliban expect foreign evacuations from Kabul to be completed by the end of the month, the Islamist group's main spokesman said on Tuesday, urging Afghans to stay to help rebuild their country.

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Putin says Russia will not 'meddle' in Afghanistan

President Vladimir Putin said Tuesday Russia would not interfere in Afghanistan and that Moscow had learned from the Soviet occupation of the country, a week after the Taliban swept back into power.

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