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The Taliban announced the top members of their government on Tuesday, in a move that will cement their power over Afghanistan and set the tone of their new rule just days after a chaotic US troop pullout.
The Islamist hardliners, who swept into Kabul on August 15 following a lightning offensive that decimated the former Afghan army, had pledged a more "inclusive" brand of rule than in their first stint in power in 1996-2001.
They have nonetheless made it clear that they will stamp out any insurgency, and on Tuesday they fired shots into the air to disperse hundreds of people who had gathered at several rallies in Kabul in a sign of defiance against a movement remembered for their brutal and oppressive rule.
On Tuesday evening, chief spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid told a press conference that the new government would be an interim one, and that Taliban veteran Mullah Mohammad Hassan Akhund would serve as its new acting prime minister.
He had served as deputy foreign minister under the Taliban's old regime, and is on a UN blacklist.
Mujahid also said that Taliban co-founder Abdul Ghani Baradar will be the deputy leader. Previously he served as the head of his movement's political office, overseeing the signing in 2020 of the US withdrawal agreement.
Here are the LIVE updates on the Afghanistan Crisis:
Taliban Supreme Leader Tells New Government To Uphold Sharia Law
The Taliban's secretive supreme leader on Tuesday told the newly appointed government to uphold sharia law, in his first message since the hardline movement swept to power.
"I assure all the countrymen that the figures will work hard towards upholding Islamic rules and sharia law in the country," Hibatullah Akhundzada, who has never been seen in public, said in a statement released in English.
Akhundzada told Afghans that the new leadership would ensure "lasting peace, prosperity and development", adding that "people should not try to leave the country".
5 Points On Mullah Hassan Akhund, Head Of Taliban's New Government In Afghanistan
Mullah Mohammad Hassan Akhund, a lesser known Taliban leader who is on the UN terror list, will lead a new 'acting' government in Afghanistan. Akhund and other names were finalized after Pak ISI Chief Faiz Hameed visited Afghanistan last weekend. Read more here.
Mullah Mohammad Hassan Akhund, a lesser known Taliban leader who is on the UN terror list, will lead a new 'acting' government in Afghanistan. Akhund and other names were finalized after Pak ISI Chief Faiz Hameed visited Afghanistan last weekend. Read more here.
Key Players In The Taliban's New Government
Afghanistan's Taliban on Tuesday announced key posts for their new government, after the hardline Islamists seized control of the country and ousted the previous regime last month.
Mullah Mohammad Hassan Akhund, who is on a UN sanctions list, was named as leader, while Taliban co-founder Abdul Ghani Baradar will be his deputy.
The Taliban's inner workings and leadership have long been shrouded in secrecy -- even when they ruled Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001.
Taliban Leader Mohammad Hasan Akhund To Lead New 'Acting' Government
The Taliban announced Mullah Mohammad Hasan Akhund as the leader of their new government in Afghanistan on Tuesday.
Chief spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid also told a press conference that Taliban co-founder Abdul Ghani Baradar will be the deputy leader.
Victorious Taliban Gloat Over Ruins Of CIA's Afghan Base
After America's longest war, Taliban commander Mullah Hasnain contemplates all that is left of what was part of the last CIA base -- demolished buildings, destroyed vehicles and piles of ammunition.
"We let them go peacefully, and look what they've left behind," Hasnain said, a leader of the Taliban's elite Badri 313 unit.
Hasnain, a thick-bearded man dressed in traditional brown robes with a waistcoat and black turban, surveyed the charred ruins of the sprawling complex on the edge of Afghanistan's capital Kabul.
US Secretary Of State Denies Taliban Blocking Americans From Leaving Mazar-i-Sharif
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken denied on Tuesday reports that the Taliban had blocked Americans attempting to fly out of of a northern Afghan city, but said the group had not allowed charter flights to depart because some people lacked valid travel documents.
Reports have emerged over the past few days that 1,000 people, including Americans, had been stuck at Mazar-i-Sharif airport for days awaiting clearance for their charter flights to leave. One organizer blamed the delay on the State Department - criticism echoed by Republicans who have said not enough has been done to facilitate the charter flights.
Blinken was speaking at a news conference in Qatar, a U.S. ally that has emerged as a key interlocutor to the Taliban, which seized power in Kabul on Aug. 15 after the Western-backed government collapsed.
Blinken said Washington had identified a "relatively" small number of Americans seeking to depart from Mazar-i-Sharif.
Taliban fire shots to disperse protests in Kabul
The Taliban on Tuesday fired shots into the air to disperse hundreds of people who had gathered at several rallies in Kabul, the latest signs of defiance by Afghans against the hardline Islamist movement which swept to power last month.
Afghanistan's new rulers have yet to form a government, but many in the capital are fearful of a repeat of the Taliban's previous brutal and repressive reign between 1996 and 2001.
At least three rallies were held across Kabul in a show of resistance that would have been unthinkable during the Taliban's last stint in power -- when people were publicly executed and thieves had their hands chopped off.
"Afghan women want their country to be free. They want their country to be rebuilt. We are tired," protester Sarah Fahim told AFP at one rally outside the Pakistani embassy, where more than 70 people, mostly women, had gathered.
#Taliban Fire Shots To Disperse Anti-Pakistan Rally In Kabul: Report
- NDTV (@ndtv) September 7, 2021
NDTV's Sreenivasan Jain reports
Read more: https://t.co/QSq36ssc3G pic.twitter.com/OO6c3N5KlP
Taliban Fires At Anti-Pak Rally With "Death To Pakistan" Chants
Hundreds of Kabul residents came out on the streets today in protest against what they said was meddling by Pakistan in Afghanistan's affairs, three weeks after the Taliban takeover. In videos shared by local journalists on social media, the crowds were heard shouting slogans like "death to Pakistan", "we don't want a Pakistani puppet government" and "Pakistan, leave Afghanistan", among others. Read more
Hundreds of Kabul residents came out on the streets today in protest against what they said was meddling by Pakistan in Afghanistan's affairs, three weeks after the Taliban takeover. In videos shared by local journalists on social media, the crowds were heard shouting slogans like "death to Pakistan", "we don't want a Pakistani puppet government" and "Pakistan, leave Afghanistan", among others. Read more
Taliban Said Will Let Afghans Leave Freely, "Will Hold Them To That": USUS Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Tuesday that the Taliban renewed promises to let Afghans leave freely amid concern over blocked chartered flights.
Turkey Says "No Need To Rush" Recognising TalibanTurkey said on Tuesday there was "no need to rush" in recognising the Taliban's rule in Afghanistan, adding that Ankara was still holding discussions about operating Kabul's strategic airport.
Afghanistan Army Didn't Protect Kabul "For Even Two Days": Top OfficialsWhen the Taliban swept into Kabul last month, capturing Afghanistan's capital without a fight, the sheer speed of the collapse of the Western-backed and trained army stunned the world.
78 Afghanistan Evacuees Released From Delhi's Quarantine Centre78 people including Afghan nationals, who were evacuated from Afghanistan after Kabul fell to Taliban last month, have been discharged from an ITBP facility in Delhi after they completed a 14-day quarantine rule in place to check the spread of Covid.
Taliban Fire Shots To Disperse Anti-Pak Rally In Kabul: ReportThe Taliban fired shots in the air Tuesday to disperse dozens of people protesting in Kabul against Pakistan's involvement in Afghan affairs, AFP staff at the scene reported.
Russian Ambassador to India responds to the question of recognising Taliban-led government in Afghanistan pic.twitter.com/QIOyxVMAzE
- NDTV (@ndtv) September 7, 2021
Taliban's Mullah Mohammad Hassan Akhund, On UN Terror List, Could Be Afghan Prime Minister: 5 PointsMullah Mohammad Hassan Akhund, a lesser known Taliban leader who is on a UN terror list, could be the next Prime Minister of Afghanistan as the Taliban tries to settle on a compromise candidate amid disagreements.
New Afghanistan Government Will Be Announced Soon, Says Taliban: ReportTaliban spokesperson Ahmadullah Muttaki on Tuesday said that preparations for the announcement of the new Afghanistan government's formation have been completed, Sputnik reported.
Afghanistan Crisis: Taliban Restrict Media From Circulating Messages Of Resistance Leader Ahmad MassoudThe Taliban have prohibited Afghan news media from circulating the message of Ahmad Massoud, the leader of Panjshir National Resistance Front (NRF) who called for a "national uprising" against the Taliban, Sputnik reported on Monday.
"Danger Of Terror From Afghanistan Spreading To Kashmir": Russian EnvoyThe Afghan soil should not be a source of spreading terrorism in other countries of the region and both Russia, India have "common concerns" over it in the backdrop of the unfolding situation in Afghanistan, Russian Ambassador Nikolay Kudashev said.
Afghanistan LIVE Updates: Afghan Art Activist Omaid Sharifi Defiant As Taliban Erase Kabul MuralsAfghan activist Omaid Sharifi's art collective spent seven years transforming stretches of Kabul's labyrinthine concrete blast walls with colourful murals -- then the Taliban marched in.
Afghanistan LIVE Updates: On First Day Of Afghan School Year, Kabul Institutes Deserted
Universities in Kabul were almost empty on the first day of the Afghan school year, as professors and students wrestled with the Taliban's restrictive new rules for the classroom. The Taliban have promised a softer rule than during their first stint in power from 1996-2001, when women's freedoms in Afghanistan were sharply curtailed and they were banned from higher education. Read more
US Evacuates 4 Citizens From Afghanistan, First Since Pullout: ReportThe United States has evacuated four Americans from Afghanistan, a State Department official said on Monday, in the first US-facilitated overland evacuation since the pullout from the war-torn country, US media reported.
On Afghans In India, Home Ministry Takes Over 'Exit Order' PowersThe Union Home Ministry has taken away powers of Foreigners' Regional Registration Office by which they could ask any Afghan national to leave India, in the backdrop of the unstable situation in Afghanistan.
With Pak Help, "Lightweight Leader" May Be Picked As Afghan PM: SourcesA relatively lesser known Taliban leader, Mullah Hassan Akhund, seen as a "lightweight" and who is on a UN terror list, could be the unlikely choice as the next Prime Minister of Afghanistan.
Curtains, Strict Rules For Female Students As Afghan Universities ReopenPrivate universities resumed functioning in Afghanistan on Monday with the Taliban - which has promised a more moderate government, including assurances of human rights - allowing female students to attend classes.
Blinken in Doha for Afghan crisis talks with Qatar
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with Qatar's emir in Doha on Monday for crisis talks on Afghanistan after the Taliban claimed to have full control over the country.
Blinken, accompanied by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, is the most senior US official to visit the region since the Taliban's lightning takeover of Afghanistan on August 15, AFP reported.
Pressure on US as NGOs say flights from Afghanistan blocked
President Joe Biden's administration faced mounting pressure Monday amid reports that several hundred people, including Americans, had been prevented for a week from flying out of an airport in northern Afghanistan, AFP reported.
Marina LeGree, the founder and executive director of a small American non-governmental organization active in Afghanistan, said some 600 to 1,300 people, including girls from her group, had been waiting near the Mazar-i-Sharif airport for as long as a week, amid confusion involving the Taliban and US officials.
