For years the Taliban’s top spokesman shunned the public eye, even as he amassed hundreds of thousands of followers online where he live-tweeted the insurgency.
But days after the Taliban captured Kabul following the collapse of the US-backed government, Zabihullah Mujahid presented himself to the public for the first time in a surprise press conference in the Afghan capital.
The Shia Ulema Council at a press conference on Tuesday urged the Taliban to ensure that they will treat all faiths and ethnicities with equality and justice.
They said the next government should ensure the participation of all religions and ethnicities.
Desperate mass evacuation efforts in Afghanistan make it clear nothing went according to plan. There are multiple tragedies unfolding all at once. Will every American get out? How many Afghan nationals, who were promised American protection, will be rescued? And what about the future of everyone else under Taliban rule, especially women and girls?
One group of Afghans deserving of special mention are the thousands of interpreters who were the ears and voices of Americans for the last 20 years. They were given assurances of help, including the chance to get Special Immigrant Visas (SIV) for themselves and their families to come to the United States. Now is the time they need to cash in on those promises.
Ahmadullah Sediqi served as an interpreter for four years in Afghanistan and came to the United States on an SIV in 2014. Now he’s a Special Immigrant Visas Ambassador, helping others get their visas with the organization No One Left Behind. He describes the dire situation interpreters face right now as the visa process is in shambles and the Taliban takes hold of the country.
The head of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) William Burns held a secret meeting with the Taliban leader Abdul Ghani Baradar in Kabul on Monday, according to the Washington Post.
Meanwhile, US President Joe Biden is expected to decide as soon as Tuesday on whether to extend an Aug. 31 deadline to airlift Americans and their allies to safety.
The Taliban’s spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid at a press conference on Tuesday said they would not agree to an extension of a looming August 31 deadline to evacuate Afghans from Hamid Karzai International Airport, even as the US President Joseph Biden is expected to soon announce his decision on the extension of the US forces’ presence in Kabul.
The U.S. military intervention in Afghanistan was about counterterrorism. Had it not been for a traumatic terrorist attack in the United States, 20 years of U.S. warfare in Afghanistan never would have occurred. Most Americans would have been oblivious to events there, and U.S. policymakers would have given the country only the minimal attention it had received ever since U.S.-aided mujahedin chased out the Soviets in 1989. During those 20 years of war the United States did pick up some obligations to individual Afghans who aided it, but otherwise everything else about refashioning the internal affairs of Afghanistan represented mission creep.
Biden is getting attacked on all sides for putting its ‘credibility’ on the Taiwan issue at risk. Will he cave to it?
In an interview on Wednesday, ABC’s George Stephanopoulos asked President Biden whether the withdrawal of U.S. forces from Afghanistan called into question the credibility of America’s commitment to its allies and partners, particularly Taiwan. “Look, America cannot be trusted now,” Stephanopoulos suggested. “America does not keep its promises.”
Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, on Monday received Jean-Yves Le Drian, France’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Florence Parly, Minister of Defence.
During the meeting at Al Shati Palace in Abu Dhabi, they discussed the current developments in Afghanistan.
His Majesty King Abdullah held talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday in Moscow, covering the deep-rooted bilateral relations, as well as the latest regional and international developments.
The talks, attended by HRH Prince Ali, addressed bolstering ties between the two countries and peoples, and stepping up cooperation across various fields, according to a Royal Court statement.
Prince Khalid bin Salman, Russian DM meet to ‘explore ways to strengthen the military and defense cooperation’
Saudi Arabia said it signed a military cooperation agreement with Russia on Monday, according to a tweet by Deputy Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman.