Afghanistan: Taliban close in Kabul as last government stronghold in Northern Falls – live updates

The Times and Sunday Telegraph is reporting that arrangements are being made to airlift Sir Laurie Bristow, the British ambassador to Kabul, by Monday evening.

According to the Press Association, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) intended Sir Lowry and a small team of officials to be at the airport with other international diplomats.

However, The Sunday Telegraph reported that his departure was brought forward amid fears that the airport could be overrun as the Taliban continue their power march through the country.

Six hundred British troops are being stationed in the city to help evacuate Afghans, along with the remaining civilians, the PA reports, who worked with the UK military and face retaliation if it falls into the hands of the Taliban. .

With signs running out of time, an RAF Hercules was reported on Saturday carrying diplomats and civilians out of the airport.

A Reminder That America Has Been Afghanistan for 20 years. Biden vowed to be out by September 11 this year (the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks).

Justifying sticking to that pledge in a statement on Saturday, Biden pointed out that the US has spent nearly $1tn dollars in the country over that period, and trained more than 30,000 Afghan security forces.

Here is some information from the New York Times about the Taliban’s plans. I’ll try to bring you the best expert estimate we can find of how long it is expected to take for a full withdrawal to the US:

Senior US official said Jalmay Khalilzad, chief US negotiator with Taliban at peace talks in Doha told the extremist group not to enter Kabul until the United States had finished the evacuation mission. Taliban officials have responded by saying that the US stops airstrikes against its fighters who are wreaking havoc across Afghanistan.The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss high-level talks, said.

This is a grim reminder from a Wall Street Journal reporter AfghanistanIn Engel Rasmussen (formerly of The Guardian), listened to how quickly the Taliban have been able to capture cities across the country:

NS Taliban Mazar-i-Sharif, the country’s fourth-largest city, and the government’s last major stronghold in the north, was captured on Saturday as they tightened their grip on the country and locked in Kabul.

Residents of Kabul were gripped by fear last night and panicked to find ways to escape the bloodshed. With the fall of the mazar, the only cities left out of the militants’ hold are eastern Jalalabad, where the Taliban were advancing, and the capital itself.

In the afternoon, President Ashraf Ghani addressed the nation. Kabul was rife with rumors that he would step down to pave the way for a peace deal to spare the capital and a population of more than four million people.

Instead he said he would reorganize the military, and made a vague reference to “starting consultations” with the entire society and international allies. It may not take much time to decide as much of the country falls into the hands of the Taliban.

Guardian Emma Graham-Harrison And Michael Savage report

This is our live coverage of the latest events Afghanistan The Taliban have besieged Kabul after taking control of the city of Mazar-e-Sharif, the government’s last stronghold in the country’s north.

My name is Helen Sullivan and I will bring you news from Afghanistan as it happens.

Here are the major recent developments:

US President Joe Biden has ordered an increase in the deployment of 5,000 troops to expedite the departure of American diplomats and their Afghan allies, as they Said- America will not change its decision To leave Afghanistan despite the advance of the Taliban.

“I was the fourth president to preside over a US military presence in Afghanistan – two Republicans, two Democrats. I will not, and will not, give this war a fifth,” he said.

Kabul has been completely blackout for at least two hours. Right now the time is around 5 o’clock.

We’ll bring you the latest developments as they happen.

If you’re in Kabul, see news you think we missed, or have questions, contact me on Twitter @helenrsullivan.