Topline Taliban forces entered Kabul Sunday as U.S. diplomatic personnel left the embassy and evacuated to the Kabul airport—which the U.S. embassy reported may now face a security threat, directing citizens to shelter in place—as the Afghan government appears to rapidly fall to the Islamic insurgent group as the U.S. government withdraws from the region. Smoke rises next to the U.S. Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan, on Aug. 15 as Taliban fighters entered … [+] the outskirts of the Afghan capital. ASSOCIATED PRESS Key Facts Taliban forces reportedly entered the city of Kabul Sunday as the group said they were entering to maintain security in police districts, moving into the city after spokesman Suhail Shaheen had previously told the BBC Sunday the forces had been instructed by the group’s leadership “to remain at the gates of Kabul, not to enter the city.” Taliban leadership is now at the presidential palace to negotiate a transfer of power, and Shaheen told Al-Jazeera Sunday the group is seeking an “unconditional surrender” by the Afghan government—something that appeared to be the case Sunday as Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani has now left Kabul and flown to Tajikistan. Acting Afghan Interior Minister Abdul Sattar Mirzakwal said earlier Sunday the government would transfer “peacefully” to a “transitional” government, but did not specify what that new administration would look like, CNN reports. The U.S. is now pulling its diplomatic forces out of Afghanistan and the U.S. embassy—including reportedly the U.S. ambassador, who CBS News reports has now left the… Click below to read the full story from Forbes
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Afghanistan: Taliban Enters Kabul As U.S. Officials Flee To Airport Now Reportedly Under Threat
