August 16, 2021, Afghanistan-Taliban news

With Afghanistan under the Taliban's control, countries are evacuating their citizens and issuing guidance.

Meanwhile, commercial flights out of Kabul's Hamid Karzai International Airport have been canceled, and footage filmed there showed scenes of chaos and desperation as people scrambled to get onto planes.

The US military have established a perimeter at the airport, guarding at least a portion of the sprawling complex. Several videos shared on social media shows razor wire has been laid to hold back to hundreds of people desperate to leave. American troops can be seen standing guard behind the razor wire. 

It’s unclear how much of the airport the US military is controlling.

The civilian side of the airport is closed, according to a notice to airmen.

At least three airlines — United, Emirates and FlyDubai — are either suspending flights or rerouting them to avoid Afghanistan's airspace.

China has said that it respects the “will and choice” of the Afghan people and hopes the Taliban can implement what it promised to “ensure the smooth transition of the situation in Afghanistan."

“The Afghan Taliban said yesterday that the war in Afghanistan has ended and they will negotiate the establishment of an open and inclusive Islamic government and take responsible actions to ensure the safety of Afghan citizens and foreign missions in Afghanistan,” China’s foreign ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said at a daily press briefing on Monday.

“China hopes that these statements can be implemented to ensure the smooth transition of the situation in Afghanistan, curb all kinds of terrorism and criminal acts, and enable the Afghan people to stay away from war and rebuild their beautiful homeland,” Hua said.

Hua also confirmed that the Chinese embassy in Afghanistan is still in operation and that the embassy has evacuated the majority of Chinese citizens in the country in advance.

The Chinese embassy in Afghanistan said in a separate statement on Sunday that it has informed “different factions” in Afghanistan “to ensure the safety of Chinese citizens, Chinese institutions, and Chinese interests,” adding that the embassy has not received any reports on the casualties of Chinese citizens in the country.

Last month, China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi met with senior leaders of the Taliban in northern Chinese city of Tianjin and said that he expected the Taliban to play an important role in the country’s “peace, reconciliation and reconstruction process,” according to China’s Foreign Ministry.

Tajikistan has denied ousted Afghan President Ashraf Ghani entered its airspace or landed in the country.

“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Tajikistan reports that the plane with Mr. Muhammad Ashraf Ghani did not enter the airspace of Tajikistan and did not land on the territory of the country. It should also be noted that the Tajik side did not receive a corresponding request from the Afghan side," a statement of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Tajikistan said Monday.

Ghani fled the country on Sunday, with the Afghan Chairman of the High Council for National Reconciliation Abdullah Abdullah referring to him as “former President.”

France will begin airlifting French nationals from Kabul to a base in the United Arab Emirates by Monday evening, France’s defence minister Florence Parly said Monday. 

“There are several dozen French citizens to be evacuated from Afghanistan, diplomatic personnel as well as nationals from NGOs,” Parly told France Info Monday. 

“We are doing everything to facilitate a return to France for all those who are willing and able to get themselves to Kabul airport,” she said. 

Parly said France plans to evacuate French citizens and “all those people who are under our protection.”  

Two French military planes will be used for the evacuation. The planes will be reinforced by French soldiers who are stationed in the UAE.

The French nationals will then be transported to the city by other military planes after arriving at the airbase.

President Emmanuel Macron is set address France on Afghanistan at 2 p.m. ET.

US military have established a perimeter at Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, guarding at least a portion of the sprawling complex. 

Several videos shared on social media shows razor wire has been laid to hold back to hundreds of people desperate to leave Kabul. American troops can be seen standing guard behind the razor wire. 

It’s unclear how much of the airport the US military is controlling. 

On Sunday, the US Department of State announced that US forces would take over air traffic control at Kabul airport, saying that troop presence at the airport would be increased to 6,000.

Commercial flights out of Hamid Karzai International Airport have been canceled, according to the Afghanistan Civil Aviation Authority.

The civilian side of the airport is closed, according to a notice to airmen.

The US Embassy in Afghanistan warned people against traveling to the Kabul airport unless they receive explicit instructions to do.

Large crowds of people have been seen at entrance to Hamid Karzai International Airport and also inside the airport on attempting to board aircraft in chaotic scenes late Sunday and Monday morning.

Six thousand US troops earmarked for security duty in Kabul have been tasked with securing the entire perimeter of the airport, a defense official said Sunday.

Footage from the airport showed chaotic scenes of crowds running in an apparent attempt to catch a flight. Another video showed people climbing up the gangplank, trying to board a large jet.

Hundreds of people continued to flood the tarmac at Hamid Karzai International Airport on Monday morning, with little control over crowds who can be seen approaching planes.

The Taliban's takeover of Afghanistan will pose major hurdles for women's education in the country, and activists must continue to push the militant group to guarantee the rights of women and girls, said activist Pashtana Durrani.

When the Taliban ruled Afghanistan in the 1990s, women were barred from receiving a formal education under the group's fundamentalist interpretation of Islamic law.

Many fear that women's rights could be heavily curtailed once again in a Taliban-controlled Afghanistan.

Durrani said the Taliban must accept that general education for girls and women matters, that women must continue to have access to high school and a university education.

Though Durrani said she is not afraid and knows her rights, she said the return of the Taliban is cause for alarm.

South Korea temporarily closed its embassy and evacuated most of its staff from Kabul to another country in the Middle East, the South Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement on Sunday.

South Korea's ambassador and a few embassy staff members are still in Afghanistan, as is one South Korean civilian, the ministry said. Seoul is coordinating with its allies, including the United States, to evacuate one remaining civilian.

President Moon Jae-in issued an order on Monday to safely evacuate the diplomatic staff and Korean citizens "to the last person," according to his office.

What New Zealand is doing: New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said Monday that the country will begin evacuating its citizens from Afghanistan, as well as Afghan nationals who worked alongside the New Zealand Defense Force. Ardern said her government is aware of 53 New Zealanders in Afghanistan and 37 other individuals who worked alongside the NZDF.