On August 15, 2021, the Taliban took over the reign of the Afghans. As the US army slowly started withdrawal from the 20-year-old war, it paved way for the success of the Taliban. As a result, it created chaos and panic at the Kabul airport. Now, America and other allied nations are trying to safely evacuate the citizen stuck in the country.
Recently, the NATO officials stated that over 18,000 Afghans have been evacuated from the Kabul Airport ever since the Taliban took over. However, people still continue to assemble outside the airport in large numbers, desperate to flee.
Taliban who conquered Afghanistan in such a short span of time has surprised even their own leaders. This has resulted in the rise of power vacuums in many places.
After seizing Afghanistan, the Taliban for the very first time chanted prayers on Friday. It urged the Afghans to unite peacefully and not leave Afghanistan.
In addition, the Taliban have presented a more moderate face, claiming that they want peace. Moreover, they said that they won’t seek revenge against old enemies and will respect the rights of women within the framework of Islamic law.
However, a report by a Norwegian intelligence group said that the Taliban had begun surveying and showing up on the doors. After that, they had been noting down the Afghans on a blacklist of people linked to Afghanistan’s previous administration or U.S.-led forces. Similarly, the complaints by Afghan journalists have also raised doubts about independent media.
Through an investigation, it was found that the Taliban had murdered nine ethnic Hazara men. This has increased the fear among masses that the Taliban, whose members are Sunni Muslims will target Hazaras, who mostly belong to the minority.
A U.S. lawmaker said that the Taliban was using files from Afghanistan’s intelligence agency to identify Afghans who worked for the United States. “They are methodically ramping up efforts to round those folks up,” said Representative, Jason Crow to NDTV news, who has been leading efforts in the U.S. Congress to accelerate the evacuation of American-affiliated Afghans.
