Taliban violence against protesters is increasing, the UN human rights organisation says
The agency called on the Islamist group to stop using force, and allow peaceful demonstrations
A second international flight carrying passengers leaving Afghanistan has now departed from Kabul airport
The first flight to carry foreigners since the US pullout left on Thursday
US officials described the Taliban co-operation as businesslike and professional
Saturday will be the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks in the US - which triggered a two-decade conflict in Afghanistan
US president Joe Biden praised US forces, citing their "extraordinary success". It was due to the "skill, bravery and selfless courage" of the military, diplomats and intelligence professionals.
He said they did their job "and did it well", risking their lives "to serve others... not in a mission of war but a mission of mercy".
Image source, EPAUS President Joe Biden began his address by giving his thanks to the US military personnel for their work evacuating more than 120,000 from Kabul.
“That number is more than double what most experts thought were possible,” he said. “No nation has ever done anything like it in all of history.”
He said that the operation wouldn’t have been possible without the “skill, bravery and selfless courage” of US troops, diplomats, and intelligence personnel.
“They did it facing a crush of enormous crowds seeking to leave the country and they did it knowing Isis-K terrorists, sworn enemies of the Taliban, were lurking in the midst of those crowds.”
Thirteen US troops were killed in the operation, as well as 20 wounded.
Biden acknowledged that the Afghan military collapsed faster than expected ahead of the 31 August deadline.
“I still instructed our national security team to prepare for every eventuality, even that one,” he said. “We were ready when the Afghan security forces…did not hold on as long as anyone expected.”
More than 2,400 US military personnel were killed in the Afghan war, with nearly 23,000 wounded.
Image source, EPA"We completed one of the biggest airlifts in history," Joe Biden says as he comes to the podium at the White House. "No nation has ever done anything like it in all of history; only the United States had the capacity and the will and ability to do it."
Beheshta Arghand was a presenter for private TV channel Tolo News and interviewed the Taliban when they first arrived in Kabul.
She has now left Afghanistan and tells the BBC that many of the channel's reporters and presenters have also gone abroad.
Image source, EPAHis comments come following the withdrawal of US troops from the country
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres has warned of a looming “humanitarian catastrophe” in Afghanistan.
In a statement on Tuesday,, external he expressed “grave concern at the deepening humanitarian and economic crisis in the country and the threat of basic services collapsing completely”.
“Today, almost half of the population of Afghanistan – 18 million people – need humanitarian assistance to survive. One in three Afghans do not know where their next meal will come from. More than half of all children under five are expected to become acutely malnourished in the next year. People are losing access to basic goods and services every day,” he said.
His comments come after the US withdrawal of troops from the country.
Guterres urged UN member states to provide funding and help ensure humanitarian workers have funding, access and legal means to stay in the country and deliver aid.
While we're waiting to hear from President Biden, here's a video showing how four very different US presidents have handled the conflict.
You can watch it here:
From Bush to Biden: One was, four US presidents on Afghanistan
US President Joe Biden is to address the nation any minute - he's expected to defend his decision to pull out of Afghanistan.
The chaotic scenes at Kabul airport and the rapid crumbling of the Afghan government have prompted extensive criticism of Biden, but he has consistently said he does not regret withdrawing.
We'll bring you updates as he speaks.
Yogita Limaye
BBC News, Kabul
Image source, EPASince they took control of Afghanistan just over two weeks ago, the Taliban have sought to portray a more moderate image than when they last seized power in 1996.
They have repeatedly said they will grant amnesty to all, including those who worked for western militaries or the Afghan government or police.
But there is growing evidence that the reality on ground is different to the rhetoric coming from Taliban leaders and spokesmen.
Now sources inside Afghanistan, as well as some who recently fled, have told the BBC that Taliban fighters are searching for, and allegedly killing, people they pledged they would leave in peace.
Several sources confirmed that Taliban fighters last week executed two senior police officials. Those who managed to flee say they fear for their colleagues back home.
The BBC was not able to independently confirm the killings, and the Taliban have repeatedly denied committing any revenge killings. But the group was widely thought to be behind a spate of assassinations after signing a peace deal with the US in 2020, and there are mounting reports they have been searching for targets since taking power two weeks ago.
Canada will accept 5,000 Afghan refugees evacuated by the US, the government announced on Tuesday.
In a statement, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada said that the two countries had reached an agreement to “closely cooperate” on the safe passage of US and Canadian citizens, as well as Afghan nationals who served both countries, and their families.
The 5,000 refugees will be accepted as part of a wider plan to house 20,000 refugees. Included in their number are persecuted minorities, human rights advocates, journalists and members of Afghanistan’s LGBT community.
The refugees will come to Canada through other countries where they are currently being housed.
The government said they must meet “all eligibility and admissibility requirements”.
Canada has evacuated approximately 3,700 people from Afghanistan, most of whom supported Canada’s mission in the country.
Secunder Kermani
BBC News, Kabul
Image source, AFPWhat most Afghans are concentrating on now is what the future holds.
At the moment, they're in a state of limbo because, yes the Taliban are clearly in control of nearly all the country, but they've yet to announce a government. That means most Afghans still don't have that much of an idea about what life under the Taliban is really going to look like.
Many people I speak to say they're worried - that while in public the tone of the Taliban so far has been more conciliatory than anticipated, as the international focus shifts away from Afghanistan following the withdrawal of these final international troops, the Taliban could become more vengeful, more vindictive, more repressive.
The Taliban of course say that's not true and that they've granted an amnesty to those linked to the previous government, and that they're in favour of women's education, and women working.
But there's a real trust deficit between the inhabitants of cities like Kabul and the Taliban.
Clashes have been reported between the Taliban and opposition militia in Afghanistan’s Panjshir Valley.
A spokesman for the main resistance movement said it had killed eight Taliban fighters who had attacked from all directions. But the Taliban said opposition troops had suffered heavy casualties and three of their checkpoints had been seized.
The National Resistance Forces are holding out in the valley north of Kabul. Panjshir is the only province not under Taliban control.
It’s not the first time the dramatic and imposing Panjshir Valley has been a flashpoint in Afghanistan’s recent turbulent history – having been a stronghold against Soviet forces in the 1980s, and the Taliban in the 90s.
Fighting has also been reported in the neighbouring Baghlan, Parwan and Daikundi provinces.
President Joe Biden is scheduled to address the nation at 2:45 PM EST (18:45 GMT), a day after US forces withdrew from Afghanistan.
Earlier on Tuesday, the White House said that Biden “will express his thanks” to the US military personnel who evacuated 124,000 people from Kabul, as well as the veterans and volunteers who supported the operation.
Additionally, Biden is expected to address his decision to end US military involvement in Afghanistan after 20 years.
Biden will lay out his approach to foreign policy “through the prism of what is in our national interests, including how best to continue to keep the American people safe,” the White House said.
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki will hold a press briefing at 3:30 PM EST (1930 GMT) following the president’s remarks.
A group of 34 US senators is urging the country’s Veteran’s Administration (VA) to do more to ensure the physical and mental wellbeing of Afghanistan war veterans.
The letter, which was first reported by Politico, said that veterans between the ages of 18 to 34 have the highest suicide rate among former service members.
Many veterans, however, do not take advantage of VA services intended to decrease suicidal ideation and suicide attempts.
“For this reason, we ask that the VA develop a comprehensive outreach plan to connect Afghanistan and Global War on Terrorism veterans to VA benefits and services,” the letter said.
In early August, the VA warned that veterans should be on the lookout for “red flags” prompted by negative news from Afghanistan.
The VA said these behaviours can include isolation, the use of drugs or alcohol and “any increase in unhealthy behaviours compared to normal”.
A British citizen who is stranded in Afghanistan after travelling to the country to help his family flee is pleading with the government for help.
"At the moment our only hopes are that the government can do something to get us out from here," the 30-year-old taxi driver told the BBC.
"We are in trouble. We need to go."
While he has British citizenship, his wife and children are Afghan citizens and live there. He travelled to Afghanistan two weeks ago to try to rescue them.
He now fears for the safety of his family.
The Foreign Office said: "We will continue to do all we can to deliver on our obligation to get British nationals and eligible Afghans out of the country while the security situation allows."
Shayan Sardarizadeh and Alistair Coleman
BBC Monitoring
Image source, TwitterVideo seen by the BBC shows the man is very much alive
A video which has been claimed to show a condemned man being hanged from a helicopter seized by the Taliban appears to have been misleadingly captioned.
The 11-second clip - which has over 2m views and has been shared thousands of times on Twitter - is blurred and doesn’t give a clear indication of what is going on.
Further footage and still photographs seen by the BBC show that the man flying over the city of Kandahar is very much alive. These images show him wearing the Blackhawk helicopter’s diver’s winch and waving the Taliban flag.
Several Afghanistan experts, quoting Taliban sources, have told the BBC that the flight yesterday was an attempt to fix a flag over a public building using their newly-captured US-built equipment.
The helicopter appears to be the aircraft which was seen taxiing at Kandahar several days ago after it was seized by the Taliban from the Afghanistan Air Force. One defence analyst suggests the aircrew probably defected to the Taliban with their aircraft.
US-trained helicopter winch operators wear the loop at the back, which could easily be mistaken for a noose in poor quality video footage. British RAF, Royal Navy and HM Coastguard divers, on the other hand, wear the loop to their front.
Image source, Getty ImagesA Taliban fighter photographs an MD-530
We've shown Taliban fighters posing with military equipment at the airport in Kabul, but you may be wondering exactly what US forces left behind.
In total, 73 aircraft, nearly 100 vehicles and other equipment were abandoned by US troops as they pulled out ahead of the 31 August deadline.
US Central Command head Gen Kenneth McKenzie said it had all been rendered impossible to use.
Specific items include:
You can read more about the equipment left behind and how valuable it is by clicking here
The Taliban have ended a three-day meeting where the formation of a new government was discussed, the group said in a statement.
Taliban leader Mullah Hibatullah Akhundzada led the discussions on the "current political, security and social issues of the country", according to the group.
There's been some speculation on who is in the new government, but none of it is confirmed as yet.
This graphic, below, shows what we already know about the Taliban leadership.
And there's more in this who's who here.
Anthony Zurcher
BBC North America reporter
Image source, Getty ImagesOn Sunday, as the remains of the 13 US soldiers killed in Kabul arrived at a US military base in Delaware, Joe Biden met with the families of the slain.
Although the president is frequently lauded for his ability to speak emotionally about grief, the event did not go smoothly.
As he often does, Biden brought up his son Beau, who died of brain cancer in 2016. Some families said they felt it was an inadequate attempt to empathise with their loss. Others noted that he frequently looked at his watch.
One woman shouted: “I hope you burn in hell,” as the president departed.
Shana Chappell, whose son was killed, has since been temporarily suspended from Facebook and Instagram for posting incendiary statements directed at Biden.
These kinds of meetings are often fraught moments for presidents regardless of political party. Donald Trump received a sharp rebuke from the father of a Navy Seal slain in Niger early in his term – prompting him to avoid such “dignified transfer” ceremonies for most of his presidency.
Cindy Sheehan, whose son died in Iraq, set up an antiwar protest camp outside the White House during George W Bush’s presidency.
Chappell may follow a similar path, writing that after she buries her son she will drive to Washington to speak out against Biden.
“It’s time we show our numbers and take back our country,” she writes.
Taliban fighters entered Kabul airport within hours of the last US soldier leaving Afghanistan.
In an earlier post, we showed you footage of elite Taliban units armed with US weapons and wearing American uniforms as they patrolled the grounds.
You can see more of this in the video below, as well as images of Taliban fighters posing for photographs in the aircraft left behind as they celebrate the US withdrawal.
Afghanistan: Taliban enter Kabul airport and celebrate by posing in aircraft
The group entered the Afghan capital's airport hours after the last US soldier left the country.
Read More
Image source, ReutersGerman Chancellor Angela Merkel says between 10,000 and 40,000 local staff working for development organisations remain in Afghanistan but might want to leave for Germany.
She said the number of those who might want refuge depended on how the Taliban decided to rule the country.
Germany has already flown out some around 5,300 people, including more than 4,000 Afghan nationals.
She said at a news conference in Berlin she'd been in touch with other EU leaders about the possibility of maintaining an EU presence in the Afghan capital, Kabul, to keep up contacts with the Taliban.
This, she said, might only be temporary and was not the same as diplomatic recognition.
She stressed the importance of Kabul airport in terms of humanitarian aid.
"This airport by the way is of existential importance for Afghanistan because otherwise no humanitarian or medical aid can get there," she said.