A little earlier we brought you details from the first news conference given by the Taliban since they seized control of Afghanistan. Here's a video from that news conference.

Spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said he understood why the international community was concerned about security within the country, but said the Taliban would the not allow the "soil of Afghanistan to be used against anyone".

He also said that women would be able to be actively involved in society, and if they live according to Sharia law, "we will be happy, and they will be happy".

Image source, Reuters

Former Afghan MP Elay Ershad has been speaking to the BBC, in the wake of the Taliban takeover.

She's called President Ashraf Ghani "gutless" for fleeing to neighbouring Tajikistan.

Ms Ershad alleges that he left the presidential palace by helicopter on Sunday, telling colleagues that he had a meeting with Afghanistan's ministry of defence. But it was later discovered that he'd fled the country completely.

"I'm so angry I don't have words to explain it," said Ms Ershad. "He left his country behind and he left his people behind. I don't know why I trusted this guy and voted for him."

An ally of the president told the BBC on Monday that Afghan leaders had asked Mr Ghani to leave in order to avoid bloodshed, and the former leader planned to return home one day.

When asked about this, Ms Ershad said: "I wish he would return back. I wish I will look at his eyes and tell him 'I was a woman and I stayed here'."

"If he wanted to avoid bloodshed, he could have [left] six months ago," she added.

Malik Mudassir
BBC News, Kabul

Image source, Getty Images

Afghans are going back to work and there are more cars on the streets, but behaviour is starting to change in Kabul two days after the Taliban takeover.

Last night, a group of 28 Taliban men came into my hotel, armed with guns, and asked for food. The staff were nervous.

"Look. We need to secure this place," the hotel's security manager said. "Anybody could come with a gun and claim to be a Taliban, it could be a looter or a thief. So, why don't you just let us know who's with you, so we know who's Taliban and who is not. You know better than us."

Of course, all the men got fed. Later, I tried to order something from room service, but the staff said the Taliban had finished it all.

A couple of days ago, they were the enemy. There were uniformed guards in and around the hotel who were supposed to protect us from the Taliban.

Now the Taliban are here: standing outside with guns, opening the doors of cars.

From what I can see, the male staff at the hotel haven't shaved in the last three days. And all the female staff have gone.

At the reception, room service, the cleaners - women are no longer here.

Read more here.

The Taliban's first news conference since taking control of Afghanistan covered many topics. Here are the main takeaways:

• The group are actively working on forming a government and it "will be announced after completion" said spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid
• He said "women are going to be very active within our society" and that they would be allowed to work "within the frameworks of our Islamic laws," but didn't elaborate on what that means in practice

• When asked about contractors and translators who have worked with foreign powers, Mujahid said that "nobody is going to be treated with revenge" and that the group had "pardoned everybody for the benefit of stability or peace in Afghanistan"
• He said the Taliban promised to respect the role of the press and pledged that "private media can continue to be free and independent"
• But he warned that "the media should not work against us"
• When asked about the risk of the country housing al-Qaeda fighters or other extremists, Mujahid said that "Afghanistan's soil is not going to be used against anybody"
• He also claimed that the Taliban had planned to halt their advance "at the gates of Kabul so the transition process could be completed smoothly," but were forced to enter the city "to ensure the security of the residents"

Image source, Getty Images

The Taliban spokesman said that they were committed to the rights of women under Sharia law.

But what does that mean?

Sharia law is Islam's legal system. It is derived from both the Quran, Islam's central text, and fatwas - the rulings of Islamic scholars.

Sharia literally means "the clear, well-trodden path to water".

Sharia law acts as a code for living that all Muslims should adhere to, including prayers, fasting and donations to the poor.

Sharia can inform every aspect of daily life for a Muslim, including family law, finance and business.

The law can also have some tough punishments; theft, for example, can be punishable by amputating the offender's hand, while adultery can carry the penalty of death by stoning.

However, whether they are ever applied varies widely around the world.

Read more here.

The Taliban's news conference in Kabul has now finished.

Spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid was evasive throughout the briefing when questioned about the future of women's rights in the workforce.

He repeatedly stated that they would be entitled to work "within the frameworks of our Islamic laws", however he failed to expand on what this would mean in practice.

Read more: Uncertain times ahead for Afghan women

Image source, Reuters

"Afghanistan's soil is not going to be used against anybody," Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid says when asked about the risk of the country housing al-Qaeda fighters.

"We can assure the international community of that."

"There is full security across the country," Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid says when asked about reports of kidnappings and killing in Taliban controlled areas.

"Nobody will be able to kidnap anybody. We are going to have more and more security day by day."

"We don't want anybody to leave the country," he adds. "There is an amnesty. No animosity is going to be followed up."

"Our country is a Muslim nation, whether it was 20 years ago, or if it is now" Mujahid says.

"But when it comes to experience and maturity and vision, of course there is a huge difference between us now and 20 years ago.

"There is a difference to the actions we are going to take. This has been an evolutionary process."

The Taliban spokesman - who is holding his first ever news conference - is still taking questions from the media in Kabul.

"After the government is formed we are going to decide what laws will be presented to the nation," Zabihullah Mujahid says.

"One thing I need to say: We are working seriously on forming the government. It will be announced after completion."

"We have all borders under our control," he adds.

"We have pardoned everybody for the benefit of stability or peace in Afghanistan," Zabihullah Mujahid says.

"Our fighters, our people, we are all going to make sure that we can include all other sides and factions."

"Those whose lives have been lost as a result of fighting for the enemy, this was their own fault. We conquered the whole country in a matter of days."

"After the formation of a government, everything will be clearer."

When asked about contractors and translators who have worked with foreign powers, Zabihullah Mujahid says: "Nobody is going to be treated with revenge."

"The youth who have grown up here, we do not want them to leave. They are our assets."

"Nobody is going to knock on their door and ask them who they have been working for," he adds.

"They are going to be safe. Nobody is going to be interrogated or chased."

The Taliban spokesman is reiterating that private media will continue under their rule.

"I would like to assure the media that we are committed to the media within our cultural frameworks", Mujahid says.

"Private media can continue to be free and independent."

Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid is taking questions from the media now.

In response to a question about women's rights, he says "we are going to allow women to work and study within out frameworks".

"Women are going to be very active within our society, within our framework," he says.

A reminder that the Taliban are holding their first news conference since taking control of Afghanistan on Sunday.

"We are committed to the media within our cultural framework," the spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said.

"Nothing should be against Islamic values when it comes to the activities of the media," he added.

"You in the media should pay attention to [our] shortcomings so we can serve the nation."

"But the media should not work against us," he said. "They should work for the unity of the nation."

"I would like to assure the international community that nobody will be harmed," Zabihullah Mujahid says.

"We do not want to have any problems with the international community," the Taliban spokesman adds.

"We have the right to act according to our religious principles. Other countries have different approaches, rules and regulations... the Afghans have the right to have their own rules and regulations in accordance with our values."

"[We] are committed to the rights of women under the system of Sharia [Islamic law]," Mujahid says.

"They are going to be working shoulder to shoulder with us. We would like to assure the international community that there will be no discrimination."

Image source, Reuters

"We do not want to see chaos in Kabul," the Taliban spokesman says.

"Our plan was to stop at the gates of Kabul so the transition process could be completed smoothly."

"But unfortunately, the previous government was so incompetent... their security forces could not do anything to ensure security. We had to do something."

"We had to enter Kabul to ensure the security of the residents," Mujahid says.

"We want to make sure Afghanistan is no longer a battlefield of conflict," the spokesman says.

"We have pardoned all those who have fought against us. Animosities have come to an end"

"We don't want any external or internal enemies," spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid adds.

The Taliban's first news conference since taking control of Afghanistan has begun.

Spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid, who is appearing in front of cameras for the first time says "after 20 years of struggle we have emancipated [the country] and expelled foreigners".

"This is a proud moment for the whole nation," he says.

Image source, Reuters

The Taliban news conference has now begun in Kabul. It is the first time they have addressed the nation since taking control of the country.

We will bring you the latest updates here.