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Fall of Kabul (2021)

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For the fall of Kabul to the Taliban in 1996, see Battle of Kabul (1992–1996). For the fall of Kabul to the Northern Alliance and the United States, see Siege of Kabul (2001).
Fall of Kabul
Part of the 2021 Taliban offensive of the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021)
Date15–16 August 2021
(1 day)
Location
Kabul, Afghanistan
Status

Taliban victory

Belligerents
Taliban  Islamic Republic of Afghanistan
Non-military support:
 United States[a]
 United Kingdom[b]
Commanders and leaders
Hibatullah Akhundzada[4]
Abdul Ghani Baradar[5]
Suhail Shaheen[6]		 Ashraf Ghani (in exile)[7]
Hebatullah Alizai[8]
Joe Biden
Boris Johnson
Units involved
Unknown

Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF)

Kabul fell to Taliban forces on 15 August 2021 in the culmination of a military offensive that began in May 2021 against the Afghan government. The capture took place hours after President Ashraf Ghani fled the country. Most of the provincial capitals of Afghanistan had fallen one after the other in the midst of a U.S. troop withdrawal that was to be completed by 31 August.[10]

Negotiations are ongoing between a Taliban delegation and Afghan officials, although it appears unlikely that they will end in anything less than an unconditional surrender by the government.[11][12][13] A peaceful transfer of power has been requested by the Taliban,[13] and the government has declared its willingness to abide.[14] However, the government has requested that power be transferred to a transitional government, while the Taliban desires a complete transfer of power.[15] NATO forces still maintain a presence in Kabul.[16]

Background

Main article: 2021 Taliban offensive
Taliban militants during the 2021 offensive

The Taliban and allied militant groups began a widespread offensive on 1 May 2021, simultaneous with the withdrawal of most U.S. troops from Afghanistan. Following its rapid defeat across the country, the Afghan National Army was left in chaos, and only two units remained operational by mid-August: The 201st Corps and 111th Division, both based in Kabul. The capital city itself was left encircled after Taliban forces had captured Mihtarlam, Sharana, Gardez, Asadabad, and other cities as well as districts in the east.[9] In the days preceding the fall, the projection for the situation of Kabul rapidly worsened. U.S. officials forecasted in early August that Kabul could hold out for several months, but the week of the fall brought more grim forecasting; five days before the Taliban reached Kabul, expectations degraded and analysis suggested the capital would last "30 to 90 days",[17] and within two days, officials were suggesting the city would fall within the week.[18]

Evacuations, fighting, and negotiations

Collapse of Ghani government

Taliban control of Afghanistan prior to the fall of the capital city of Kabul

On 15 August, the Taliban command officially instructed its forces to halt their advance at the gates of Kabul, declaring that they would not seize the city by force, though the rebels entered its outskirts.[19] Locals reported that Taliban fighters were advancing into the urban areas regardless of their leaders' official declarations.[11][14] After some clashes, the insurgents reportedly captured the Pul-e-Charkhi prison, and released all inmates, including captured Daesh and Al-Qaeda militants.[20] Taliban fighters raised their flag in several areas of the city, and pressured some police to hand over all their weaponry.[11] Bagram Airfield and the Parwan Detention Facility, which held 5,000 prisoners, also fell to the Taliban.[11][21]

The Afghan interior ministry in a statement said that President Ashraf Ghani had decided to relinquish power and an interim government led by the Taliban will be formed.[22] Afterward, fighting died down, although many civilians remained fearful and holed up in their homes.[11] By 11:17 CET, Taliban negotiators were reported to have arrived at the presidential palace to begin a transfer of power.[23] Although negotiations were tense, the government declared its willingness to peacefully surrender Kabul to the rebels,[14][13] and urged civilians to remain calm.[24] Al Arabiya reported that a transitional government would be formed under the leadership of former minister Ali Jalali,[25] but this was later denied by the Taliban.[26]

Later the same day, Afghan and Indian news reports claimed that Ghani had left Afghanistan[27][28][29] alongside Vice President Amrullah Saleh; both reportedly flew to Tajikistan.[30] Kabul's presidential palace, the Arg, was evacuated by helicopters. Meanwhile, Taliban co-founder Abdul Ghani Baradar arrived at Kabul Airport to prepare the takeover of the government.[5]

At 8:55 pm local time, the Taliban claimed that they had taken over the Arg, which had been vacated by President Ghani earlier that day. Allegedly, all other palace employees were ordered to leave after Ghani left.[31] Reporters from Al Jazeera were later allowed into the Arg and could interview some of the Taliban militiamen.[32]

At approximately 9:12 pm local time, it was reported that the Taliban would soon declare the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan from the presidential palace, returning to the official symbolism of the Taliban government of 1996 to 2001.[33] At around 11:00 pm local time, Ghani posted on Facebook that he had fled in an attempt to avoid a bloody battle and that "the Taliban have won with the judgement of their swords and guns".[34]

Kabul Airport evacuation

Further information: Operation Allies Refuge and Operation Pitting
President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris held a video conference with the national security team to discuss the situation in Afghanistan

After the fall of Herat on 12 August, the U.S. and United Kingdom announced the deployment of 3,000 and 600 of their troops respectively to Kabul Airport, in order to secure the airlifting of their nationals, embassy staff and the Afghan civilians who worked with the coalition forces out of the country. American officials said that their first deployment would transpire in the next 24 to 48 hours and that all of their forces are still expected to leave Afghanistan by the end of August 2021.[35]

Amid the Taliban assault on the capital, U.S. military CH-47 Chinook and UH-60 Black Hawk and State Department CH-46 Sea Knight helicopters were sighted landing at the American embassy in Kabul to carry out evacuations as diplomats were reported to be rapidly shredding classified documents.[36] Panic spread among the civilian population of the city, and many rushed to their homes or to the airport which remained government-held.[11][24] The German government announced that it was sending Airbus A400M Atlas aircraft with a contingent of paratroopers for evacuations. The German government further stated that it would seek the required parliamentary approval once the mission was complete, due to the urgency of the situation.[37] Albanian prime minister, Edi Rama, announced that his government had accepted an American request to serve as a transit hub for evacuees.[38] The Italian government was reported to have transferred its embassy staff as well as the families of 30 Afghan employees to Kabul airport under Carabinieri guard to prepare for evacuation.[39] The government of India was reported to have C-17 Globemaster III aircraft prepared to evacuate Indian diplomatic staff, but had anticipated that it would take longer for the Taliban to capture Kabul.[40]

At approximately 8:30 PM local time, reports emerged that the U.S. embassy was taking fire. The embassy issued a declaration instructing U.S. citizens in the area to shelter in place.[41] Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced that the embassy would be relocated to Kabul Airport.[42] Various other nations announced plans to evacuate their embassies, including Spain, Germany, the United Kingdom, and the Netherlands.[43][44]

Thousands of Afghans crowded Kabul airport, with civilians reportedly killed in stampedes and U.S. forces firing warning shots into the air to disperse people attempting to forcefully board aircraft.[45][46] Video footage showed hundreds of people running alongside a moving U.S. military plane in Kabul international airport. Some people could be seen hanging just below the wing of the C-17A aircraft. Others were running alongside "waving and shouting". At least three people were reportedly shown to "fall from the undercarriage immediately after takeoff".[47] Seven were eventually confirmed killed - including two armed men shot by US forces according to the US Department of Defense.[48]

Impact on civilians

Some locals, especially women, were fearful for the restoration of Taliban rule and some reported feeling betrayed.[49][50] It was reported that the streets of Kabul were gridlocked with residents rushing toward the airport, with some abandoning their cars to make their way on foot through the traffic.[51] Long queues were reported outside of the airport and foreign embassies, with residents waiting in the heat in the hopes of being able to secure visas or flights out of the country.[52] A minority of residents celebrated the Taliban advance.[11] The day before the fall, Afghanistan Policy Lab director Timor Sharan told Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty that "shopping in the city today, I felt people were gripped by a sense of being stuck; stuck in an uncertain future and never able to dream, aspire, think, and believe anymore."[53] Zarifa Ghafari, the former mayor of Maidan Shar and who was working with the defence ministry in Kabul, told media that "There is no one to help me or my family. I’m just sitting with them and my husband. And they will come for people like me and kill me. I can’t leave my family. And anyway, where would I go?"[54]

Chadaree are sold in Afghanistan.

It was reported that sales of burqas (known as chadaree in Afghanistan) jumped in the days leading to the Taliban's arrival, with the price of one increasing from ؋200 to as much as ؋3,000 (approximately US$2.50 to 37.25), in fear that the Taliban would re-impose it as mandatory on women and would target women who refused.[55] One Kabul woman told The Guardian that female students had been evacuated from their university dormitories before the Taliban could reach them and that university-educated women across the city were hiding their diplomas.[56] Shops in the city were noted to have begun painting over and removing advertisements featuring women.[57]

Residents reported a large increase in food prices.[11] It was reported that a significant number of vendors in Kabul were attempting to liquidate their stocks in hopes of raising enough money to escape the country.[58] Concerns have also been raised about the thousands of refugees who had fled Taliban advances elsewhere in the country and now found themselves stuck in Kabul.[59]

Reactions

Former Afghan president Hamid Karzai pressed publicly for a peaceful transition of power, promising he would remain in Kabul with his young daughters.[60] Several Afghan officials placed the blame for the collapse at the feet of the Ghani government.[61] Afghan National Reconciliation Council chairman Abdullah Abdullah denounced Ghani's fleeing of the country, stating that "The former president of Afghanistan left Afghanistan, leaving the country in this difficult situation. God should hold him accountable." Bismillah Khan Mohammadi, former ANA chief of staff and interim minister of defence, tweeted "They tied our hands from behind and sold the country. Curse Ghani and his gang."[62]

The United States, Germany, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Canada, India, and Sweden have evacuated their embassies. Russia, Pakistan and India do not intend to shut down their embassies.[63] According to North Press a news outlet of the AANES, morale of jihadist and extremist groups has risen drastically after the fall of presidential palace in Kabul, in regions such as Syria, and Iraq with groups such as Tahrir al-Sham morale boosted after the collapse of Kabul.[64]

Pope Francis released a statement saying that he shared "the unanimous concern for the situation in Afghanistan" and called for prayers for peace.[65] Nobel laureate Malala Yousafzai, who had survived a Taliban assassination attempt in Pakistan in 2012, stated that she was in "complete shock" and was "deeply worried about women, minorities and human rights advocates."[66]

Businesses

United Arab Emirates airline Flydubai announced that it would suspend flights to Kabul on 16 August.[67] A flight by Emirates Airlines to Kabul was diverted, and later returned to Dubai.[68]

Evaluation

Journalist Nick Turse argued that "without a true reevaluation this time around, the U.S. risks falling into well-worn patterns that may, one day, make the military debacles in Southeast and Southwest Asia look terribly small."[69] German politician Armin Laschet, the Minister-President of North Rhine-Westphalia and CDU/CSU candidate for Chancellor in the 2021 German federal elections, stated that it was "the biggest debacle that NATO has suffered since its creation and it's a change of era that we are confronted with." British parliamentary Foreign Affairs Select Committee chairman Tom Tugendhat stated that the collapse was "the biggest single policy disaster since Suez".[70]

Retired Chief of the Defence Force of Australia Chris Barrie criticised the organisation of the evacuations, stating that "we’ve just left it far too late" and predicting reprisals from the Taliban.[71]

Fall of Saigon comparisons

External images
image icon A widely-shared image shows a helicopter landing in the U.S. Embassy courtyard. The Army CH-47 Chinook evacuated diplomatic staff to Kabul airport as the city fell.
image icon Many comparisons were drawn to a similar photo from the fall of Saigon In it, a Marine CH-46 Sea Knight landed on the embassy roof to evacuate the final Americans in Vietnam.[72]

The events were compared by several commentators to the Fall of Saigon at the end of Vietnam War in April 1975.[73][74][75] A month before the Taliban arrived in Kabul, American president Joe Biden had rejected the comparison, stating that "the Taliban is not the North Vietnamese Army... There's going to be no circumstance for you to see people being lifted off the roof of an embassy of the United States from Afghanistan. It is not at all comparable."[76]

Reporters argued that Biden's comments did not age well, as embassy staff burned documents and "helicopters were pictured hovering above the compound, shuttling diplomats to the airport" less than a month later.[5] Lawrence Chambers, who had given the order to push helicopters off the USS Midway during Operation Frequent Wind to make way for more evacuee aircraft from Saigon to land, stated that "what is happening now is worse than what happened in Vietnam", elaborating, "[In Vietnam] we tried to get out as many people who worked with us as we could... In Afghanistan, we are abandoning the folks who supported us while we were there."[77]

On the day the Taliban entered Kabul, American secretary of state Antony Blinken rejected the comparison to Saigon, stating on an ABC's This Week interview that "this is manifestly not Saigon. We went into Afghanistan 20 years ago with one mission in mind, and that was to deal with the people who attacked us on 9/11, and that mission has been successful."[78] Despite the city's fall, 5,000 U.S. troops remained in the city along with some U.S. embassy personnel.[79] It was also confirmed that NATO troops were still present at the Hamid Karzai International Airport.[16] The same day, the U.S. government authorized the deployment of 1,000 additional troops to Afghanistan, thus bringing the total number of U.S. troops in Kabul to 6,000.[80]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Operation Allies Refuge
  2. ^ Operation Pitting

References

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