replacing it with a taliban flag.e have seen that a lot in the capital. it has left a lot of people very upset. >> the international monetary fund is withholding 400 60 million dollars from afghanistan citing a lack of clarity over government recognition. the u.s. has frozen $9.5 billion of afghan government assets. nearly the entire reserve of its central bank. the u.s. defense secretary has concluded evacuations from kabul have not met their target. lloyd austin has said american troops don't have the capacity to extend the on the airport perimeter to get -- to help you get more people out of afghanistan. the british prime minister says the u.k. will do all that can to avert a humanitarian crisis in afghanistan. boris johnson says he does not believe military action against the taliban is an option. president joe biden says he disagrees with the world health organizations warning against giving coronavirus booster shots. he has unveiled plans to offer them from september. stay with us. inside story is up next. ♪ >>

so the taliban went to war with the taliban let afghanistan in 2000. what we have seen with iran over the more recent years, particularly with its relationship -- particularly as its relationship with the u.s. got worse, it started to funnel arms to the taliban. i think that's was -- that was meant to poke the u.s. in the eye and present more strength to america's rival in afghanistan. for iran, its major interest and concern is the she a muslim community in afghanistan. they are the religious minority in afghanistan, a very vulnerable community. the taliban, many of the murder. i run will wordy -- worry about their security. i think they will look to get reassurances that [indiscernible] iran does have a potential asset in afghanistan. there is a shia built militia on afghanistan that iran cultivated to deploy to the middle east and fight in the wars there. iran has the option if things came to to reconstitute that afghan/shia militia and try to deploy to protect the shieh community. that is an advantage iran has. final point, it worries about the tal

ambassador basically to the taliban negotiations has askedal the taliban, do not come into kabul under strength under the americans are out. so, it's not a question of they're not coming in, it's don't come in until americans and their allies are evacuated hopefully within 72 hours. the initial troop withdrawal from afghanistan to target multiple cities in recent days. this morning the taliban did seize control of the eastern city of jalalabad near the pakistan border. just yesterdaypa the taliban captured sharif after we were on air yesterday morning and jalalabad and kabul are still in government possession and now only one of those three cities are under control of the government.co we're not sure how much control the government has over kabul. this follows the taliban's recent capture of key cities of kandahar and, their spiritual home and take over of the country. right now 25 of the 34 capitals are in taliban control and only one major city is not and that major city is kabul. joining me from there because you are going to find this man in a place where everybody else has left in

and presumably, this taliban escalation is -- certainly not to have complete taliban control.d they bring to bear on this equation? >> all the players in the region, the iranians, russians, chinese, indians, pakistanis, they all have their own desired outcome, priorities, and those do not align. you will see a lot of jostling for power. you will see attempts at patronage and proxy warfare. as this situation develops. and typically, from my study of insurgencies, the more entities involved, the longer something lasts so that is not a good sign. >> what is your gut feeling about where this is heading? >> heading into 2022, we will be looking at and afghanistan controlled by the taliban in large portions of the country. not entirely. at that time, we are likely to see the growth of transnational jihadist groups like al qaeda, like others. my main concern, my main fear is that afghanistan one -- once again turns into a magnet for foreign fighters and there is a mobilization which acts as a force multiplier for many of the most dangerous terrorist groups there. >> what is your sens

— taliban promising? well, taliban narsinah taliban promising?liban i narsingh they will not harm anyone, they will not target anyone. —— taliban are saying. but we will have to see how the taliban transition from the military attacks into the politics and what sort of a government we might be looking at but it is definitely something that was in the making of the last few days if not weeks. my colleague said to you earlier on, the messaging from the government was also confusing. president ghani said he was working on reorganising the afghan security forces while he has literally long lost all of us cards, the military has surrendered, the senior government has surrendered so it is still a very fluid and confusing situation. why do you think it has _ confusing situation. why do you think it has been _ confusing situation. why do you think it has been reported i confusing situation. why do you think it has been reported thatl think it has been reported that caliban spokesman has instructed taliban fighters to stay out of kabulfor taliban fighters

weill. has to deal with the taliban? well, remember. — has to deal with the taliban? the taliban? well, remember, we went _ has to deal with the taliban? well, remember, we went to _ has to deal with the taliban? -ii remember, we went to afghanistan because the taliban government at the time welcomed the terrorists who caused the 9/11 attacks. this is a democratic government being replaced, overthrown by a military body which contains a large number of people regarded by international communities as terrorists. there have been talks in doha in qatar between the united states and the taliban. we don't know the status of those, but the people of afghanistan... inaudible. a brutal totalitarian... inaudible. a brutal totalitarian. .. ~ ., . inaudible. abrutaltotalitarian... ., ., a brutal totalitarian. .. more than a decade a90- _ a brutal totalitarian. .. more than a decade age it _ a brutal totalitarian. .. more than a decade ago. it is _ a brutal totalitarian. .. more than a decade ago. it is quite _ a brutal totalitarian. .. more than a decade ago. it is quite difficu

-taliban talks in doha. meanwhile, former afghan president hamid karzai held talks today with the head of the haqqani network, a powerful faction of the taliban. this all comes as the taliban moves to secure its control of afghanistan. on tuesday, the taliban held a news conference where they promised amnesty for former government officials and pledged to eradicate opium production. the taliban also made promises to protect some rights of journalists and women. >> government offices will be activated soon and all employees, including women, returned to work and work in areas permitted by sharia law. we and you see that in the field of medicine, education, police, and other sectors of society. we need women because it is a necessity of society. amy: despite the taliban's pledges, many women across afghanistan have not left their homes since the taliban seized control. earlier today, the taliban opened fire on hundreds of protesters in northeastern jalalabad who marched through the streets holding the black, r

under the new taliban taliban administered afghanistan. rob, so we're waiting for this press conference to start because he intends discussions on their own stage. you know, it's, i can show what's happening and various assembled media representatives waiting for this press conference to start at rob say, how is the situation in, in cold today after the celtic scenes that we saw on monday, it continues to be slightly surreal. it is quite a calm on the streets. it is quite tense. there is an uneasiness, the tension in the air. we are seeing far more taliban on the streets today tuesday than we did. monday, yesterday, monday was the 1st day that people really started to go out and about and looking with absolute amazement, in some cases, curiosity, and other cases. these new covers people were taking cell fees. they were shaking hands with them. they were looking at in amazement at these taliban as they took up their positions, manning, roadblocks, and so on. we have seen far more a taliban stream in to cobble the capital overnight from outs

the taliban were back in charge.ed to kabul airport, desperate to escape the country. 0thers hid in their homes. we gave them every chance to determine their own future. we could not provide them with the will to fight for that future. western politicians scrambled to make sense of the chaos. it would be fair to say... the collapse has been faster than even the taliban predicted. what is not true to say is that the uk government was unprepared or did not foresee this. after 20 years trying to rebuild the country, had it all been for nothing? the feeling of abandonment, of not just a country, - but the sacrifice that my friends made. i my friend massoud managed to board one of the last commercial flights out. suhail shaheen has continued to defend the ideology of the new taliban, making a call to me live on air. we're just going to see if we can put you on speaker. but will the taliban stick to their word? or could there be a return to the darkest days of public executions and the extreme suppression of women's rights

the taliban have...l, what we see right now is the united states has cut off all of afghanistan's dollar reserves. that's billions and billions of us dollars. we see the imf has also, for the moment, suspended all economic assistance to afghanistan. we see an economy that, until two weeks ago, was 40% reliant on international economic aid and assistance. that's all gone. you'd think if the taliban were serious about trying to get some of those economic lifelines restored, they might be doing more to reach out in terms of guaranteeing rights, guaranteeing political pluralism. we're not seeing it. yeah. and that's what we are trying to get them to understand, the severity of the economy of the country, the enormity of the responsibility on their shoulders, and they must... time should be of the essence, enough urgency to them and that a political settlement, absolutely something that the economy of the future of this country will depend upon. and we hope they realise the enormity of the responsibility that

yes, the taliban are letting people through right now but the taliban is the taliban so the chances of something breaking out is there. it is not without risk. host: in illinois, you are next. caller: good morning. a long time ago i watched a documentary called -- about a forward base in a valley. soldiers were getting shot at from the high ground. as an unsophisticated person, you would watch this and say who would put a forward base in a valley. my point is this, we were there for 20 years. we were told this was not vietnam. why did we fail? what would it have taken to win? did we need to use tactical nuclear weapons? did we need to change completely the rules of engagement? how could we have won? as assumed people had thought this out about why we were there. what did winnie look like and why didn't we win -- what does winning look like and why didn't we win? host: thank you for the call, bill. guest: that base was in the cornwall valley. i have been to the cornwall valley. the soldiers in that unit were there for 15 months, day after day of patrolling and standing watch and trying

the taliban would never accept that. but we had been expecting that it would be some sort of form of woods that would go to the negotiators in doha, that maybe they could ratify that may might lead to some sort of transitional government or kind of a can take a government that might, might then call, say, a lawyer, joe, one of these big gatherings of people being brought in from all over afghanistan to discuss the shape and form of a new government. all that seems to have evaporated very quickly. we, we now left wondering what exact the, of what type of new government were facing. and as far as some officials, taliban officials are concerned, they are just talking about a straight handover of power. why do they need to share power with anybody that doesn't seem inferior, at least anybody to share with so that it seems to be what they are talking in terms of now, it was a straight handover of power. and this evening, at least we do seem to be saying that, you know, in reality as a straight physical, a grabbing of power, i

the taliban could make it to kabul, and that— the taliban could make it to kabul, and that in— the talibane 13th of august, this was the us assessment. kabul is not right now in an imminent— kabul is not right now in an imminent threat— kabul is not right now in an. imminent threat environment. clearly. — imminent threat environment. clearly. if— imminent threat environment. clearly. if you _ imminent threat environment. clearly, if you just _ imminent threat environment. clearly, if you just look - imminent threat environment. clearly, if you just look at - imminent threat environment. | clearly, if you just look at what the taliban _ clearly, if you just look at what the taliban have _ clearly, if you just look at what the taliban have been - clearly, if you just look at what the taliban have been doing, . clearly, if you just look at what . the taliban have been doing, you clearly, if you just look at what - the taliban have been doing, you can see that _ the taliban have been doing, you can see that they— the taliban have been doing, you can see that they are _ the taliban have been do

taliban of 20 years ago. i think the jury is out. i think that there are a lot of, as joe biden said, the other day, the taliban has a lot of interests and not to be trusted, but their interests are aligned for the moment in trying to show the world that it is not the same organization. it was 20 years ago, i was surprised that mackenzie did embrace them as much as he did. there are so many other generals that have made exactly the antithetical case that you cannot trust the taliban at all. and people's lives and teachers are in very much in jeopardy, particularly any one that stood by us. it was interesting. the general also made a big point about the challenges that isis is going isis k is going to put on the taliban describing it them as the biggest challenge for the taliban going forward. how. how much of a worry is isis for not just the tele body for the world at large molina, i think isis k is a very big challenge. not only there, but i think you know where they are in yemen where they are in other plac

i between the taliban right now and the taliban— between the taliban right now and the taliban 20 _an right now and the taliban 20 years _ between the taliban right now and the taliban 20 years ago. - between the taliban right now and the taliban 20 years ago. those . between the taliban right now and the taliban 20 years ago. those in power— the taliban 20 years ago. those in power 20 — the taliban 20 years ago. those in power 20 years _ the taliban 20 years ago. those in power 20 years ago _ the taliban 20 years ago. those in power 20 years ago killed - the taliban 20 years ago. those in power 20 years ago killed people. the taliban 20 years ago. those in i power 20 years ago killed people and i don't _ power 20 years ago killed people and i don't know— power 20 years ago killed people and i don't know when _ power 20 years ago killed people and i don't know when they _ power 20 years ago killed people and i don't know when they will _ power 20 years ago killed people and i don't know when they will start - i don't know when they will start again _ i don't know when they will star

the american government lamed the taliban -- blamed the taliban for harboring al qaeda. taliban says it has changed since it was last in power. we have more on how they may govern this time around. reporter: step-by-step, a return to rule. ever since the taliban signed a deal last year with the u.s., their old enemy, they have been emboldened. moments like this started to shift their international image. then suddenly, this summer, district by district, they were back in charge. these scenes were recently filmed for us in a province at the gates of kabul. scenes of an orderly transition, the taliban taking over, taking care of the people. but more grislyeos have been surfacing. alleged abuses and atrocities. whato you say to those who fear the return of the taliban? >> they should not fear because the government that will come after this will be acceptable to all. reporter: taliban rule that returns to afghanistan will be different than the one they govern so harshly in the lat 1990's. we have reported on the change, however imperfect over the last two decades. no one ex

that taliban and this taliban is that the taliban of 2001 were new. now this taliban is experienced, disciplined. our activities are going well. we are obeying our leaders. >> reporter: a lot of people are concerned that if the taliban takes power again, women's rights will move backwards. how can you guarantee that women's rights will be protected? >> translator: we assure this to people all over the world, especially the people of afghanistan. islam has given rights to everyone equally. women have their own rights. how much islam has given rights to women, we will give them that much. >> reporter: that is clearly open for interpretation. next to the mosque, we find a classroom of young girls. but their teacher says they will only receive religious education and will not attend regular school. at night, i am separated from my male colleagues and sleep in the women's part of the house with the children. i've been talking to some of the women in this room, and i promised that i wouldn't show any of their faces. but it's interesting because, you know, t

does he cut a deal with taliban taliban the -- with the taliban?s there any issue with the withdrawal? can it be conducted in an orderly fashion? in the coming days and weeks, i expect al qaeda and other terror groups, keep in mind the united nations called the deputy mayor of the taliban and military strategist who is the man with the plan to take over afghanistan. host: there's also a call for a human emergency meeting. guest: this is all perfunctory. the time for diplomacy and a stern word of statements has long passed. diplomacy and a stern word of statements, that's what got us here. the u.s. officials thought there was a diplomatic solution when the taliban always had a military solution. host: bill roggio, you can find his reporting and his work. we appreciate your time. guest: thank you for having me. it was a pleasure. host: we are going to take a short break. woman come back, we will continue talking about afghanistan. -- when we come back, we will continue talking about afghanistan. was leaving afghanistan a mistake? yes, no, unsure and

and people are very uneasy about the return of the taliban. despite all of the assurances from the taliban, that this is not the taliban of all. that there are guarantees about education for girls about women's rights and so on. there is still still a lot of needs, but i think gradually that has been an acceptance that well, the taliban is back and we have to make due with it. it has caused, as i said, panic. and if people have been able to get out of afghanistan, get hold of a passport, we've seen an awful lot of that, a real desperate attempts by people to get out of afghanistan, but then accepted by most people that yes they, they don't have that option. so they have to make the best of it and we'll be talking to people on the streets. they have been speaking to us saying, well maybe it's not that bad. if we have some sort of power sharing agreement or bring them back into government in one form or, or another. but you shows you just how quickly this scenario of change that's all out of date. and that was just people talking to days ago. because of course, there's nobody seemingly for t

we can judge the taliban _ are they a change taliban?iban by their words i are they a change taliban? we can judge the taliban by their words orj judge the taliban by their words or we canjudge the judge the taliban by their words or we can judge the taliban by their actions stop for afghans it has to be by their actions. their words say repeatedly this will not be the taliban rule between 1996 and 2000 won. a harsh, authoritarian rule, which led to them being a pariah state. what is the evidence on the ground? in recent months, as the taliban overran district after district, the schools were shut, girls were allowed to go to school, mainly up to the sixth grade. music was banned, media outlets were shut down, men were told to grow their beards. this led afghans to say, yes, the taliban have changed, but actually they are worse than they were the first time round. but they give us a different picture here in kabul, where they know the eyes of the world on the capital. they talk about no revenge, no vindictiveness, no actions against memb

there is a huge pakistani taliban presence, people disaffected by the pakistani taliban or who were inups who crossed over into isis. this is seen as a for tile battle space -- as a fertile battle space by isis. >> let me get this straight. what you are saying also is the group, in your opinion, wants to establish a caliphate and also wants to reestablish some sort of relevance in afghanistan. >> they are already relevant. they just have to expand their operations. they have to take advantage of the strategic vacuum that has been created. they will want to expand into pakistan as well, where there is fertile ground. places on the western periphery of afghanistan that were formerly under the control at one point, from 2007 to the early 2010s, by the pakistani taliban. this is a battle space that they know. at the end of the day, isis in afghanistan are people from outside. this is isis parachuting people from the mothership. in the arab world, these are locals who are battle hardened, they know the terrain, and they are coming out under a new label and see they have a better opportunity

the taliban does not trust the pakistan intelligence agency. the taliban has become powerful. it has relationships with other countries, including iran. it also has, because of this international legitimacy it has gained with its travel toguest:. this kind of military independence that he gained makes it less reliance upon back standing -- upon pakistani support. host: this on twitter from jordan, an independent film maker showing an independence day protest in kabul. he said they marched past taliban soldiers with some of them screaming back at the protesters. some of the video filmed by that filmmaker. what does that seen -- scene tell you? guest: that is a striking development and it shows you, tells you that afghanistan of 2021 is not the same as the afghanistan of 1990 six or even 2001. there are these -- afghanistan of 1996 or even 2001. that have come of age and have freedoms at the time they did not have the five years that the taliban ruled from 1996 to 2001. they will not accept a taliban government without protest. there is a notion that the afghan flag have been re

with the taliban. given the fact that the united states heavily relied on the taliban kind of in the closing hours of its withdrawl. but morden area, american, see the taliban still is america's enemy, not a friend. and so there is some confusion about how this diplomatic process will work . moving forward, now, what this administration has continued to suggest is that what the taliban wants most of all is legitimacy. particularly on the international stage. and so as any blake and the secretary state was very clear that he said, this is something that will have to be earned in terms of living up to international commitments. the other part of the speech was really just to reassure the, the afghan populace. if you will, that america is not going to even though it's withdrawn. forget about the people, not only that are still there, but also in terms of humanitarian assistance. what the united states promises to do and what can be expected. kimberly and president biden's come on the growing pressure beca

a number ofjournalists, many taliban of journalists, many taliban fighters ofjournalists, many talibanreported as getting treatment in hospitals in peshawar. they have money and weapons and treatment facilities. those are lords of the reasons they have been able to manage all these years and it also used the ethnic and tribal vision. you have various tribes and they used the tribal connections to negotiate with people to ask people to switch other sites. you see what happened the last time, they were using brute force in 1996 and 1995. this time they have been using a carrot and stick policy, negotiating with the regional governors, negotiating with the army commanders, we will give you a safe passage because many people can't. they have been using this in this round of offensives in the past few days and that is why in the provinces they simply give up without a fight. you have brought up pakistan. we havejust been without a fight. you have brought up pakistan. we have just been speaking to the british mp tobias ellwood who has said pakistan has a lot to answer for. has said pakistan

we never talk about moderate taliban, but i do want to talk about pragmatic taliban. some of them have been in the past and today show they can be pragmatic. >> they are in a difficult neighborhood. they might want alternative points of contact as well. >> you cannot rule it out. i agree. after all is said and done, that is what happened with vietnam. it is going to take time. it took 20 years in vietnam for us to recognize them and for them to recognize us and all of that. but what? we just have to wait and see. everybody says this may not be the same taliban as it was 20 years ago. the leaders have changed. you have secondary and tertiary leadership that has changed. it ain't going to happen quickly. we just need to be seen where they are, watch developments, and i would only recommend reaching out once we have a better sense of where they are. i think premature efforts to do so, we might regret later, soliciting where they are. >> don't forget that until a couple of years ago, the tallest building in ho chi minh city was citibank. >> i totally agree. it took a whil

they weren't motivated like the taliban. they weren't organized like the taliban. and now that all the foreign troops are leaving that country, it seemed pretty obvious that the taliban would take that place over without much of a fight. and that's what's happened. the question is, is how quickly will that happen, just in the 72 hours n the next three days, will wext see a total transanything that country? that's more likely it will i happen. as it happens, you are also seeing a mass exodus from that country. people who over the last two decades had hoped for a brighter future for themselves, for their children who thoughts, they had seen the end of that very harsh taliban rule are now escaping, pouring across the border here, into iran, leaving everything they have in that country behind, trying to desperately leave with their families w their children, their wives, to eek out some sort of a very difficult existence here in iran but something that's preferable to what they would face in afghanistan. >> stay close. want to keep coming back to you for analysis of wh

taliban controls that area.ill say as has been pointed out, the taliban is composed of a lot of bad people. a lot of folks that have that relationship are members of the hakani network and a lot of organizational affiliations are fluid. current day members of the taliban might, in fact, migrate to isis because of its extremist views. therefore in the waning days as the military presence draws down, i think there's going to be increasing anxiety about potential for follow on isis-k attacks at the gates and points of entry. i know the u.s. military and intelligence officers are doing everything possible to understand what's outside the gates, but again, in waning days, it will be very difficult to ensure safety and security of american personnel and those afghans that are trying to get onto the airport. >> i guess that raises the question, clint, how much our intelligence can protect us in the waning days when the footprint goes down, as we know, danger goes up. >> it will be tough, chris. increasingly need human

either taliban or certainly taliban linked group. so you got to remember that the that taliban is not one. 3 1, a great hierarchy that's extremely disciplined to mean it out. there are different factions in different gr with it. so there are, have been certain taliban linked groups, at least on the streets who seem to have taken over a role of policing of, of directing traffic, checking vehicles, the kinds of things that the police normally do that interestingly, normal police units in hearing cobble are still also on the streets, but quite a few of them and we've seen them ourselves. i've actually been dispensing with that police uniform because they know that's the uniform of and outgoing administration and dawning the civilian clothes, but still doing the job of policing. so it is a very confusing situation on the streets here with a parent taliban doing policing work on the police. doing also policing work in civilian clothes. robot is a confusing picture. jimmy knows where the african precedent is. if we know who the african pre

— on the taliban? there are some countries that _ on the taliban?es that have an - on the taliban? there are some countries that have an influence with the taliban. the fund 23 countries that recognise the first element government back in the 19905 pakistan one of the key neighbours, saudi arabia and the uae. you can add to that list turkey, who've been operating at the airport and have some links with the taliban will stop catarrh who have hosted the political office of the taliban over the last few years. —— political office of the taliban over the last few years. -- qatar. al5o china and some degree russia and iran. we are talking here of the neighbouring countries and some of the islamic countries that have had traditional link5 the islamic countries that have had traditional links with the taliban. and if britain, america and the west want to influence events on the ground it is very difficult and virtually impossible for them to do so directly and they will need to do so directly and they will need to do so vicariously through these other coun

so the taliban went to war with the taliban let afghanistan in 2000.we have seen with iran over the more recent years, particularly with its relationship -- particularly as its relationship with the u.s. got worse, it started to funnel arms to the taliban. i think that's was -- that was meant to poke the u.s. in the eye and present more strength to america's rival in afghanistan. for iran, its major interest and concern is the she a muslim community in afghanistan. they are the religious minority in afghanistan, a very vulnerable community. the taliban, many of the murder. i run will wordy -- worry about their security. i think they will look to get reassurances that [indiscernible] iran does have a potential asset in afghanistan. there is a shia built militia on afghanistan that iran cultivated to deploy to the middle east and fight in the wars there. iran has the option if things came to to reconstitute that afghan/shia militia and try to deploy to protect the shieh community. that is an advantage iran has. final point, it worries about the taliban a

today i saw the taliban in kabul. - taliban in kabul now? yes. today i saw the taliban in kabul.aw the taliban in kabul. we were | saw the taliban in kabul. we were out in the western outskirts of city and there was a stream of taliban fighters coming out of the city on captured police rangers, and they're being cheered by by standers and little children running after them. it was an extraordinary scene. what about the institutions, the authorities, the security forces in kabul, what happened to them? they have completely meanted away —— melted away, collapsed. it started today. there was a rumour the taliban were inside the city. it wasn't true, they were on the outskirts. but soon you saw police abandoning their posts and changing into plain cloths and soon the city was full of soldiers without their uniforms trying to get out, to not be the last ones killed in a war that was lost. and the taliban was sending people to government facilities to facilitate a handover, so they weren't in the city in the force today, but the transition is very much under way. t force today, but the

troops and the taliban, nor has there been confrontation between u.s. troops and the taliban. over the koerx of the next two hours, we'll be focusing this show on what's unfolding in afghanistan. as you sit at home tonight, you likely have the same questions we do. what does this mean for the afghan people? what does this mean for women and girls in afghanistan in particular? what does this mean for the american empire writ large, and for the seemingly baseless belief that america can change other places for the better? what does this mean for terrorism around the world and for geopolitics. but let's begin this hour in tehran, where humanitarian crisis is unfolding as people flee to safety across the border. ali arouzi joins us live. tell us what you have been seeing and hearing as the afghan people seek refuge in iran. how is tehran handling the refugees? >> well, it can only be described as a desperate exodus out of afghanistan to anywhere that will take them, and of course, iran shares a very long porous border with afghanistan. there's already around 2.5 million afghans li

arthel: but maybe that is what will prevent a taliban-ruled afghanistan, a taliban government, from beingd as a bona fide government. >> reporter: absolutely. you are going to see a number of international bodies make very clear statements over the next week about the situation in afghanistan. the u.n. security council is scheduled to meet on monday to discuss the situation and, and we'll certainly hear more after that. arthel? arthel: trey yingst, thank you very much, trey. ♪ >> the president has decided to stay. we would have been back at war with the taliban attacking our forces. the offense i have you see throughout the country almost certainly would have proceeded. we would have had about 2500 forces in country with air power. that would not have been sufficient to deal with the situation, and i would be on your hoe right now explaining why -- show right now ec a planing why we were sending tens of thousands of troops back into afghanistan. eric: that's secretary of state antony blinken this morning defending the president's decision to pull bluing plug on -- pull the plug on afghani

the taliban spokesperson had no announced the taliban were set to conduct a clearing operation and having a indefinite curfew which seems to be a reaction to today's protests. that all shows that the taliban apparently don't like this and are not afraid to act decisively against it. >> we will see what develop means occur with that clearing operation. taliban cofounders -- this teledyne co-founder is one of a number of leaders that have returned from exile. tell us more about him and what part he is likely to play. >> he was the guard of the taliban and then he was arrested anspent years in a pakistani president which beat at his health. he was then released to move forward peace talks. he was up on his valise. he presided over negotiations that led to the u.s. telemann agreement signed in february of 2020. subsequent negotiations between the taliban and then -- the then african government. it is unclear what exactly it means. there has not been any official statement since he returned. the taliban have ousted the former government. to all the deputies, their whereabouts are unknown. it i

those with the taliban and other groups as well, quite frankly the taliban is preoccupied with how theyl manage this country after 20 years out of power. and the fate of americans is a secondary issue for those leaders in space happen now. i think the united states needs to it filmic to deliver a clear message with clear consequencese taliban or other groups and those who worked with us from getting out of the country. they went just kind of an overall assessment, brett, i have to go but i want to get your take on what you think the near future, maybe even a couple of years. is it bleak for afghanistan where is it dyer? what do you think happens on the ground going forward? >> i'm very worried. i think quite frankly we are in a position that is more dangerous than it was september 2001 because the taliban have not only won propaganda victory in 2004 in other countries but they will also use that to show their reins, fill their coffers, and 20 years of planting us and their allies. they have a lot of american arms and even american trained soldiers. this is a combustible next. >> trace:

taliban has been. taliban has been. it 3 complicated because afghanistan is so important to iran, both economically and regard to the amount of trade but also because afghanistan is home to so many she a muslim. the islamic regime of iran is sheer. and that is key to understanding the difference between the taliban and the islamic regime of iran when it comes to their relationship. the taliban is here and the islamic regime of iran is sheer. and historically they have been better enemies. there was one key event where the taliban assassinated almost one dozen iranians diplomats and a journalist and it almost led to war between the two. instead, a run opted to co—operate with the us in order to topple the taliban. come 2001, the us led invasion in afghanistan and that calculation changed on iran's part. they began cooperating with the taliban and to stave off the us influence, so much so that the us officials accused iran of having supplied weapons and money to the taliban, something the iranians deny.

the taliban have taken power. and the biden administration faces a new urgent mission evacuating thousands of americans and afghan allies stuck on the ground. the pentagon has sent nearly 6,000 u.s. troops to protect kabul's airport to allow for flights out of the country and the u.n. report shows the taliban are already carrying out a door-to-doorman hunt seeking reprisals against afghans who were allied with the u.s. on friday, the president acknowledged the danger of this mission. president biden: i cannot promise what the final outcome will be. and it will be without risk of loss. but as commander in chief, i can assure you that i will mobilize every resource necessary. pete: what's the latest in afghanistan? how did we get here? and what's next? joining us tonight with more insight are four top reporters on this story. peter baker, the chief white house correspondent for "the new york times." and here in the studio with me anne gearan the white house correspondent for "the washington post." vivian salama the

team was currently or about to start talking to the taliban to try to tell the taliban what the u.s. is expecting their behavior to be, and what the possible consequences could be from the united states as f as sanctions or isolation if the taliban don't behave the way americans want them to. host: getting people out of kabul is on people's minds. we heard macron talk about how those who helped france over the past two decades, france would do its best to get them out. he made to guarantee this would happen. i wonder what the stance is on washington -- in washington on this. caroline: the message is we are fully focused on getting all those american citizens out of afghanistan as quickly as possible, but not just american citizens. they are also focused on getting afghan allies, as they call them, those who have worked so closely with the americans throughout these 20 years, as well as getting out some third country citizens that need their help, citizens of u.s. allies. right now, the white house has confirmed -- jake sullivan did confirm that the taliban did say that they would pro

to the taliban.liban government, and will probably be recognising it. russia has had talks already, but encouragingly, russia special�*s envoy to afghanistan has spoken to his opposite number in the us, so thatis his opposite number in the us, so that is encouraging because the only way that is going to be lasting peace in afghanistan is if all the countries in the region can agree on what it looks like. i have to say that to looking down the future, i think the west will be a lot less relevant. china will want its mineral resources from afghanistan it russia well one day peaceful stable border or border area on those southern republics that stand between afghanistan and its own territory. iran has its own interests there. ararat is very close to the iranian border. but all of those countries will certainly china, russia and iran that have bad relations at the united states will, to some extent, i think, be not exactly growing, but certainly want to be back to satisfied to see the humiliation of a co

so how does the rise of the taliban, the re-emergence of the l taliban, the re—emergence of the talibanfit into that picture for china? ., ., , taliban fit into that picture for china? . . , . taliban fit into that picture for china? . ., ., , ., china? china has had long-standing arrangements _ china? china has had long-standing arrangements with _ china? china has had long-standing arrangements with taliban - china? china has had long-standing arrangements with taliban when - china? china has had long-standing. arrangements with taliban when they were in government last time. china was one of the few with access to have investment and economic interest in the country. taliban know that in a situation where they will struggle for legitimacy internationally, they will not get aid from the west, another government might find china a lifeline on the economic side. there will be trying to create the conditions for at least a good political relationship with the chinese. there was a prominent meeting which took place recently between the chinese foreign minister in which the taliban made st

taliban fighters are in kabul and taliban officials are in talks at the presidential palace.ul's streets were mostly empty this morning as taliban fighters approached. early this morning, reportedly wiout any fighting, the taliban took control of jalalabad, a key city to the east of the capital then, by midday, the president of afghanistan, asaf ghani, left the country after appearing in a televised address where he made no mention of leaving. one of the top afghan peace negotiators, abudllah abdullah, urged the taliban to negotiate a peaceful transfer of power and called ghani “the former president of afghanistan” >> ( translated ): the fact that the former president of afghanistan has left the country, and left behind the nation and the country in this situatn, god will hold him accountable, and the people of afghanistan will judge him accordingly. >> sreenivasan: there were reports of gunfire at kabul's airport, and the u.s. embassy issued a statement to “shelter in place” and not come to the embassy or the airport. but throughout the day and night helicopters steadily fle

isis is incensed by the taliban's victory. and the taliban does not really need isis. a small group in afghanistan so it does not need to make any deals with isis. >> our jihadist media specialist. do follow her on twitter. for observations and insights that are fascinating. i'm just seeing from abc, president biden h as been interviewed and says "i don't think it could've been handled in a way that we would go back in hindsight a look at the idea that somehow there is a way to have gotten out without chaos ensuing." that question continues to be asked. i think he may be answering it for a little while hands -- hence as well. let us move on. to a different topic. health officials have laid out plans for rolling out the booster doses of the covid vaccine starting next month. those of the pfizer moderna jabs. this will be eight months after receiving their first. health-care care workers, nursing home residents and older adults will be first in line. the nation's surgeon general explained the necessity of the third jab earlier. >> we see data that is -- essentially indic

as we speak taliban forces are wo

they took the taliban on trust. tell of on once they pulled out their forces would negotiate with, with the african government that they come up with a unity government. i don't think that president trump restart does negotiations. all president biden was perhaps following the words that we used to hear from ronald reagan that russian program he used to. he used to was site trust, but verify will corey for the vasic fall, i will be felt foreign. why age? you had the us fax, you see fancy blinking on the american television earlier claiming that the commonplace. absolutely. everything they had to this was not a failure of any shape or for may be interesting to see if you'd stand by those remarks. given the scenes that were broadcasting here on al jazeera, just in terms of where the un funds on this james. we understand that the un security can so are likely to be meeting to discuss this. it looks like they're going to have an awful lot to talk about it sooner. absolutely, the situation is moving so fast, there was a

the taliban for— at the airport and were held by the taliban for a short while.rry is that— they all got released, but the worry is that trying to even get from the gurdwara — is that trying to even get from the gurdwara to the airport is a task in itself— gurdwara to the airport is a task in itself without help from the international community. how long are they able _ international community. how long are they able to _ international community. how long are they able to stay _ international community. how long are they able to stay in _ international community. how long are they able to stay in the - are they able to stay in the gurdwara for? obviously we are hearing about shortages of money, for a start. you will as well. what is the plan?— for a start. you will as well. what is the plan? what is the strategy? at the moment, _ is the plan? what is the strategy? at the moment, yes, _ is the plan? what is the strategy? at the moment, yes, they - is the plan? what is the strategy? at the moment, yes, they can - is the plan? what is the strategy? - at the moment,

now will the taliban accept that? and what leverage do the security council have of the taliban? certainly with her to from the ambassador of pakistan. he wasn't invited to the security council meeting, became a brief reporters and many of chrome told us that he believes that the taliban are talking about some sort of inclusive government. and he thinks that that is definitely a possibility. what is clear is that there are some of the key political leaders who were allied with the government in cobble, who are still that. i think the only leverage that the international community has of the taliban right now is the whole issue of recognition at the meeting of the security council. the african ambassador was the ambassador that was appointed by the government that no longer exists. the taliban, i'm sure would like to have the seat at the united nations and be recognized by all the countries of the world that i think is the only thing the international community have to try and convince the taliban to broaden government governance and bring in other figures was, was the un european

the taliban regime. nation—building mission, and that is clearly been a failure. there were gains that were made for afghan people over these years, in terms of education, health, women's right, how long those gains will endure is now very much in question. and so you have to consider there was a two—part mission by the united states in afghanistan — counterterrorism and regime change. he first had some successes. the second distinct lean not, because we are back to where we started 20 years ago.— started 20 years ago. laurel miller there from the _ started 20 years ago. laurel miller there from the international... - colonel chris kolenda, author of zero—sum victory: what we're getting wrong about war, led the us troops as commander to fight against the taliban in 2007. i have got a personal reaction and a policy reaction. my personal reaction is it is very upsetting, it is very disappointing. i've got afghan friends who i am messaging back and forth who are very concerned about their safety, their pers