can you in the first instance tell us what's the latest situation in the panjshir valley? e your fortune is able to hold back the taliban —— forces? we fortune is able to hold back the taliban -- forces?— taliban -- forces? we are in panjshir_ taliban -- forces? we are in panjshir at— taliban -- forces? we are in panjshir at the _ taliban -- forces? we are in panjshir at the moment. - taliban -- forces? we are in - panjshir at the moment. panjshir has many valleys. right now, the taliban are only in a few locations. they are only in a few locations. they are facing difficulties. ourforces are facing difficulties. ourforces are resisting and defending their people, their owner, their home and their values —— their honour. this will not end with the taliban entering panjshir. it is the lion's been. any enemy that enters will not leave alive. but been. any enemy that enters will not leave alive. �* �* , . leave alive. but it's true that there are — leave alive. but it's true that there are a _ leave alive. but it's true that there are a number - leave alive. but it's true that

former vice president is offer in the panjshir valley.sisted to the bbc he remains there and that report that he has left the country are baseless. >> the reports concerning my escape from afghanistan are totally baseless. i am here. we have had several meetings regarding the situation. the situation is difficult. we have been under alkylation -- invasion of the taliban, al qaeda, terrorist regions and beyond, as usual, backed by the pakistanis. we have resisted. the resistance will not bow to terrorism, and it will continue. there are difficulties but i have not fled or escaped. i want to assure you, through this video, that everything said that i have fled or injured, baseless, fake news. >> he said the battle for panjshir valley is an information or propaganda war. >> we have to be skeptical about the hour-by-hour report that the sides put out. they are trying to demoralize the other side. what we can establish is that the taliban have conducted a major mobilization. they rounded up several thousand troops. i can confirm they have depl

to be making some progress in their efforts to oust the last remaining armed opposition in the panjshir valleykabul. resistance leaders have admitted to the bbc the taliban have made gains — but haven't yet taken the whole valley. panjshir is a mountainous region and famous for also holding out against the soviet army in the 1980s and the taliban in the 1990s. thousands of fighters are thought to have massed there, refusing to give up. the anti—taliban movement calls itself the national resistance front of afghanistan. you can see their fighters here in a series of training drills. its made up of a multi—ethnic group of militias and former afghan security force members. former vice president amrullah saleh is in the panjshir valley. he claims he is the true caretaker president, and says reports he has fled the country are baseless. i'm in the panjshir valley, there are reports concerning my escape from afghanistan which are totally baseless and i am here and we've had several meetings regarding the situation and the situation is difficult and we have been under invasion by the taliban, al-qaed

the centre of the scenic panjshir valley. redoubt of armed opposition, now claimed by the taliban. "god is great," their fighters cry. in kabul today, the taliban spokesman had a message for the enemy. translation: we have captured panjshir, with the will of god. - we are telling those people who still want to fight, if they want a normal life, they are welcome in afghanistan, their home. but they need to stop fuelling instability. a defiant reply on social media. 32—year—old commander ahmad massoud vows to continue the resistance. he says his men are still in panjshir valley and urges afghans to rise up. the taliban are getting on with the business of being in charge. this, the first visit by the un's humanitarian chief, martin griffiths. he also stopped by here earlier today, a tented camp in a kabul park. thousands displaced by fighting in northern provinces when the taliban advanced towards kabul. displacement, drought, hunger. afghanistan was confronting a major humanitarian crisis even before the taliban took power. now,

the taliban the panjshir valley. indeed. the taliban have _ the panjshir valley. indeed.an have proved themselves the panjshir valley. indeed. the i taliban have proved themselves to the panjshir valley. indeed. the - taliban have proved themselves to be a fighting force, but can they prove themselves as a government authority? unlikely. let's not forget that almost 70% of the country public budget was from external aid, and most of its hard currencies have been frozen in the united states, the central bank of afghanistan doesn't have access to it. so unless the taliban does a magic trick and starts to address these challenges, it is not going to have control and there will be pockets of resistance all over the country because at the end of the day people want to know who is in power so unless and until taliban troops excel as a governing power, it is too early to say that, but i don't see them doing something very positive to come out of this. professor amalendu misra at the university of lancaster, thank you very much for being with us, fascinating to talk to you. let's

more from kabul. >> there has been huge concern for the civilians in the panjshir valley.iban spokesperson said that there had not been a single civilian casualty. food had run out, the hair -- they had had shortages in the valley. food was going to be sent in and that communications and electricity was also going to be restarted. there were some fiery language from him initially. describing this battle with the self-declared national recesses front. -- national resistance front. commented -- calling it the last terrorism pocket in the country. those words are going to be looked at and interpreted by worried afghans and concerned members of the international community. what we do know, simile, this is a historic day in afghanistan. the taliban having taken full control for the first time of the panjshir valley. >> the author of "the long war", the story of afghanistan since 9/11. he was a communications advisor to the former president. some have already responded to calls for a national uprising. >> we have seen responses from the north, northwest, some things on a social

they raised a flag over the panjshir valley. the leader of the resistance is calling on all afghans cover where to rise up against the taliban. also coming up, two of belarus's prominent dissidents receive long prison terms. they helped lead protest against alexander lukashenko's disputed reelection campaign. a coup in guinea. the leaders have pledged a peaceful transition. the take over the west african country has drawn international condemnation and threats of sanctions. plus, it is time to say adieu to a giant a french cinema. jean paul -- has died at the age of 88. we will look back the legacy of a leading man par excellence. to all of you around the world, welcome. tonight the taliban say that the war in afghanistan is now finally over. the islamists claimed victory over opposition forces today in the panjshir valley, the last province -- to elude taliban control. the leader of the resistance has called for a nationwide uprising against the taliban. >> the taliban flag raised above the panjshir governor's office. the last

i am in the panjshir valley.g my escape from afghanistan are totally baseless. i am here. we have had several meetings regarding the situation. no doubt, the situation is difficult. we have been under invasion of the taliban, their al-qaeda allies, terrorist groups from the region and beyond, as usual backed by the pakistanis. we have held the ground. we have resisted. the resistance is not going to surrender, it's not going to bow to terrorism and it's going to continue. there are difficulties, but i have not fled, i have not escaped. so, i want to assure you through this video that everything said to this moment that i have been injured or i have led are baseless fake news. our correspondent barbara plett usherjoins me now from washington. welcome to you. in the past hour or so, the us secretary of state has been giving a press conference giving details about those evacuated from afghanistan and those that have been left behind. what did he say? he has asked a particular about a certain_ he has asked a particul

the centre of the scenic panjshir valley. ast redoubt of armed opposition, now claimed by the taliban. "god is great," their fighters cry. in kabul today, the taliban spokesman had a message for the enemy. translation: we have captured panjshir, with the will of god. we are telling those people who still want to fight, if they want a normal life, they are welcome in afghanistan, their home. but they need to stop fuelling instability. a defiant reply on social media. 32—year—old commander ahmad massoud vows to continue the resistance. he says his men are still in panjshir valley, and urges afghans to rise up. the taliban are getting on with the business of being in charge. this, the first visit by the un's humanitarian chief martin griffiths. he also stopped by here earlier today, a tented camp in a kabul park. thousands displaced by fighting in northern provinces when the taliban advanced towards kabul. displacement, drought, hunger. afghanistan was confronting a major humanitarian crisis even before the taliban took power. no

top stories, the taliban and opposition fighters are battling for the panjshir valley.kely to top august in the temperature stakes. in the month of august, the high temperature was 27.2 degrees celsius. this week, we�*re expecting 29, maybe even 30. it is unusual for september to outdo august when it comes to the top temperature. and the warmth gets under way in england and wales for sunday, helped by a more generous helping of sunshine than of late, but wetter for some perhaps in scotland and northern ireland. very slowly, high pressure moving away, atlantic weather fronts coming in. that will bring a bit of rain, slowly spreading east during the day. it may be welcome where it�*s been so dry. we are mainly dry to begin the day, some patchy mist and fog clearing. for england and wales, there will still be some areas of cloud, but sunny spells, too. an isolated shower in central southern england can�*t be ruled out. some areas of sea fog around the coast of southwest england. with light winds, it�*ll feel warm in the sunny spells. the wind strengthening in western scotl

the taliban has pushed deeper into the panjshir valley, a traditional bedrock of opposition.re have been many injuries on both sides, but the resistance has denied taliban claims of victory and says there will be no surrender. in kabul, these women are refusing to surrender their rights. protesting is a brave move in uncertain times. reports taliban used tasers against them may be a hint of what they face in the new old afghanistan. dan johnson, bbc news. our correspondent secunder kermani is in the afghan capital kabul, and has the latest on that visit by the pakistani intelligence chief. turning first to this visit of the head of the pakistani intelligence services, the isi, certainly pakistan has been requesting to help with the evacuation of remaining foreign nationals and those afghans who are eligible to leave the country that haven't yet been able to do so. so, that is likely to have formed part of his discussions with the taliban, but pakistan also has a long history with the taliban. it's often been accused of secretly supporting their insurgency. pakistan has always

the centre of the scenic panjshir valley.edoubt of armed opposition, now claimed by the taliban. "god is great," their fighters cry. in kabul today, the taliban spokesman had a message for the enemy. translation: we have captured panjshir, with the will of god. - we are telling those people who still want to fight, if they want a normal life, they are welcome in afghanistan, their home. but they need to stop fuelling instability. a defiant reply on social media. 32—year—old commander ahmad massoud vows to continue the resistance. he says his men are still in panjshir valley and urges afghans to rise up. the taliban are getting on with the business of being in charge. this, the first visit by the un's humanitarian chief martin griffiths. he also stopped by here earlier today, a tented camp in a kabul park. thousands displaced by fighting in northern provinces when the taliban advanced towards kabul. displacement, drought, hunger. afghanistan was confronting a major humanitarian crisis even before the taliban took power. now, t

i am in the panjshir valley.hanistan are totally baseless. i am here. we have had several meetings regarding the situation. no doubt, the situation is difficult. we have been under invasion of the taliban, their al-qaeda allies, terrorist groups from the region and beyond, as usual backed by the pakistanis. we have held the ground. we have resisted. the resistance is not going to surrender, it's not going to bow to terrorism and it's going to continue. there are difficulties, but i have not fled, i have not escaped. so, i want to assure you through this video that everything said to this moment that i have been injured or i have fled are baseless fake news. let's get some of the day's other news: apple is delaying the introduction of its controversial tools to detect images of child sex abuse on phones and tablets. its announcement of the mechanisms had sparked criticism that it would be prying into personal data and helping oppressive governments — and criminals — hack people's information. a former roman cathol

but the panjshir resistance continues in the valleys and main road. ter: he accuse the taliban of spreading false information. >> the rumors about our commander fleeing are false. he and the acting president are in panjshir. they had a meeting early monday to organize resistance from strongholds in the mountains. reporter: two battles are being fought in the valley, a campaign between the taliban and the fighters of the national resistance fronts. anchor: for 12 days, france 24 was in kabul reporting on history, the taliban takeover and final evacuations from the airport. many are wondering how he would leave the country. he is back in france after driving across the border into pakistan. here his -- here is his report documenting the journey. >> [speaking french] >> [speaking french] >> it was very dangerous, very dangerous. once it was so close by us that i said it was like someone entered the car. >> [speaking french] >> [speaking french] anchor: he was a french cinema legends. jean-paul belmondo, star of the new wave, has died at 88. he became a ho

valley. we are present throughout panjshir at the moment. panjshir is in a small province or valley. ir has many semi—valleys, from the southern part up to the northern part of the valley. right now, the taliban are only in a few locations. they are facing difficulties. our forces are resisting and defending their people, their honour, their home and their values. this isn't a resistance that will end with the taliban entering panjshir. panjshir is the lion's den. any enemy who enters panjshir will not leave alive. but it's true, isn't it, that there are a number of key commanders of the nrf that have been either injured or killed in this battle? fahim dashty, for instance — reports of emerging that he's been killed. what details are you able to give us on this? can you tell us more about who he was, what he represented? in war, there is always casualties on both sides. this is something normal. we are not going to deny that we've had casualties. two of my colleagues, mr dashty the spokesperson, and general zara, who was a formidable military officer, who served under and was the neph

afghan resistance leader ahmad massoud says he is ready for peace talks to end fighting in the panjshir valley. the northern province of panjshir is two hours from the capital, kabul, and is now the only region not controlled by the taliban. they claim they have reached panjshir�*s provincial capital after securing the surrounding districts, but massoud's national resistance front disputes this. posting on facebook, mr massoud said that to reach a lasting peace, the nrf is ready to stop fighting on condition that the taliban also stop their attacks and military movements on panjshir and andarab, a district in a neighbouring province. it's not clear if the taliban are likely to agree to the truce proposal. ali nazary is the head of foreign relations for the national resistance front of afghanistan. speaking to us from an undisclosed location outside of the country, he gave his assessment of the taliban's assault on the valley. we are present throughout panjshir at the moment. panjshir at the moment. panjshir has many semi—valleys. right now, the taliban are only in a few locations. they are fac

and as dan explains, the panjshir valley is extremely remote. to get anywhere close to the panjshir valley, so we are reliant on reports that are coming out from there, but there are conflicting reports. last night, the taliban saying it had taken control there. that it now had command right across afghanistan. but the resistance fighters there have said that that is not true, that there has been no surrender, that there are no entries, that they are still fighting. and that they will never surrender, so it looks like there is still a battle to take place. the taliban is determined to take control of the panjshir valley so that you can say it has the real right across afghanistan, but still, that is not complete yet. and that may be why they have not yet announced the formation of the new government, or who will be sworn into the new cabinet. they have been promising that for days, for weeks now, and the status is evident, but still we have no detail on that either. danjohnson dan johnson updating us. coastguards say they believe that two divers

people inside the panjshir valley say the phone networks have been cut off. the power's been cut off. um, they can't get fuel into the valley because the -- the taliban are controlling the entrances to the valley. what the taliban are doing and the videos that they are releasing which are part of what -- how they claim they are making gains in that valley seem to show them on some of the mountaintop heights, which are the key strategic areas to take to get into this panjshir valley. so the taliban say they are attacking from multiple directions around the valley. we know that achmed mas'ud, the commander of the forces in that valley has said he won't give up the fight. that he will fight to the death. we know the former-vice president is in that valley as well. he released short of a sohort video statement yesterday. you have to -- when you look at this video, you have to say this is a guy who sort of, you know, aged visibly over the last few weeks. he -- he definitely looks -- um -- not as -- not as strong and robust as he looked several weeks ago when he was

the taliban has pushed deeper into the panjshir valley, a traditional bedrock of opposition.been many injuries on both sides, but the resistance has denied taliban claims of victory and says there will be no surrender. in kabul, these women are refusing to surrender their rights. protesting is a brave move in uncertain times. reports taliban used tasers against them may be a hint of what they face in the new old afghanistan. dan johnson, bbc news. we can speak to a presser from georgetown university. what do you make of faiz hameed's visit to kabul? ., make of faiz hameed's visit to kabul? . ., ., make of faiz hameed's visit to kabul? . ., . ., �* kabul? thanks for having me. i don't really make — kabul? thanks for having me. i don't really make anything _ kabul? thanks for having me. i don't really make anything special- kabul? thanks for having me. i don't really make anything special out - kabul? thanks for having me. i don't really make anything special out of. really make anything special out of this. forthose really make anything special out of this. for those of us who

now, the former vice president is up there in the panjshir valley. he's not the main commander.used to be the significant political figure, but he did issue an on-camera statement yesterday. he said, look, it's a difficult situation. we've had casualties on our side. they've had casualties on their side. but we're not going to give up. beer going to keep fighting. we're the national resistance. so that's the danger for the taliban, and this valley, the panjshir valley, historically very difficult for invading forces, be it the russians or the taliban back in the '90s, to cu actually get into. it's always been somewhere that's been strongly and strategically defended. but the taliban have numbers. can they crack it this time? we're not at that stage yet. >> i want to ask you too, we mentioned the formation of a new government everybody's waiting for. what might it look like? >> reporter: well, here's the thing. i think there's a couple of things that we can say, and some of them are what the government won't have. i mean the best understanding i have is that you won't see a woman

the centre of the scenic panjshir valley. claimed by the taliban. "god is great," their fighters cry. in kabul today, the taliban spokesman had a message for the enemy. translation: we have captured panjshir, with the will of god. - we are telling those people who still want to fight, if they want a normal life, they are welcome in afghanistan, their home. but they need to stop fuelling instability. a defiant reply on social media. 32—year—old commander ahmad massoud vows to continue the resistance. he says his men are still in panjshir valley, and urges afghans to rise up. the taliban are getting on with the business of being in charge. this, the first visit by the un's humanitarian chief martin griffiths. he also stopped by here earlier today, a tented camp in a kabul park. thousands displaced by fighting in northern provinces when the taliban advanced towards kabul. displacement, drought, hunger. afghanistan was confronting a major humanitarian crisis even before the taliban took power. now, the needs of this nation pose a

the taliban has pushed into the panjshir valley, traditional bedrock of opposition.in kabul, these women are refusing to surrender their rights, testing a brave move in uncertain times. reports to tell a man used tasers against them, may be a hint of what they face in the new old afghanistan. let us cross live to our correspondent danjohnson, who is monitoring the developments in afghanistan for us from delhi. it is fairto it is fair to say we don't really know objectively what is happening in panjshir valley because it's such an inaccessible part of the country. absolutely. it is almost impossible for our colleagues who are reporting in kabul to get beyond the city, to get anywhere close to the panjshir valley, so we are reliant on the reports coming out from there but there are conflicting reports. last 90 taliban were saying it had taken control there, that it had to command right across afghanistan. but the resistance fighters there have said that that is not true. that there has been no surrender and there are no injuries. that there are still fighting. and they

they raised a flag over the panjshir valley.he leader of the resistance is calling on all afghans cover where to rise up against the taliban. also coming up, two of belarus's prominent dissidents receive long prison terms. they hel

i am in the panjshir valley.re. we have had several meetings regarding the situation. no doubt, the situation is difficult. we have been under invasion of the taliban, their al-qaeda allies, terrorist groups from the region and beyond, as usual backed by the pakistanis. we have held the ground. we have resisted. the resistance is not going to surrender, it's not going to bow to terrorism and it's going to continue. there are difficulties, but i have not fled, i have not escaped. so, i want to assure you through this video that everything said to this moment, that i have been injured or i have fled, are baseless fake news. it's emerged in new zealand that the person behind a terror attack in auckland on friday had been in the country for almost a decade — and had been convicted of several offences linked to extremism. the attacker, who cannot yet be named for legal reasons, was killed by police less than a minute after he grabbed a knife in a supermarket. new zealand's prime ministerjacinda ardern says his interes

i am in the panjshir valley. regarding the situation. no doubt, the situation is difficult. we have been under invasion of the taliban, their al-qaeda allies, terrorist groups from the region and beyond, as usual backed by the pakistanis. we have held the ground. we have resisted. the resistance is not going to surrender, it's not going to bow to terrorism and it's going to continue. there are difficulties, but i have not fled, i have not escaped. so, i want to assure you through this video that everything said to this moment, that i have been injured or i have fled, are baseless fake news. as we've been hearing, the head of pakistan's intelligence agency, faiz hameed, has arrived in kabul — to tell us more about the significance of his visit, we can speak to the bbc�*s farhatjaved, who is in islamabad. what is the significance of this? the fact that the head of pakistan's intelligence agency has gone to kabul, what does it say about how they hope to shape a relationship with the taliban going forward? yes. with

the taliban and afghan opposition forces are battling to control the panjshir valley north of kabul. it's the last afghan province holding out against the islamist group. both sides are claiming to have the upper hand without producing conclusive evidence. scientists have revealed that tuna stocks are starting to recover after being fished to the edge of extinction. however, many other plants and animals remain under huge pressure. biodiversity researchers say that nearly a third of the species they're monitoring face extinction. one official warned of a major crisis soon. here in the uk, the labour opposition party has called for clarity on covid vaccines for children to prevent further disruption to their education. labour says there's a "strong case" for offering all 12 to 15 year olds coronavirus vaccinations — but the government's scientific advisors don't support it. now on bbc news, dateline. hello and welcome to the programme which brings together some of the uk's leading commentators, bbc specialists, and the journalists who write, blog and broadcast from the dateline: londo

it comes as the struggle for control of the panjshir valley, the final part of afghanistan holding outstan has been fielding requests to help with the evacuation of remaining foreign nationals and those afghans who are eligible to leave the country but have not been able to do so so that is likely to have formed part of his discussions with the taliban but pakistan also has a long history with the taliban and it has often been accused of secretly supporting their resurgent sea but pakistan has always denied that. but it acknowledges having some leveraged is speculation that this visit is really about the creation of a new government in afghanistan, it has been nearly three weeks since the taliban took over at kabul and they are still to establish one and some say that is because of internal rivalries within the group, but whatever the cause it is prolonging the d period of uncertainty about the future that many afghans are facing. turning to panjshir valley, the one place yet to be fully captured by the taliban, and we have got conflicting reports coming out from there. the taliban see

i am in the panjshir valley.ion is difficult. we have been under invasion of the taliban, their al-qaeda allies, terrorist groups from the region and beyond, as usual backed by the pakistanis. we have held the ground. we have resisted. the resistance is not going to surrender, it�*s not going to bow to terrorism and it�*s going to continue. there are difficulties, but i have not fled, i have not escaped. so, i want to assure you through this video that everything said to this moment, that i have been injured or i have fled, are baseless fake news. in a tense week of final evacuations from afghanistan, scenes of desperation have been viewed across the world. one moment that went viral showed a mother handing her baby over a barbed wire wall and into a us marine�*s arms. the baby was taken to hospital and treated by a british medical team. 0ur reporterjohn maguire has the story. it was one of the most striking images of the chaotic withdrawal from afghanistan. such was the desperation of herfamily, a baby girl was

he gave me his assessment of the situation in the panjshir valley.ally, the taliban did offer negotiations to ahmad massoud when they lay siege to his panjshir valley, but talks at that time mediated by some villages�* scholars did not succeed. so, i think now that there are reports that maybe one faction is having more success on the battlefield than the other, that ahmad massoud is now realising that maybe it's not sustainable for him because the circumstances on the ground are not like his father's situation. he is not supported by any major international power. i mean, the northern province that the northern alliance of his father used to rule were good for his supplies. they are not with them, they are with the taliban, so he is encircled. so i think it now depends what conditions he lays down and whether they are acceptable to the taliban or not. this might, then, bring us closer to the announcement of a taliban government, and what challenges do you think are key there? i think the biggest challenges within the taliban. i mean, we see taliban

panjshir is in a small province or valley. panjshir has many semi valleys.lley, right now the taliban are only in a few locations. they are facing difficulties. ourforces are resisting, ourforces are defending their people, their honour, their home and their values. one of the leaders of the resistance has released a voice message, blaming the international community for legitimising the taliban. amrullah saleh, afghanistan's former vice president was the other man leading the movement. a few days ago he'd send the bbc this clip, saying he was in panjshir. his whereabouts are now unknown. yogita limaye, bbc news. secunder kermani is in kabul. so disputes over what's going on in panjshir, and no news yet of the taliban forming a government? yes, that is right. it has been more than three weeks since the taliban took over kabul and they are yet to establish the new government. first we were told they were waiting for the final american troops to leave the final american troops to leave the country, that was a few days ago, then we were told they were waiting t

the taliban and afghan opposition forces are battling to control the panjshir valley north of kabul. it's the last afghan province holding out against the islamist group. both sides are claiming to have the upper hand without producing conclusive evidence. here in the uk, the labour opposition party has called for clarity on covid vaccines for children to prevent further disruption to their education. labour says there's a "strong case" for offering all 12 to 15—year—olds coronavirus vaccinations — but the government's scientific advisors don't support it. scientists have revealed that tuna stocks are starting to recover after being fished to the edge of extinction. however, many other plants and animals remain under huge pressure. biodiversity researchers say that nearly a third of the species they're monitoring face extinction. one official warned of a major crisis soon. the doctors�* union, the british medical association, is calling on the government to take urgent action to tackle delays to the delivery of the winter flu jab. some gp surgeries in england and wales are cancelling

afghans in the panjshir valley have historically resisted taliban control even before u.s. troops ousted the taliban government in 2001. the taliban have not said they control the region yet. in kabul today, taliban special forces broke up a women's rights protest-- the second women's protest in two days. one protestor said taliban fighters fired tear gas to disperse the crowd and hit women with tasers. new cases of coronavirus infections are still rising across the u.s., causing the centers for disease control and prevention to urge unvaccinated americans not to travel on this holiday weekend. just under 53% of the eligible population is now fully vaccinated. no vaccine is authorized for children under 12. yesterday, the c.d.c. released two new studies showing a close to five-fold increase in hospitalizations for covid-related cases among children and adolescents from june through mid-august. as students and teachers return to in-person learning this year, the c.d.c. is urging universal masking in schools along with ccinations to help reduce transmission. the highly-contag

meanwhile the taliban claim to be making advances in the panjshir valley, the only part of afghanistanf louisiana that was hardest hit by hurricane ida last weekend. us presidentjoe biden has defended his record on the economy, after the rate ofjob growth slowed down in the last month. fewerjobs were created in the us in august than at any other month this year. just under 250,000 people were hired when many economists were forecasting closer to 750,000. but the president insists that the us economy is growing consistently. today we learned the economy created 235,000 newjobs in august and the unemployment rate fell to 5.2%, the lowest it has been in 18 months. but despite the impact of the delta variant, and i'll talk a little more about that in a minute, what we're seeing is an economic recovery that's durable and strong. the biden plan is working. we're getting results. let's go live to new york and speak to chris low, chief economist at fhn financial. good to talk to you, what has been going on? this took economists by surprise, didn't it. it economists by surprise, didn't it. , .

the panjshir valley has long been a bastion of taliban resistance.is significant for a number of reasons. over the years fighters have successfully resisted the soviets in the 80s and the taliban in the 90s. here's what we think is confirmation that that resistance is over. this was posted online by the taliban and appears to show the taliban flag raised outside the building of panjshir�*s regional governor. and this is a taliban spokesperson. translation: we have captured panjshir with the will of god. - the local elders and religious leaders have been coordinating with us and our operations went ahead with their help. some of those who are still wanting to fight are missing at the moment. we are trying to tell them that if they want to join a normal life they are welcome to. afghanistan is their home, there is no problem from our side but they need to stop fuelling instability. that will be our condition. not that resistance fighters in panjshir are accepting this. they have tweeted. .. they go on. many different sources on this story. and we can b

meanwhile, anti-taliban forces in the rugged panjshir valley are battling an incursion by taliban fighters. the panjshir has long been controlled by the national resistance front and has never been under taliban control journalist ben farmer is in kabul where it's 1:30 in the afternoon. he joins us by phone. thanks for being with us. let's start with the protests we saw from those women there in kabul a day after a similar one in harot. tell us more about their pledge to the taliban and to the outside world. >> reporter: well, these are -- they're not huge protests, a few dozen women. they are significant. the women are very brave for doing this. the taliban have been very dismissive and very hostile toward women's rights activists in the past. the women have been saying in these protests that they demand a say in government, and they demand a say in their lives. and they've also asked for representation when the taliban do actually form their government. the the -- the taliban who have been at the scene of these protests have looked on as if unsure what to do at first. then they have move

help the resistance in the panjshir valley. able to govern afghanistan, they're hated by the afghan people. what's gonna happen over time is you're gonna see the resistance rise. isis will come after the taliban, large, and the entire country is going to fracture in the next year, creating a perfect storm for western interest to be attacked. you can do one of two things. you can say, that's no longer my problem, let it build and get hit or hit them before they hit you. if i may, i now want to talk a little bit less about geopolitics, a bit more about personal politics. yourjourney — to many people, both in the united states and around the world — it's pretty inexplicable. you were the great friend and ally ofjohn mccain and you and he — and i've interviewed you about this in the past — you and he were the great advocates of using america's military mite overseas, you believed in interventionism to defend values, to protect america's power. and then, in 2016, you jumped horses. you backed donald trump. as i said, the america fir

the taliban has pushed deeper into the panjshir valley, a traditional bedrock of opposition.here have been many injuries on both sides, but the resistance has denied taliban claims of victory and says there will be no surrender. in kabul, these women are refusing to surrender their rights. protesting is a brave move in uncertain times. reports taliban used tasers against them may be a hint of what they face in the new old afghanistan. dan johnson, bbc news. and the isi, so in the isi, certainly pakistan has been fielding requests to help with the evacuation of foreign nationals and those eligible to leave the country but have not yet been able to do so. they'll form part of the discussions with the taliban. the pakistan also has a long history with the taliban and has been accused of secretly financing their insurgency. they also acknowledge having some leverage and there's a lot of speculation that this visit is about discussions about the creation of a new government here in afghanistan. it is been nearly three weeks since the taliban of taken over in kabul. it's been nearl