The Taliban were in position near the Panjshir valley and had retaken three districts in northern Afghanistan that fell to local militia groups last week, a spokesman said on Monday, though there were no confirmed reports of further fighting.

Bangladesh has called for peace in Afghanistan, security of its people, and quick evacuation of foreigners who got stranded following Taliban’s takeover on August 15 after the US withdrew troops.

The Taliban said yesterday they would not extend the August 31 deadline for Nato forces to leave Afghanistan, jeopardising hopes of extending the evacuation of thousands of foreign nationals and vulnerable Afghans.

More than 500 tonnes of medical supplies including surgical equipment and severe malnutrition kits due to be delivered to Afghanistan this week are stuck because of Kabul airport restrictions, the World Health Organization said on Monday.

Bangladesh has called for peace in Afghanistan, security of its people, and quick evacuation of foreigners who got stranded following Taliban’s takeover on August 15 after the US withdrew troops.

As the Taleban advanced on the Afghan capital Kabul last week, one Chinese businessman’s account of doing business in the country made its rounds on Chinese social media.

A firefight broke out between unidentified gunmen, Western security forces and Afghan guards at the North Gate of Kabul airport on Monday, Germany's armed forces said, as thousands of Afghans and foreigners thronged the airport, seeking to flee Taliban rule.

The Taliban on Sunday blamed the United States for the chaotic evacuation of tens of thousands of Afghans and foreigners from Kabul, one week after the hardline Islamist group returned to power in a rapid victory that stunned the world. 

The Taliban yesterday blamed the United States for the chaotic evacuation of tens of thousands of Afghans and foreigners from the capital, one week after the hardline Islamist group returned to power in a rapid victory that stunned the world.

Myanmar’s military government has arrested two more local journalists, army-owned television reported on Saturday, the latest among dozens of detentions in a sweeping crackdown on the media since a February 1 coup.

Former Afghan government forces forming a resistance movement in a fortified valley are preparing for “long-term conflict”, but are also seeking to negotiate with the Taliban, their spokesman told AFP in an interview.

Five Bangladeshis were evacuated from Afghanistan yesterday -- three of them under UN and two under US arrangements -- in a development giving much relief since the Afghanistan fell to the Taliban on August 15.

The son of Ahmad Shah Massoud, who was one of the main leaders of Afghanistan's anti-Soviet resistance in the 1980s, said he will not surrender areas under his control to the Taliban, Dubai-based al-Arabiya TV channel cited him as saying on Sunday.

A group of Afghan women too young to recall the Taliban's 1996-2001 rule are experiencing the same trauma once recounted by relatives after the group retook control of Afghanistan, leading thousands to flee the country.

A panicked crush of people trying to enter Kabul’s international airport killed seven Afghan civilians in the crowds, the British military said Sunday, showing the danger still posed to those trying to flee the Taliban’s takeover of the country.

Austria's conservative Chancellor Sebastian Kurz opposes taking in any more people fleeing Afghanistan now that the Taliban have seized power, he said in remarks published on Sunday.

Afghanistan's new Taliban rulers imposed some order around chaotic Kabul airport on Sunday, making sure people formed orderly queues outside the main gates and not allowing crowds to gather at the perimeter, witnesses said.

Questions are swirling in the air after the Taliban took control of Afghanistan last week ending the rule of West-backed government of Ashraf Ghani. It took

Taliban leaders gathered in the Afghan capital yesterday to begin mapping out an “inclusive government”, as thousands scrambled to leave the country via a chaotic evacuation dubbed one of the most difficult airlifts in history.

Myanmar’s military government has arrested two more local journalists, the army-owned television reported yesterday , in the latest in a sweeping crackdown on the media since a Feb. 1 coup.