Kabul, Aug 31 (AFP/APP):The hardline Islamist Taliban celebrated their total return to power on Tuesday with gunfire and diplomacy, after the last US troops flew out of Afghanistan to end two decades of war.
The United States’ longest military conflict drew to a close on Monday night when its forces abandoned Kabul airport, where it had overseen a frenzied airlift that saw more than 123,000 people flee.
Taliban fighters then quickly swept into the airport and fired weapons into the sky across the city in jubilation — an astonishing comeback after US forces invaded in 2001, weeks after the September 11 attacks, and toppled them for supporting Al-Qaeda.
“Congratulations to Afghanistan… this victory belongs to us all,” Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid told reporters hours later on the airport runway.
Mujahid said the Taliban’s victory was a “lesson for other invaders”.
In Kandahar, the spiritual birthplace of the movement and the country’s second-largest city, thousands of celebrating supporters swept onto the streets.
However, many Afghans are terrified of a repeat of the Taliban’s initial rule from 1996-2001, which was infamous for their treatment of women and girls, as well as a brutal justice system.
The group has repeatedly promised a more tolerant brand of governance compared with their first stint in power, and Mujahid persisted with that theme.
“We want to have good relations with the US and the world. We welcome good diplomatic relations with them all,” he said.
Mujahid also insisted Taliban security forces would be “gentle and nice”.
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