Afghanistan Falls to Taliban Rule as Afghan President Flees the Country

The U.S. Embassy in Afghanistan is encouraging Americans in the country to “shelter in place” after reports of gunfire at the Kabul International airport.

According to The Christian Post, Kabul’s main airport has experienced chaos as Afghanistan fell to Taliban rule after former Afghan President Ashraf Ghani fled the country Sunday and the U.S. began pulling troops from the middle eastern nation.

“The security situation in Kabul is changing quickly, including at the airport,” the U.S. State Department said in a security alert statement.

Meanwhile, the Pentagon will be sending another 1,000 American soldiers to Afghanistan to help with evacuations.

Ghani left the country Sunday as the Taliban terrorist group moved into Kabul, taking control of the capital city.

The U.S. Embassy in Kabul also removed its flag and moved officials to the airport.

“Based on the recommendations of our diplomatic, military, and intelligence teams, I have authorized the deployment of approximately 5,000 U.S. troops to make sure we can have an orderly and safe drawdown of U.S. personnel and other allied personnel and an orderly and safe evacuation of Afghans who helped our troops during our mission and those at special risk from the Taliban advance,” President Joe Biden said in a statement.

“I was the fourth President to preside over an American troop presence in Afghanistan — two Republicans, two Democrats. I would not, and will not, pass this war onto a fifth,” he said.

According to Fox News, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki has been unavailable for comment about the situation in Afghanistan. Media requests have been routed to her out-of-office message. Biden is currently vacationing at Camp David.

The United Kingdom also pulled soldiers from Afghanistan, but Tory MP Tom Tugendhat called the move a sign that the U.K. had “abandoned the Afghan people.”

Other foreign policy experts say they worry that the U.S. is sending a dangerous message by withdrawing from Afghanistan, Faithwire reports.

“The fact that the United States is leaving will empower groups like the Taliban and other extremists,” said Seth Frantzman, author of Drone Wars: Pioneers, Killing Machines, Artificial Intelligence, and the Battle for the Future.

“It will also empower a lot of America’s, let’s say, adversaries or enemies or countries that want to take advantage of the decline of America in the region. So that would probably mean is what we’ll see is an empowerment for groups like Iran or extremists that feel they can target Israel,” Frantzman told CBN News.

Related:

5 Prayers to Lift Up for Afghanistan

Photo courtesy: ©Getty Images/Shan.Shihan

Amanda Casanova is a writer living in Dallas, Texas. She has covered news for ChristianHeadlines.com since 2014. She has also contributed to The Houston Chronicle, U.S. News and World Report and IBelieve.com. She blogs at The Migraine Runner.