Taliban forces patrol at a runway a day after US troops’ withdrawal from Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, Afghanistan, August 31 2021. Picture: REUTERS/STRINGER
More broadly, people urged the new leaders to revive the Afghan economy, which is facing steep inflation, food shortages worsened by drought and the prospect of overseas investment disappearing as the outside world warily eyes the Taliban. The group has promised to respect people’s rights and not seek vendettas, but it has been criticised for its heavy-handed response to protests and its part in a chaotic evacuation of tens of thousands of people from Kabul airport.
The US State Department said it was concerned about the “affiliations and track records” of some of the people named by the Taliban to fill top posts. “The world is watching closely,” a spokesperson said. In Kabul, a group of women bearing signs reading “A cabinet without women is a failure” held another protest in the Pul-e Surkh area of the city. Larger demonstrations on Tuesday were broken up when Taliban gunmen fired warning shots.
Taliban officials have said that protests would be allowed, but that they must be announced in advance and authorised.