INTERNATIONAL: The United States has completed its controversial and shambolic withdrawal from Afghanistan. 20 years of effective occupation came to an end in the early hours of Tuesday morning, as the last US military plane left Kabul’s Hamid Karzai International Airport. The US leaves a shattered nation back in the hands of the very group it went in to destroy.

Major General Chris Donahue, commander of the 82nd Airborne Division was photographed as he stepped aboard a C-17 transport plane. He was the last US service member to leave Afghanistan. The flight ends a hasty and humiliating exit, with Washington and its allies carrying out a massive but chaotic airlift over the past two weeks. Tens of thousands of Afghans who helped Western countries and might have qualified for evacuation have been left behind.

Across Kabul, gunfire rang out in celebration at news that the US withdrawal had been completed. Soon after the final US military flight left, members of the Taliban walked across the tarmac telling reporters that “everything will be fine”, but the airport has been left with no air traffic control, and remains vulnerable to rocket attacks by Islamic State. All civilian aircraft are being advised to stay well clear of Afghan airspace, at least for the time being.

That advisory puts a big question mark over US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken’s remarks in Washington, that the US would continue working with its international partners to get its remaining civilians and Afghan associates out of the country:

"We will work to secure their safe passage. This morning, I met with the foreign ministers of all the G7 countries the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Canada, Italy, Japan, as well as Qatar, Turkey, the European Union and the secretary general of NATO. We discussed how we will work together to facilitate safe travel out of Afghanistan, including by reopening Kabul's civilian airport as soon as possible. And we very much appreciate the efforts of Qatar and Turkey in particular to make this happen. This would enable a small number of daily charter flights, which is a key for anyone who wants to depart from Afghanistan moving forward. We're also working to identify ways to support Americans, legal permanent residents and Afghans who have worked with us and who may choose to depart via overland routes."

Back in Kabul, Taliban commander, Qari Samiullah, says the group will do its best to establish a safe atmosphere in the country and that together, the people of Afghanistan will build a new homeland. On the streets, there is fear though, with memories still fresh of the Taliban’s previous regime, during which music was banned, women were not allowed to work and girls were barred from education. Public executions were also commonplace. The United Nations says the country is facing a dire humanitarian crisis, cut off from foreign aid amid a drought, mass displacement and the pandemic. A chaotic occupation may be over, but an extremely uncertain future has begun.

^{PHOTO: STILL PHOTO OF LAST AMERICAN SOLDIER TO LEAVE AFGHANISTAN. 31/08/2021}

^{PHOTO: U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE ANTONY BLINKEN SPEAKING ABOUT WITHDRAWAL OF TROOPS FROM AFGHANISTAN. 31/08/2021}

^{PHOTO: MEMBERS OF TALIBAN ENTERING KABUL AIRPORT 31/08/2021}