Suhail Shaheen, the Taliban spokesman in Qatar, tells NPR's Steve Inskeep about the group's plans for the country, which he says include allowing people to leave and no reprisals against enemies.

Ghani said on Sunday that he had left the country to avoid further bloodshed.

The United States inadvertently took on a mission to democratize Afghanistan and instead undermined democracy at home, as unpopular wars tend to do.

Zainab filled all the forms for a special immigrant visa but now can only watch as the Americans leave Afghanistan. Eight thousand miles away, all her husband can do is hope.

President Biden gave the order last week to send U.S. troops into Afghanistan as it became clear the Taliban were overrunning Afghan government forces on their way to taking the capital of Kabul.

The Pentagon has set a goal of evacuating 9,000 people a day from the country. Those coming to the U.S. need assistance, as do those remaining in Afghanistan.

Mahbooba Seraj, founder of the Afghan Women's Network, has a message for Americans watching what's happening in Afghanistan.

"I am not safe," a former high-ranking Afghan official texts from a hidden location, saying the Taliban have sent killers after them.

It's been two decades since the Taliban had full control of Afghanistan. NPR's Mary Louise Kelly spoke to historian Carter Malkasian about who's running the Taliban now — and who's funding them.

President Biden addressed the nation after images from the airport in the Afghan capital showed desperate people fleeing before the Taliban advance. He said he stands by his decision to withdraw.

The simple question of whether the U.S. should stay or go was not simple at all. Now Biden's determination to leave Afghanistan has resulted in a bigger mess than he bargained for.

The American-installed government of Afghanistan collapsed Sunday as the Taliban completed their offensive across the country and stormed into the capital city of Kabul. The victory brought a somber conclusion to America's longest war, which began in 2001 — and Georgia-based veterans react to the news.

"Whatever happens in the coming days, we hold true to the idea that women can and should help shape the future of Afghanistan," said one nonprofit, as alarm rises about the Taliban takeover.

NPR's Ailsa Chang talks with Rangina Hamidi, Afghanistan's acting minister of education, about what it's like on the ground in Kabul during the Taliban's latest military surge in the country.

Images from the ground show hundreds if not thousands of Afghans crowding the airport, including the tarmac, in an apparent attempt to flee the country.