Afghanistan’s First VP Claims Presidency During Taliban Debut Presser

Afghanistan’s first Vice President Amrullah Saleh claimed on Tuesday to be the de facto “president” of the collapsed country following the departure of former leader Ashraf Ghani and arrival of the Taliban to Kabul on Sunday.

He made his claim in a message on his Twitter account; the Qatari news network Al Jazeera reported the message as coming from a legitimate account linked to the vice president.

“As per d [sic] constitution of Afg [sic], in absence, escape, resignation or death of the President the FVP [first vice president] becomes the caretaker President,” Saleh tweeted. “I am currently inside my country & am the legitimate care taker President. Am reaching out to all leaders to secure their support & consensus.”:

Clarity: As per d constitution of Afg, in absence, escape, resignation or death of the President the FVP becomes the caretaker President. I am currently inside my country & am the legitimate care taker President. Am reaching out to all leaders to secure their support & consensus.

— Amrullah Saleh (@AmrullahSaleh2) August 17, 2021

Saleh posted his statement during the Taliban’s first press conference as the ruling regime in Afghanistan, hosted in Kabul by spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid.

During the press event, an Al Jazeera woman reporter asked the terrorists about women’s rights. Mujahid responded by assuring women that sharia law provides rights to women.

“The Islamic Emirate is committed to the rights of women within the framework of sharia,” he said. “Our sisters … have the same rights, will be able to benefit from their rights. They can have activities in different sectors and different areas on the basis of our rules and regulations, educational, health and other areas.”

“They are going to be working with us, shoulder to shoulder with us, and the international community,” Mujahid added, “if they have concerns – we would like to assure them that there is not going to be any discrimination against women, but of course within the frameworks that we have.”

“We don’t want any internal or external enemies,” Mujahid continued. “Nobody is going to harm you, nobody is going to knock on your doors,” he said in reference to any retribution that Western sympathizers may anticipate.

“I would like to reassure all the compatriots, whether they were translators, whether they had military activities or whether they have been civilians, all of them have been pardoned,” he continued, “Nobody is going to be treated with revenge. The youths who have talents, who have grown up here – we do not want them to leave. These are our assets, we would like them to stay here to serve.”

“We would like to assure you that no one is going to knock on their door to inspect them or to ask them or interrogate them as to who they have been working for or interpreting for. I would like to assure you that no harm is going to come, they are going to be safe,” said the spokesman. “When it comes to ethnic differences, religious differences and hostilities, they should not be actually promoted by the media, they should work … for the unity of the nation to have peaceful, brotherly living together.”

First question from Taliban to Al Jazeera female reporter asking about women's rights. Zabiullah Mujahid says women have rights as long as they follow sharia law pic.twitter.com/6xzD3xzZsk

— Yalda Hakim (@BBCYaldaHakim) August 17, 2021

President Ashraf Ghani fled Afghanistan Sunday amid the country collapsing from the Taliban’s rapid march toward the Afghan capital city of Kabul. The Russian Embassy in Kabul “alleged that Ghani attempted to smuggle so much money into his helicopter that it did not physically fit into the air frame,” Breitbart News reported.

Unconfirmed rumors persist that the president is still looking for a nation that will harbor him. Some reports suggest that he may have tried to seek refuge in Tajikistan, but the country denied him entry. In the past, Tajikistan has accepted more than 1,000 Afghan soldiers during Taliban onslaughts. They fled, according to Afghan officials, due to the corruption within the Afghan government.

As of Tuesday, several U.S. media reports have estimated somewhere between 10,000 to 40,000 American citizens are still in Afghanistan. A White House official admitted only 700 Americans will be evacuated Tuesday. Monday saw 150 Americans evacuated.

Follow Wendell Husebø on Twitter @whusebo.