The Guardian’s foreign correspondent, Luke Harding, has interviewed Sayed – an Afghan resident – who spoke from Kabul this morning as Taliban forces entered the city:
“People are afraid. They are fearful for their families, their wives and their daughters especially. A few residents in Kabul with links to the Taliban are happy. But the majority are really afraid.
“This morning I was out an about in the city. I saw women crying by the side of the road. People were running, with everyone trying to find a vehicle to get home. There were no taxis. Before a ride would cost $2. Now the prices have gone up five times and the taxis don’t take anyone.
“I heard some gunfire a few hours ago. Now the city is pretty quiet. Everyone is holed up in their homes, the shops and banks which were busy earlier are mostly closed. Schoolchildren were due to take examinations today. These are not happening.
“The Taliban arrived this morning on the outskirts of Kabul. A few are already inside, talking to the people, without weapons for now. They are said to have taken Pul-e-Charkhi prison [the biggest in Afghanistan] and let all the prisoners out. The Taliban flag is flying in some districts of Kabul including in Babur garden, a historic district where the Mughal emperor Babur is buried.
“In district seven fighters have surrounded the police station, I heard. They have told the police to give up their weapons. I’m sceptical about the Taliban’s claim that no one will be harmed. We know what will happen next. They will start looking for ‘traitors’ – anyone who served with the Afghan military, or who worked with Nato forces and the Americans.
“They will also target the houses of rich businessmen in Kabul, asking them how they made their money, and were able to build a four- or five-storey property. Meanwhile, the situation for ordinary Afghans is terrible. Last week, the price for a packet of flour was 1,700 Afghanis ($25). Today it is 2,500 Afghanis ($35).
“Some people say the Afghan president Ashraf Ghani has left the city already. Others say he is still here and plans to resign at 5pm today, with the Taliban due to move in and take over at 6pm today, local time. We don’t know which version is true. At the moment we are waiting to see what happens’.
“We are in a bad situation. I have no money and four children – boys aged three, five and 14 and a 12-year-old daughter. I don’t have any money to escape, the borders are now shut, and the Taliban have taken Mazar-i-Sharif and Jalalabad. I may try and lie low with my father-in-law for a couple of days. But after that what?”
