for survivors, as the death toll from a huge earthquake rises to nearly 1,300. the taliban s extrarodinary sweep across afghanistan has now extended into the capital kabul, which it has seized with precious little resistance. taliban commanders have been photographed in the president s palace, while president ashraf ghani has fled to uzbekistan. it is nigh on 20 years since the taliban fled the capital. today as they reassert their authority they have urged calm, but the city is said to be in chaos. the us state department says american troops are now taking steps to secure the airport. our first report is from our diplomatic correspondent, paul adams.
this is bbc news. the headlines: taliban commanders have been photographed in the president s palace in kabul, as they retook the afghan capital 20 years after being forced from power. president ashraf ghani has left the country taking a flight to uzbekistan. the taliban arrival has sparked an exodus from the city, with afghans trying to board flights out of the country. the us state department says american troops are now taking steps to secure the airport. thousands of us troops are assisting with the evacuation of embassy staff, citizens, and some afghan nationals from kabul. there s been a sharp rise in the death toll from the earthquake that hit haiti on saturday. almost 1,300 people are now known to have died. many more are feared to be trapped under the rubble of collapsed buildings. hospitals are struggling
welcome to bbc news, i m david eades. our top stories: taliban fighters enter the presidential palace in kabul as they retake the afghan capital, 20 years after being forced from power. their arrival has sparked an exodus from the city, as afghans try to board flights out of the country, and president ghani flees. embassies are closing, diplomats are flying out, leaving afghan civilians, and former top officials fearing what lies ahead. imight i might face consequences that i d never even dreamt of, and i guess that s the price that we pay for trying to make this world a little better. and in haiti, the search
fighters as the spoils of victory so that progress only holds of the united states and the international community remain in afghanistan and keep afghan officials from leaving afghanistan. we ve all warned within the intelligence community that as soon as the us left those in government would leave also. they have been able to line their pockets, prepare for the exit from the united states by preparing their exit financially. (crosstalk). i m sorry to interrupt you but i ll wonder if i could ask you, we have an increase in the number of trips going back and, essentially for evacuation purposes. given the awful mess this looks like and i think from a pr point of view, a bit of a disaster for a relatively new president, is there a chance that many of them will stay longer than
guess that s the price that we pay for trying to make this world a little better. and in haiti, the search for survivors, as the death toll from a huge earthquake rises to nearly 1,300. the taliban s extrarodinary sweep across afghanistan has now extended into the capital kabul, which it has seized with precious little resistance. taliban commanders have been photographed in the president s palace, while president ashraf ghani has taken flight to uzbekistan. it is nigh on 20 years since the taliban fled the capital. today as they reassert their authority they have urged calm, but the city is said to be in chaos. the us state department says american troops are now taking steps to secure the airport. our first report is from our diplomatic correspondent paul adams.