Taliban militants stood in the studio of a Kabul TV station as an anchor praised the new Islamic Emirate, according to footage posted to Twitter.
The 42-second clip, which went viral over the weekend, shows the news presenter speaking to the Afghan people while being stared down by militants holding guns and standing on each side of him.
The delivery took place on the news program Pardaz, and the anchor spoke in the native language, insisting the people should not be scared.
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With eight gun-touting Taliban surrounding him, the visibly shaken anchor discussed the collapse of Afghanistan’s U.S.-backed government and said the new Emirate does not want the Afghan people to be afraid.
Host of the Peace Studio show on Kabul TV station interviews Taliban official at gunpoint. pic.twitter.com/L4wQCSOi1U
— Hillel Neuer (@HillelNeuer) August 29, 2021
Many of the responses to the clip on Twitter spoke about a loss of freedom in the country.
“Taliban itself is synonymous with fear in the minds of millions,” one user tweeted. “This is just another proof.”
Another user, a reporter, called the situation surreal.
“This is what a political debate now looks like on Afghan TV, Taliban foot soldiers watching over the host,” BBC’s Yalda Hakim said.
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U.S. military forces have been wrapping up evacuations of U.S. citizens and Afghan allies at Kabul’s airport ever since the swift Taliban takeover of most of Afghanistan this month. Thirteen U.S. service members and scores of others died in a suicide blast outside the airport’s gates on Thursday. An Islamic State affiliate claimed it was responsible, after which the U.S. conducted multiple drone strikes against those military officials say were plotting more attacks.
