Photos show turmoil and panic as Taliban enter Afghanistan's capital Kabul

  • Afghan President Ashraf Ghani left the country on Sunday evening, as the Taliban entered the presidential palace and declared the war "over."
  • The rapidly evolving situation has forced hundreds of thousands of people to flee their homes, with chaotic scenes at Hamid Karzai International Airport on Monday.
  • International aid groups have warned of an imminent humanitarian crisis.

Taliban forces entered Afghanistan's capital city of Kabul on Sunday, effectively taking control of the country following the capture of one provincial city after another over recent weeks.

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani left the country on Sunday evening, as the Taliban entered the presidential palace and declared the war "over." Ghani said he fled the country to avoid bloodshed.

It marks a stunning end to the two-decade Western campaign in which U.S. and coalition forces sought to transform the country.

The rapidly evolving situation has forced hundreds of thousands of people to flee their homes. There were chaotic scenes at Hamid Karzai International Airport Monday as Afghans and foreign nationals fearing a return to Taliban rule desperately sought to escape the country.

The United Nations has cited continued reports of serious human rights abuses and violations in the communities most affected by the fighting. International aid groups have warned of an imminent humanitarian crisis.

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Sunday expressed particular concern about the future of women and girls in the country, saying hard-won rights "must be protected" and "all abuses must stop."

Taliban members patrol the streets of Kabul

A U.S. military helicopter is pictured flying above the U.S. embassy in Kabul

A girl is seen as thousands of families flee from a Taliban offensive

Afghan security forces patrol in the Afghan capital

Displaced Afghan women and children from Kunduz pray at a mosque that is sheltering them

In view of the rapid advance of the Taliban in Afghanistan, the Bundeswehr plans to begin evacuating German citizens and local Afghan forces from Kabul

Afghans crowd at the tarmac of the Kabul airport on Monday to flee the country

Afghans wait in long lines for hours at the passport office, desperate to get their travel documents

The entrance gate of the Canadian embassy is pictured after the evacuation in Kabul

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