Afghan president surfaces in UAE
The Emirati government said it welcomed Ashraf Ghani into the country on "humanitarian grounds."
The United Arab Emirates has confirmed welcoming exiled Afghani President Ashraf Ghani into the country.
The UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it accepted Ghani and his family into the Gulf state “on humanitarian grounds” in a Wednesday statement.
The Afghan Islamist group the Taliban seized the capital Kabul from forces loyal to the US-backed government headed by Ghani on Sunday. The victory followed rapid Taliban gains against the government amid the imminent US military withdrawal from the country. A US-led invasion toppled the Taliban in 2001 following the Sept. 11 attacks, but the group was never fully defeated. Ghani fled the country on Sunday during the Taliban takeover.
The UAE has a history of relations with Afghanistan. The UAE, along with Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, were the only countries in the world to recognize the Taliban government when it last ruled Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001.
