'Afghans need to accept Taliban rule', says ousted Prez Ashraf Ghani's brother Hashmat

New Delhi: Amid reports of deepening political crisis in Afghanistan, Hashmat Ghani brother of ousted President Ashraf Ghani, said that the people need to accept Taliban's takeover. Ghani said that the new order in Kabul was a necessity "for the people of Afghanistan" as the foreign forces are just a few days away from their final withdrawal, he said in a television interview.

Ghani is the grand chieftain of Afghanistan's nomadic Kochi population, has reportedly been holding meets with Taliban leaders. He has batted for the formation of an inclusive government and agreed to recognise the transition of power as a signal to influential political and cultural figures.

Even though his brother, Asghraf Ghani fled the war-torn country on August 15, Hashmat said he had never intended to leave the country.

"If I were to flee there what would become of my people, my tribe … My roots are here, what kind of message would that send if I just fled and left my people in their time of need?" he said in the interview.

Ghani said he is glad that the former president fled. "If he had gotten assassinated or killed in any way, things would have gotten much worse."

Meanwhile, Russia's ambassador to Afghanistan praised the conduct of the Taliban on Friday saying there was no alternative to the hardline Islamist group and resistance to it would fail, Reuters reported.

The comments by Ambassador Dmitry Zhirnov reflect efforts by Russia to deepen already well-established ties with the Taliban while stopping short, for now, of recognising them as the legitimate rulers of a country Moscow tried and failed to control before the Soviet Union withdrew its last forces in 1989.

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