Inside Politics: Gunfire fills the air as last US plane leaves Afghanistan

Gunfire filled the air last night as the Taliban celebrated the last US plane leaving Afghanistan. Some two decades after being ousted from power, the militants seized Kabul airport and are now back in total control. Joe Biden will later today explain why the evacuation deadline was not extended. Elsewhere, Boris Johnson faces disgruntlement from Tory councillors over planning and cuts and Robert Jenrick has announced the bulk of the government’s new £8.6bn “affordable homes programme” will be directed at helping homebuyers rather than renters.

Dominic Raab, the foreign secretary, is on the broadcast round this morning and faces questions about the UK’s handling of the Afghanistan crisis. Later, President Joe Biden holds a press conference where he will explain why the US did not extend the evacuation deadline.

Coming up:

-Foreign secretary Dominic Raab on ITV Good Morning Britain at 8.30am

-Shadow Middle East minister Wayne David on talkRADIO at 8.33am

Daily Briefing

LAST PLANE LEAVES KABUL: With just minutes to go until the 31 August deadline, the last US troops left Kabul last night, bringing to an end the American and western presence in Afghanistan – some 20 years on from the 9/11 terror attacks. “I’m here to announce the completion of our withdrawal from Afghanistan and the end of the military mission to evacuate American citizens, third country nationals and vulnerable Afghans,” General Kenneth F McKenzie of US Central Command said as the last plane left. “Every single US service member is out of Afghanistan.” President Joe Biden confirmed the end of the US mission in Afghanistan in a statement some hours later, praising US service members for the evacuation of more than 120,000 people in just two weeks. “Now, our 20-year military presence in Afghanistan has ended,” he said.

STRANDED: The last US troops may have left Kabul, but a number of US citizens – thought to be around 250 – and tens of thousands of at-risk Afghans, including interpreters, journalists and human rights activists are stranded. Biden, who is already under extreme pressure over his handling of the crisis, holds a press conference later today to explain why he didn’t extend the evacuation deadline. The White House says he will appear at around 6.30pm GMT. He is expected to say it was the unanimous recommendation of the Joint Chiefs and of all of the US’s commanders on the ground. The president is also likely to be questioned on how the US plans to help those stuck in Kabul.

MAJOR QUESTIONS: The administration has said it expects the Taliban, now in control of the airport, to continue allowing safe passage for Americans to leave. Biden is also likely to be grilled about a drone strike on on a suspected suicide bomber amid reports that it was based on wrong information. Initially it was understood the attack had killed three civilians, but reports now suggest there were multiple more deaths, including six children and a man who worked as a translator for US forces died.

UN RESOLUTION: The US withdrawal from Afghanistan continues to dominate the news agenda on both sides of the Atlantic, with several UK papers this morning splashing on differing interpretations of the exit. The Sun front page features heavily armed Taliban militants showing off their weapons inside the former British police training headquarters, with the caption: “We’re in charge now. ”As the mission came to a close Britain, France and the US put forward an emergency UN security council resolution calling on the Taliban to honour its commitment to let people freely leave the country. Despite abstentions by Russia and China the resolution passed, although it did not include a “safe zone” mentioned by French President Emmanuel Macron. “Tonight’s UN Security Council resolution, led by the UK with our allies, makes clear that the international community stands with Afghans,” Boris Johnson said in a tweet after the resolution was passed. “There can be no return to repression or terror. We will push as one voice for safe passage, humanitarian access & respect for human rights.”

RISING ANGER: Johnson is facing a rising tide of disgruntlement among his own party’s grassroots councillors, amid anger about a decade of cuts and the imposition of planning reforms, which will downgrade town halls’ control over local development. A new survey, seen by The Independent, found that more than half of Conservative councillors think their local authority has been treated unfairly financially by central government, and two-thirds think Whitehall undervalues the role of local government.

BUYERS MARKET: The bulk of the government’s new £8.6bn “affordable homes programme” will be directed at helping homebuyers rather than renters, housing secretary Robert Jenrick announced on Tuesday. Out of the 119,000 new homes being built, 57,000 will be for ownership, and just 29,600 will be for social rent. Meanwhile, 6,250 are set to be rural affordable homes. Jenrick said: “Creating more opportunities for homeownership is central to this government. This £9bn funding is a landmark moment for our affordable homes programme and will ensure good quality housing for all as we build back better after the pandemic. “This huge funding package will make the ambition of owning a home a reality for families by making it realistic and affordable.” But some so-called “affordable homeownership” schemes have required prospective homeowners to have saved a deposit with a stable income to be considered for a mortgage.

“A new chapter has begun. The military mission is over. A new diplomatic mission has begun.”

US secretary of state Anthony Blinken as troops leave Afghanistan.

“Biden will [be] deeply relieved that the withdrawal operation completed without another (successful) terrorist attack. But in retreating he has ceded whatever limited control he had over the country and what happened there. To some extent he’s now mercy to those events.”

BBC Newsnight policy editor Louis Goodall on US exit.