The Taliban has warned Western powers not to try to extend the Aug. 31 deadline set for the completion of evacuations from Kabul airport. President Joe Biden said Sunday that he and his military leaders were discussing whether to push back the deadline—a move backed by Britain. But a Taliban spokesman, Muhammad Suhail Shaheen, said the allies must stick to their deadline. “Foreign forces should withdraw on the deadline they have announced earlier. Otherwise, it is a clear violation,” he told BBC News. The spokesman said that it would be up to the Taliban leadership how to respond if foreign troops remained in Kabul after the deadline. The row comes after a deadly firefight at Kabul airport Monday morning in which an Afghan guard working with the Americans was killed.
