Croatian citizens evacuated from Kabul airport

Dozens of Croatian citizens were evacuated from Afghanistan's capital Kabul on Sunday.

Video obtained by NOVA TV in Croatia showed a number of Croatians with packed bags boarding military helicopters at the airport.

Croatian media said that some 23 Croatians were safely evacuated from Kabul.

It was not immediately clear who organised the evacuations, but the Croatian government said earlier Sunday that those flown out were mostly contractors working for foreign companies who would organise the evacuations.

It comes as Afghanistan’s embattled president left the country Sunday, joining his fellow citizens and foreigners in a stampede fleeing the advancing Taliban and signaling the end of a 20-year Western experiment aimed at remaking Afghanistan.

The Taliban entered the capital early Sunday and an official in the militant group said it would soon announce the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan from the presidential palace - a return rich in symbolism to the name of the country under the Taliban government ousted by US-led forces after the 9/11 attacks.

The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to brief the media.