KABUL, 16 August 2021, (TON): President Ashraf Ghani, along with his close aides, flew out of Afghanistan on Sunday, paving way for Taliban to regain power 20 years after a US-led military invasion ousted them.

A senior Afghan Interior Ministry official confirmed that the development to Reuters. Asked for comment, the president's office said it "cannot say anything about Ashraf Ghani's movement for security reasons".

Shortly after President Ghani flew out of the country, Taliban commanders claimed that they "took control" of the presidential palace in Kabul.

The report quoted the group as saying that it expected a total handover of power.

Ghani, in his first comments since leaving the country, said that he left the country in order to avoid bloodshed.

Afghan president said that he left in order to avoid clashes with the Taliban that would endanger millions of Kabul residents.

He did not disclose details on his current location.

Mohammad Naeem, the spokesman for the Taliban's political office in Qatar, assured all embassies, diplomatic missions and residences of foreign nationals in Kabul that there is no danger to them.