MOSCOW, August 21. /TASS/. /TASS/. Around 12,000 foreigners and Afghans who worked in embassies and international humanitarian groups have left Afghanistan since the Taliban (outlawed in Russia) captured Kabul on August 15, Reuters news agency reported on Saturday, citing a NATO representative.

"The evacuation process is slow, as it is risky, for we don't want any form of clashes with Taliban members or civilians outside the airport," a NATO representative told the agency on the condition of anonymity.

According to Reuters, the Taliban rebuffed the claim that they were involved in the Kabul airport situation and the unrest that took place there. A Taliban official said, "The West could have had a better plan to evacuate."

After the US announced it was withdrawing troops from Afghanistan and wrapping up its military operation, the Taliban launched a rapid offensive on government forces, entering Kabul without a fight on August 15. President Ashraf Ghani fled the country. Western countries are evacuating their nationals and embassy staffers.