Afghanistan's first vice president, Amrullah Saleh, has said he is the country's legal acting president under the Afghan constitution.
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On micro-blogging site Twitter, Amrullah Saleh, Afghanistan's first vice president in the Ashraf Ghani government, said that according to the Afghan constitution, in the event of the president's absence, death, flight and resignation, the first vice president becomes acting president. At the moment I am inside my country and I am the legal acting president of the country. I am contacting all the leaders to get their support and build consensus.
Clarity: As per d constitution of Afg, in absence, escape, resignation or death of the President the FVP becomes the caretaker President. I am currently inside my country & am the legitimate care taker President. Am reaching out to all leaders to secure their support & consensus.
— Amrullah Saleh (@AmrullahSaleh2) August 17, 2021
The son of Amrullah Saleh and former Northern Alliance leader Ahmad Shah Masood is thought to be in Panjshir, which has not yet been captured by the Taliban. "We will not allow the Taliban to enter Panjshir, use all our strength to resist," a Panjshir resident told on condition of anonymity.
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Amrullah Saleh, who was orphaned as a child, fought alongside Ahmad Shah Massoud in 1990. He had to leave Kabul after the Taliban took control of Kabul in 1996. According to Amrullah, the Taliban tortured his sister in order to hurt him. Amrullah Saleh wrote in an editorial in Times Magazine last year: "My views on the Taliban have changed dramatically since 1996.
