Thousands of Afghans who worked with U.S. military forces remain camped around Kabul airport praying to find safety as the timer runs out. American nationals are also awaiting flights home.
President Joe Biden seeks to get all Americans out by the end of the month, in order to meet the troop withdrawal agreement reached with the Taliban, although he admitted on Sunday night that an extension was under discussion, while this morning UK Defense Secretary Ben Wallace stressed the evacuation effort is 'down to hours now, not weeks'.
Taliban spokesman Dr Suhail Shaheen announced the group will not accept an extension to the deadline and warned of retaliation if Western forces extend their 'occupation' since the group dramatically swept to power.
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Shaheen spoke hours after Biden addressed the nation, appearing to push back against extending the August 31 deadline last night, warning the evacuation process is going to be 'hard and painful' and there will be 'discussions' about how long it will take.
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The President also confirmed during the press conference that as many as 11,000 people had been evacuated from the airport in the last 36 hours, - and that the US has thus far transported close to 33,000 to safety since the operation began, including 2,500 Americans.
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The Pentagon noted that of the 11,000 evacuated over the weekend, some 3,900 were flown out by US aircraft - but this still leaves around 15,000 US passport holders and an additional 50,000-60,000 Afghan allies who are seeking transport.
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Meanwhile, a White House official revealed that the US transported 10,400 people from Kabul over the last 24 hours, bringing America's total to approximately 37,000.
Biden stated that U.S. forces had expanded the perimeter around the airport amid fears terrorists may seek to exploit the operation by attacking Americans or Afghan civilians.
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Speaking about the US' deadline of August 31, Dr Suhail Shaheen told Sky News: 'It's a red line. President Biden announced that on 31 August they would withdraw all their military forces. So if they extend it that means they are extending occupation while there is no need for that.
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'If the US or UK were to seek additional time to continue evacuations - the answer is no. Otherwise, there would be consequences.
'It will create mistrust between us. If they are intent on continuing the occupation it will provoke a reaction.'
However, the hard deadline reignited criticism that Biden had been wrong to issue a public timetable and military experts warned the result could be rising panic around the airport among those trying to get on flights.
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