Watch live as Antony Blinken holds briefing on Afghanistan

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is holding a briefing to discuss efforts to provide safe passage out of Afghanistan for American citizens and others.

President Joe Biden announced on Tuesday that he has asked the Pentagon to create “contingency plans” in case evacuation efforts from Kabul are not completed by the 31 August deadline.

The Taliban have though, threatened “consequences” if the US don’t withdraw all troops by September.

More than 70,000 people have been evacuated from Afghanistan in the last 10 days, but thousands more still remain stranded.