Ashraf Ghani vows to prevent further bloodshed in Afghanistan

Afghanistan's beleaguered president vowed Saturday to prevent further bloodshed, as Taliban fighters closed in on Kabul after routing his armed forces over the past 10 days.

In a recorded address to the nation -- his first since the Taliban launched their sweeping offensive -- Ashraf Ghani said he wanted to stop the violence "as a historic mission".

"I will not let the imposed war on people cause more deaths," he said, appearing sombre and sitting before an Afghan flag.

The president gave no hint he would resign or take responsibility for the calamitous military collapse, but said the armed forces could be "remobilized" and consultations were taking place to try to help end the war.

But he offered few specifics on what his administration was planning, with government control over Afghanistan all but collapsed.

Ghani's speech came as US Marines were sent in to oversee an evacuation of embassy employees and thousands of Afghans, and their families, who fear retribution for working for the United States during its 20-year occupation.

With the country's second- and third-largest cities having fallen into Taliban hands, Kabul has effectively become the besieged last stand for government forces who have offered little or no resistance elsewhere.

As the Taliban closed in on Kabul, panicked residents formed long lines outside banks, hoping to withdraw their savings. Some branches appeared to have already run of cash.