'Long live Afghanistan:' Crowds in Kabul celebrate Independence Day in defiance of Taliban fighters

• Afghans took to the streets to celebrate Independence Day in defiance of the Taliban on Thursday.
• Crowds waved the national flag and marched past Taliban fighters, witnesses told CNN.
• The Taliban used the day to declare the "Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan," the name used in its past rule.

Kabul residents took to the streets to celebrate the Afghanistan's Independence Day on Thursday, waving the country's national flag in defiance of the Taliban.

The Taliban wants to use its own black and white flag as a symbol for the nation as opposed to the Afghan national flag, which is black, red, and green.

One witness who spoke with CNN said protesters marched past Taliban fighters and screamed "Long live Afghanistan." Taliban militants reportedly fired into the air in an attempt to break up the march.

The militant group used the occasion to declare the "Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan," the same name it used during its brutal regime from 1996 to 2001. The Taliban during its first stint in power implemented laws based on a strict interpretation of the Quran, enforcing the rules in a draconian, violent, and public fashion - including executions at Kabul's soccer stadium.

The Taliban has sought to rebrand itself as a more moderate entity over the past several days, vowing to bring peace to Afghanistan. But its actions have not matched its words, and the militant group's history of violence offers ample reasons to be skeptical of its claims.

During a protest against Taliban rule in Jalalabad on Wednesday, the militants opened fire and several people were killed. The day prior a Taliban spokesperson pledged no one in Afghanistan would be harmed.

Protests continued in Jalalabad into Thursday, per CNN, and the Taliban again sought to quell the demonstrations with violence.

Afghan women are particularly concerned about what life will look like with the militant group back in control. The Taliban on Tuesday said women would would have full rights "within the limits of Islam." Based on the Taliban's fundamentalist views, this could mean that women face strict limitations on issues ranging from what they wear in public to whether or not they're permitted to pursue an education.

The Taliban marched into Kabul on Sunday, after rapidly taking over major cities - often without much of a fight. For years, the militant group waged an insurgency against the US, its NATO allies, and the US-backed government. It terrorized the country via a range of tactics, including suicide bombings.

President Joe Biden has defended his decision to withdraw US troops and end the longest war in American history, despite the Taliban regaining control and the chaos that's followed. As the US pulls out and evacuations continue at the airport in Kabul, many Afghans are desperately looking for a way out of the country.

The Biden administration has faced criticism for not taking earlier steps to help vulnerable Afghans who assisted the US during the war. The Taliban has a history of targeting and executing Afghans who helped the US and its allies.

"The Taliban's rapid ascendancy across Afghanistan and takeover of Kabul should not cause us to break our promise to the Afghans who helped us operate over the past twenty years and are counting on us for assistance," a bipartisan group of 53 senators said in a letter to Biden, obtained by CNN on Thursday.