The Taliban have taken control of Afghanistan in just over a week.

Deadly chaos at Kabul airport has erupted as locals attempt to flee the country, and Western countries scramble to evacuate their personnel.

Scott Morrison has ordered a military evacuation for Australians and Afghans who once served in the ADF, but is it too late now to help those who assisted us for so many years?

The situation is particularly terrifying for women and children, with Taliban directives demanding lists of girls over the age of 15 for “marriage”. The gains for Afghan women made in education, political participation and employment are now under grave threat.

With a major humanitarian disaster unfolding, should Australia immediately increase our uptake of Afghan refugees? And what did we actually achieve for the people of Afghanistan during the 20 year mission?

Meanwhile back home, states and territories are extending and tightening lockdowns. Melbourne and the ACT are facing two more weeks in lockdown and NSW continues to see high case numbers and more deaths. And greater Darwin and Katherine are both in snap three-day shutdowns. So where does this leave national cabinet’s COVID exit plan?

Joining David Speers on the panel:

Darren Chester, Nationals Member for Gippsland
Bob Carr, Former Labor Foreign Minister 
Diana Sayed, CEO, Australian Muslim Women’s Centre for Human Rights
Lydia Khalil, International Security Expert 
Daniel Keighran, Afghanistan Veteran and Victoria Cross recipient
Yalda Hakim, BBC Host and correspondent
 
Please submit a question via our website by 9am Thursday for the chance to ask the panel.

Scroll down to watch Thursday's toughest question asked by Luke Baker, who asked about the messaging of vaccinations being our only way out of continuous lockdowns. 👇

Watch Q+A Thursday at 8.30pm on ABC TV, streamed live 8.30pm AEST on ABC iview or on our website.