NEW DELHI: The eastern city of Jalalabad has been the site of demonstrations in Afghanistan.

The city, in Nangarhar province, was taken over by the Taliban early on Sunday morning without fighting. Its capture meant the group secured key roads connecting Afghanistan with Pakistan.

But on Wednesday people in the area were filmed marching in support of the old Afghan flag, before gunshots were reportedly fired nearby to disperse crowds.

The Taliban's newly declared Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan has so far been using a white flag with a black Shahada (statement of faith) on it. The black, red and green tricolour flag used by protesters today is seen to represent the ousted government.

Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid has said that discussions are taking place on the future national flag, with a decision to be made by the upcoming government.

The Taliban's top political leaders have arrived back in Afghanistan from Qatar where many were in exile. Taliban militants gave their first press conference on Tuesday, two days after completing their takeover of Afghanistan.

As the Taliban consolidated their hold over Kabul, international evacuations from the Afghan capital resumed as hundreds of civilians stranded at Hamid Karzai international airport left the country.

The Taliban in an official statement later said that they will allow freedom of the press and allow women to study. However, it came with a rider as the militant group said no broadcast should contradict Islamic values and it should be impartial.

The militant group sought to create a moderate face moving away from its image in the 90s when it was known as a hardline outfit. Taliban officials declared "amnesty" across Afghanistan and asked women to join its administration and urged people to get back to work.

The Taliban also declared that all their enemies would be pardoned as it drove a swift public relations campaign just days after taking over Kabul in a surprise offensive.