The Taliban has appointed Mohammad Hasan Akhund, a close aide to the group’s late founder Mullah Omar, as head of Afghanistan’s new caretaker government, weeks after it took control of the country in a rapid offensive. The list of cabinet members announced by chief spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid on Tuesday was dominated by members of the group’s old guard, with…
Category: World
Taliban Kabul airport attack kills 60 Afghans, 13 US troops
Two suicide bombers and gunmen attacked crowds of Afghans flocking to Kabul’s airport Thursday, transforming a scene of desperation into one of horror in the waning days of an airlift for those fleeing the Taliban takeover. The attacks killed at least 60 Afghans and 13 U.S. troops, Afghan and U.S. officials said. The U.S. general…
Taliban militants violently disperse rare Afghan protest
KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — Taliban militants attacked protesters Wednesday in eastern Afghanistan who dared to take down their banner and replace it with the country’s flag, killing at least one person and fueling fears about how the insurgents would govern this fractious nation. While the Taliban have insisted they will respect human rights unlike during…
Taliban sweep across Afghanistan’s south, take 4 more cities
The Taliban completed their sweep of Afghanistan’s south on Friday, taking four more provincial capitals in a lightning offensive that brought them closer to Kabul just weeks before the U.S. is set to officially end its two-decade war. In the last 24 hours, the country’s second-and third-largest cities — Herat in the west and Kandahar…
Taliban seize fifth provincial capital in Afghanistan after string of victories
The Taliban have seized the city of Taloquan in northeastern Afghanistan, marking the fifth provincial capital to fall under their control in just a matter of days, a local journalist confirmed to CNN on Monday. Taloquan, the capital of Takhar Province, is the latest in a string of victories that come as foreign forces, led…
Olympic champ Simone Biles withdraws from all-around competition
Simone Biles will not defend her Olympic title. The American gymnastics superstar withdrew from Thursday’s all-around competition to focus on her mental well-being. USA Gymnastics said in a statement on Wednesday that the 24-year-old is opting to not compete. The decision comes a day after Biles removed herself from the team final following one rotation…
Barry Diller Headed 2 Hollywood Studios. He Now Says The Movie Business Is Dead
Barry Diller made his name in the film industry as the chairman and CEO of two Hollywood studios, Paramount Pictures and what was then 20th Century Fox. Now, he is declaring the industry dead. “The movie business is over,” Diller said in an exclusive interview with NPR on the sidelines of the Allen & Company…
Cosby release infuriates survivors; lawyers hail win for Constitution
Reaction to Bill Cosby being freed from prison on Wednesday after Pennsylvania’s highest court overturned his sexual assault conviction ranged from outrage to cheers. Here are some of those voices: – “Today’s devastating decision to overturn the conviction of a man who caused so much harm, pain, and emotional trauma to so many women is…
The Secret IRS Files: Trove of Never-Before-Seen Records Reveal How the Wealthiest Avoid Income Tax
ProPublica has obtained a vast cache of IRS information showing how billionaires like Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk and Warren Buffett pay little in income tax compared to their massive wealth — sometimes, even nothing. In 2007, Jeff Bezos, then a multibillionaire and now the world’s richest man, did not pay a penny in federal income…
HACKERS GO AFTER MEAT
JBS Moves to Reopen ‘Vast Majority’ of Plants After Cyberattack JBS SA, the largest meat producer globally, has made “significant progress” to resolve the cyberattack that impacted its global operations and will have the “vast majority” of its plants operational on Wednesday. “Our systems are coming back online and we are not sparing any resources…
