Associated Press,
by
Kathy Gannon
Original Article
Posted by
earlybird
—
8/27/2021 4:55:38 PM
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BAGRAM, Afghanistan — The U.S. left Afghanistan’s Bagram Airfield after nearly 20 years by shutting off the electricity and slipping away in the night without notifying the base’s new Afghan commander, who discovered the Americans’ departure more than two hours after they left, Afghan military officials said.(snip)“We (heard) some rumor that the Americans had left Bagram ... and finally by seven o’clock in the morning, we understood that it was confirmed that they had already left Bagram,” Gen. Mir Asadullah Kohistani, Bagram’s new commander said.(snip) it was invaded by a small army of looters, who ransacked barrack after barrack and rummaged through giant storage tents before being evicted, according
Epoch Times,
by
Omid Ghoreishi
Original Article
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earlybird
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8/27/2021 3:18:56 PM
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Samples from early Wuhan COVID-19 patients show the presence of genetically modified Henipah virus, an American scientist has found.
Henipah was one of the two types of viruses sent to China by Chinese-born scientists from a Canadian laboratory at the centre of a controversy over the firing of the scientists and collaboration with Chinese military researchers. It is not clear whether the virus found in the Chinese samples is related to the virus samples sent by the Canadian lab, which were shipped in late March 2019.
The finding was confirmed for The Epoch Times by another qualified scientist.
Washington Post,
by
Hannah Allam
&
Souad Mekhennet
Original Article
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earlybird
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8/27/2021 2:25:56 PM
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For months, terrorism analysts warned that Islamic State-linked militants in Afghanistan would try to turn the Biden administration’s exit into a bloody spectacle.
On Thursday in Kabul, those predictions were realized.
ISIS-Khorasan, the Islamic State’s Afghanistan and Pakistan arm, issued a statement claiming responsibility for the suicide bombing attack that killed 13 U.S. service members and dozens of Afghans in an attack outside the airport.(snip)In Afghanistan, with the U.S.-backed government gone from power, ISIS-K can now focus on undermining its other local enemy, the Taliban, which analysts said will be hard-pressed to stave off attacks as it struggles to secure and govern a war-weary nation.
New York Times,
by
Adam Liptak
Original Article
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earlybird
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8/26/2021 11:43:57 PM
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The Supreme Court on Thursday rejected the Biden administration’s latest moratorium on evictions, ending a political and legal dispute during a public health crisis in which the administration’s shifting positions had subjected it to criticism from adversaries and allies alike.
The court issued an eight-page majority opinion, an unusual move (snip)
The decision puts hundreds of thousands of tenants at risk of losing shelter, while the administration struggles to speed the flow of billions of dollars in federal funding to people who are behind in rent because of the coronavirus pandemic(snip)Only about $5.1 billion of the $46.5 billion in aid had been disbursed by the end of July,
American Greatness,
by
Victor Davis Hanson
Original Article
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earlybird
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8/26/2021 3:17:59 PM
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For nearly two years, Americans have engaged in a great woke experiment of cannibalizing themselves. American civilization has invested massive labor, capital, and time in an effort constantly to flagellate itself for not being perfect.
Yet neither America’s resilience nor its resources are infinite. We are now beginning to see the consequences of what happens when premodern tribalism absorbs Americans.
There are concrete consequences when ideology governs policy or when we take for granted the basics of life to pursue its trappings.
Who cares whether the blow-dried media is woke if it cannot report the truth and keep politicians honest?
Epoch Times,
by
Zachary Stieber
Original Article
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earlybird
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8/26/2021 2:53:08 PM
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Multiple U.S. troops were killed by the bombings in Kabul, Afghanistan, on Thursday.
“We can confirm that a number of U.S. service members were killed in today’s complex attack at Kabul airport,” Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said in a statement.
Multiple others are being treated for wounds, he added.
“We also know that a number of Afghans fell victim to this heinous attack,” Kirby said. “our thoughts and prayers go out to the loved ones and teammates of all those killed and injured.”
Associated Press,
by
Staff
Original Article
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earlybird
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8/26/2021 12:06:31 PM
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SACRAMENTO — The California Department of Housing and Community Development did not properly distribute federal relief funds meant to help homeless residents during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the mismanagement was so prolonged that local organizations might lose the money because of missed deadlines, auditors said Tuesday.
After receiving $316 million under the federal CARES Act to reduce the effect of COVID-19 on unhoused people, the department “did not take critical steps to ensure those funds promptly benefited that population,” (snip)
The department was in charge of distributing the funds to local groups that collaborate on homeless services and prevention under the so-called continuum of care. It took so long to finalize contracts
The Guardian [UK],
by
Amelia Gentleman
&
Lisa O'carroll
Original Article
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earlybird
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8/26/2021 11:16:00 AM
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For the past four days, Nangyalai, a 42-year-old minicab driver from south London, has been queueing with his wife and 11-month-old baby outside the Baron hotel on the edge of Kabul airport, trying to get close enough to the entrance gate to show guards his British passport.
There is a sign by the gate stating “British passport holders only”. Inside the hotel, officials are working to grant evacuation visas for thousands of UK nationals and Afghan citizens who have worked for British organisations. Diplomatic staff say they are “processing hundreds every hour”, but there is a growing sense of despair among the crowds who have been waiting outside since the start
Epoch Times,
by
Zachary Stieber
Original Article
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earlybird
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8/25/2021 11:00:28 PM
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U.S. troops have not rescued any Americans in Afghanistan outside of Kabul, though they have the capability to do so, the Pentagon said Wednesday.
Only three rescue missions have been conducted by American soldiers since the Taliban took over the country, according to military officials. But all three took place within Kabul, Pentagon spokesman John Kirby told reporters in Washington.
“Could it be done outside Kabul, if needed? We have the capability,” he said.
“I’m not suggesting that it would be well outside of Kabul. I’m not suggesting that it would be throughout the whole countryside,” he added later. “When I said ‘outside Kabul,’ I’m talking about relatively close by.
Conservative Treehouse,
by
Sundance
Original Article
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earlybird
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8/25/2021 10:42:32 PM
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The U.S. and U.K. officials are warning American and British citizens to leave the vicinity of the Kabul airport immediately. [BBC Alert Here – and – State Dept. Alert Here].
The State Department warning reads:
“Because of security threats outside the gates of Kabul airport, we are advising U.S. citizens to avoid traveling to the airport and to avoid airport gates at this time unless you receive individual instructions from a U.S. government representative (Snip)
U.S. citizens who are at the Abbey Gate, East Gate, or North Gate now should leave immediately.” (link)
BBC News,
by
Staff
Original Article
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earlybird
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8/25/2021 3:42:11 PM
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The Taliban were removed from power in Afghanistan by US-led forces in 2001, but the group has seized control of the country once again following a rapid offensive.
The capital, Kabul, was the last major city to fall to the offensive that began months ago but accelerated as the hardline Islamists gained control of territories.
The group entered direct talks with the US back in 2018, and in February 2020 the two sides struck a peace deal that committed the US to withdrawal and the Taliban to preventing attacks on US forces. Other promises included not allowing al-Qaeda or other militants to operate in areas it controlled and proceeding with national peace
The Federalist,
by
Jordan Davidson
Original Article
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earlybird
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8/25/2021 1:56:29 PM
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About only 5 percent of the people the United States has evacuated from Afghanistan are Americans seeking safe passage home.
More than 82,300 have been airlifted from Kabul since the government’s collapse nearly two weeks ago, but the Pentagon says that, as of Wednesday, only 4,400 Americans were rescued in those evacuation operations.(tweet) (snip)The State Department also confirmed that a majority of the people whisked away on flights from Kabul are not U.S. citizens.
Comments:
All that money has just been sitting there while they ask for more.