welcome to newsday, reporting live from singapore, i'm karishma vaswani. the headlines. pressure builds to extend the deadline for foreign troops to leave afghanistan — but the taliban say no. that is a clear violation, one thing. secondly, about consequences, it is up to our leadership how to proceed. in the last few hours, afghan refugees have been arriving in the united states — how many more will follow? we'll have the latest from washington. also in the programme... on her visit to asia, the us vice president kamala harris pledges an enduring commitment to the region. and locked down in their own country

— just when can australians expect things to open up. it's six in the morning in singapore, and 2:30am in kabul where diplomatic pressure is building to try to extend the august the 31st deadline for foreign troops to leave afghanistan. britain, france and germany want more time to allow people to be airlifted to safety. the united states says it hasn't ruled out troops staying a little longer. but the taliban are hostile to the idea — saying it would breach a previous agreement. this report from kabul is by secunder kermani. it's crowded, filthy and baking hot. but desperate afghans keep coming to kabul airport.

so many children in such a terrible place. this woman worked alongside german forces. she has documents proving it — but no permission to travel. "i've been here with my kids for the past five days, waiting for the soldiers to look at my papers," she says. "but i can't even take two steps in this crowd." everywhere we go, people beg us for help, beg us for information. we're being just surrounded by dozens and dozens of people who are desperate to leave, showing us their documents. this chap worked with the afghan security forces. a foreign airfield. someone else who worked with foreign forces. someone else has got other documents. most of these people don't have permission to leave. some of them do and still

can't get through. everyone is desperate to get out, everyone is totally confused as to what to do. you've got an email saying that you should go? yes. you should come here? are you able to get through? no, no. with the deadline for international forces rapidly approaching, many are panicking, fearing this is their last chance to get out. taliban officials say foreign forces must leave by the end of the month. if they extend behind the 31st of august, that is a clear violation, one thing. secondly, it is up to our leadership how to proceed and what kind of decision they take. that decision will be implemented. elsewhere in kabul, there's an uneasy sense of calm. shops and some government offices are open, but the streets

are still quieter than usual, whilst banks remain closed. the taliban forces have been gathering close to panjshir, the one province yet to be captured, where fighters calling themselves the resistance are based. for now, though, the focus is on the crisis around the airport. some are managing to make it out. my family, my newborn baby... last week, we filmed this former british army interpreter and his newborn baby. yesterday, they arrived in the uk. it is fantastic, it is very good being in the uk, it is a very good feeling. but are you sad at the same time about having to leave your country? when you leave your sisters, your brothers, your mother, those things are sad, but now i am happy in the uk.

a happy ending amidst so much misery. secunder kermani, bbc news, kabul. we mentioned the presssure on the united states from other western allies to extend the deadline for evacuating afghans. this is what the german foreign minister had to say on the matter. translation: firstly, - we are talking with the us, turkey and other partners with the aim of facilitating a civil operation at kabul airport. to enable the evacuation of people beyond august 31. we will also have to continue to talk about this with the taliban, who of course have a special role to play in the operation of the airport after the withdrawal of american troops. there are discussions in the us about whether it will even be possible to fly out all american citizens in the remaining time. this is extremely questionable, and that is why they are considering extending this mission. however, this will only be the case if security assurances are given.

let's go to our correspondent nomia iqbal in washington. great to have you. linesjust coming in from reuters — saying the state dept has discussed future control of kabul airport with the taliban — what have you heard? yes, well the us administration has said that it has been in regular talks with the taliban which is extraordinary in and of itself. people want to know what have you been talking about? and one of the things that has emerged was who will control kabul airport. and he said that there is an agreement between the us and the allies, and the taliban that there should be at least a functioning airport. right now the taliban effectively controls the airport, there was no word and

we did make any more details on who they would see as controlling that airport. so not much detail in that we also don't really know who we control it beyond august 31 because as we know that is the deadline america says that it wants to meet in order to withdraw its troops. and to add another line that is come out today the defence official has told us that military planners are expecting to get some sort of decision tomorrow on whether or not that deadline will be met. it's a dilemma isn't it — the us saying it wants to extend the 31 august deadline — but the taliban saying — this isn't happening — and president biden�*s national . it's a huge dilemma. it is so unknowable. _ . it's a huge dilemma. it is so unknowable. americans - . it's a huge dilemma. it is so unknowable. americans want| . it's a huge dilemma. it is so i unknowable. americans want to . it's a huge dilemma. it is so - unknowable. americans want to get out, they want this wrapped up, they want to leave but they also know that the longer they stay the more

they are at risk. you mentioned the taliban has said that they don't want to extend beyond the deadline. they have threatened saying that there will be consequences. we don't know what those consequences will look like, afghanistan could become an even more hostile country than it already is where the taliban could basically do whatever they wanted. i think the us administration would argue that we have got 37,000 people out in the last few days and so they're optimistic that it's about seven or eight days to go before that deadline but it will get everyone out that they need to. let's zoom in on europe for this moment. european leaders have been pressuring president biden to keep the door open to this extension. with four shots expecting to be talking to joe with four shots expecting to be talking tojoe pointed about this, talking tojoe pointed about this, talk us through the issues there. the uk basically wants to allow more flights to help with the evacuation process. it's a tricky one because

the us or uk rather had about a thousand armed forces personnel on the ground, but the problem is they cannot really secure the airport unless they have us forces there with them. it's not sustainable so i imagine that the kind of conversation that they will be having as well as the other european countries. but it is tricky because joe biden wants out. we have seen the press conferences in which he has been very stern and defiant on his decision. but at the same time he wants to win over his allies. when he was elected president at that the g7 first get together over the summer he said he wants to show his allies that america is back. 0nce his allies that america is back. once a reset relations with them. so it's going to be a bit of a balancing act for him. i suspect that there will all try and work towards that august 31 deadline. excellent analysis on the evolving situation in afghanistan. you can

access more of the bbc reporting by going to our website. ally page there with all the there's a live page with all the latest developments, plus this piece on the afghan resistance group who are holed up in the panjshir valley area and vowing to fight the taliban. go to the bbc news website to find that. let's take a look at some of the stories in the headlines in the uk. the government says it's met its target of offering all 16 and 17—year—olds in england a single dose of the covid jab. more than a million young people became eligible earlier this month and the latest figures suggest around 360,000 have taken up the offer. the british meat processing association has warned it's "inevitable" food prices will increase this autumn and winter. it's blaming a lack of foreign workers, caused by changes to the uk's immigration system after brexit. the industry group said there's a risk many popular foods won't be available at christmas.

eight members of the climate change campaign group extinction rebellion have been arrested after mass protest in central london. the anti—fossil fuel protestors are fastening chairs to the ground and chaining themselves to one another to express solidarity with nations disproportionately affected by climate change. still to come a bit later in the programme... what the us vice president kamala harris has been up to on her visit to south east asia. but first. officials in the us state of tennessee say — that at least two young children, are among the more than 20 people known to have died, in flash flooding over the weekend. dozens are still missing. record rainfall of more than a0 centimetres in 2a hours — in some areas — led to roads and bridges being washed away. daniela relph reports. those living here described a wall of water coming in hard and fast. flash floods overwhelming parts of tennessee. the rain and wind tore

through communities with a ferocity few had predicted. it was a terrifying experience as residents tried to save their homes and theirfamilies. i'm trying to get them out of the door but the water is so high and it's pushing against the door that i'm having a hard time pushing to open the door to get them out, i'm holding two babies. the aftermath is a landscape strewn with floodwaters, wrecked vehicles and severely damaged homes. in many counties, there is bewilderment at how quickly the storm took hold and this remains both a recovery and a search and rescue operation with many still missing, including children. tremendous loss of life, a number of missing people on the ground, homes washed off their foundations, cars strewn around the community, it is a devastating picture of loss and heartache.

the worst hit area was humphreys county, west of nashville. here, the floodwaters rose so quickly many people just couldn't escape their homes. the plight of those living here recognised in last night's presidential address. i want to begin by expressing my deepest condolences for the sudden and tragic loss of life due to this flash flood. i know we have reached out to the community, we stand ready to offer them support. i asked the administrator to speak to governor lee of tennessee right away and we will offer any assistance they need for this terrible moment. tens of thousands of people are still without power. roads and bridges remain impassible in some places, hampering rescue efforts. there were hurricane warnings in the north—east of the united states over the weekend but it was here, further south in tennessee, where the extreme weather really hit and took lives. daniela relph, bbc news.

if you want to get in touch with me i'm on twitter — @bbckarishma you're watching newsday on the bbc. still to come on the programme... the australian's shut in — and out — of their country — as it grapples with a covid—19 outbreak. he's the first african—american to win the presidential nomination of a major party. and he accepts exactly 45 years ago to the day, the martin luther king declared "i have a dream". as darkness falls tonight, and unfamiliar light will appear in the southeastern sky. an orange glowing disc that's brighter than anything save the moon, our neighbouring planet mars.

there is no doubt that this election is an important milestone in the birth of east timor as the world's newest nation. it'll take months and billions i of dollars to repair what katrina achieved injust hours. three weeks is the longest the great clock has been off duty in 117 years. so it was with great satisfaction that clockmakerjohn vernon swung the pendulum to set the clock going again. this is newsday on the bbc. i'm in singapore. 0ur headlines. pressure builds to extend the deadline for foreign troops to leave afghanistan — but the taliban refuses. it's as afghan refugees begin arriving in the united states — there are still thousands though, at kabul airport,

desperate to leave. the taliban's swift return to power has cast something of a shadow over the united states' status as a global player. on her tour of asia, vice president kamala harris has offered reassurance of washington's commitment to the region. she's currently in singapore and will also be visiting vietnam. 0ur south east asia correspondent jonathan head has more. well, this trip by the us vice president must�*ve been planned several weeks ago as part of a salvo of visits by senior us officials to this region to demonstrate the biden administration's renewed interest in southeast asia. but it is hard to imagine they would have gone ahead with it had they known it was going to come right after the disastrous scenes that we have all witnessed in afghanistan. i mean come on one of the countries on her itinerary is vietnam, which inevitably invites unflattering comparisons with the last time the us was so humiliatingly defeated. kamala harris is relatively inexperienced in foreign policy and she is having come on this trip, to fend off questions not with the last time the us

was so humiliatingly defeated. kamala harris is relatively inexperienced in foreign policy and she is having come on this trip, to fend off questions not just about the dreadful events in afghanistan, but also about the overall reliability of the united states as an ally. now, of course she could point to the remarkably close relations today between the united states and the very same communist regime that drove it out of vietnam 46 years ago as evidence that the us can and does bounce back from its reversals. and the budget administration has made the point that getting out of the long wars in the middle east will enable it to focus more of its energy and its time on important relationships in places like the asia—pacific. but governments here are going to want to see more specifics. they are going to want to know what differentiates the biden administration from its two predecessors, the 0bama and the trump administration. both of which had some trademark asian policies, but neither of which were able to reverse this perception that us

influence in this region has been declining for many years while china's continues to rise. so what can the budget administration offer? one area that has an advantage is in cooperation on medical health care technology, pandemic preparation. the us has got a lot of goodwill here for the donations of us—made vaccines that it has made recently to help this region deal with a very difficult resurgence of covid—19. another area that president biden would like support is in so—called supply chain security. allowing big manufacturers to be less dependent on a few suppliers kamala harris will be making a policy address later today in singapore laying out the us priorities for the region. poland has said it will build a fence on its border with belarus to curb an influx of migrants. poland and fellow eu states that to any and latvia influx of migrants. poland and fellow eu states that to any and latvia have influx of migrants. poland and fellow eu states that to any and latvia have seen influx of migrants. poland and fellow eu states that to any and latvia have seen sharp influx of migrants. poland and fellow eu states that to any and latvia have seen sharp increases influx of migrants. poland and fellow eu states that to any and latvia have seen sharp increases in migrants in the middle east and asia. they said many are being flown into belarus and being pushed across

the border by belarusian authorities. belarus has denied the accusations. while much of the world begins to open up after coronavirus lockdowns — australia remains a fortress. it's almost 18 months since the country shut its borders to try and control the spread of covid—19. and with limits on how many travellers can come in — tens of thousands of australians are still effectively locked out of their own country. and with a slow vaccination roll out and the prospect of unfettered international travel is still a long way off. shaimaa khalil reports from sydney. happy memories in a time of grief. christina's mum died just a month ago in sweden. do you remember when my mum was here? yeah. and twice she was refused permission to travel for the funeral. because of australia's strict covid—19 rules about who can come in and out, christina had to watch the service online. it's weird when you see it on small screen on a phone, and i guess the transition of peace does not come.

i felt a lot of guilt, i felt like i left my brother alone. but it's also the respect of being there as her daughter... you know, it's. .. it's a level of respect that i think she should have been given. we have been hearing many stories of separation, of missed weddings and funerals. of new mums and dads struggling without family support. 0fjust wanting to give their loved ones a hug. about a third of people living in australia were born overseas, so travelling freely is an integral part of their lives. but the pandemic has changed all of that. with no real prospects for the borders reopening anytime soon. anyone who arrives here must do two weeks in hotel quarantine, but there is limited space. this may have worked well for australia during the first year of the pandemic,

but the delta strain is forcing the government to give up on it's zero covid strategy. and there are now growing calls for more international travel. and for people to quarantine at home. anyone who is fully vaccinated is going to be no significant risk to australia. ijust don't understand the conservatism around this at the moment. denying thousands and thousands of people those connections when you look at the risk level it just beggars belief. about 30% of adults in australia are fully vaccinated. nowhere near the 80% target the government set for more freedom of movement. many have decided not to wait. marissa and her family sold their house and are moving to the uk. we are leaving with a really heavy hearts. like, we have made a life year, we have a beautiful home. our daughter was born here, we really never thought we would leave. but we have not seen our families for 18 months now, and it is not at all clear

where we are going to have that opportunity again. she needs to know her grandparents. she literally thinks her grandparents live in the computer. even with sydney's outbreak, covid—19 cases and deaths remain very low compared to other countries. and despite the complaints, tight border policies are still largely popular. but even if australia has been a lucky place to be during the pandemic, that feeling of being locked in his taking a huge toll. it's grandma. in swedish it's grandma. bbc news, sydney. let's stay with coronavirus news... pfizer's two—dose covid—nineteen vaccine has received full approvalfrom the us food and drug administration — the firstjab to be licensed in the country. the vaccine was previously being given under an emergency use authorisation. us presidentjoe biden says the announcement should encourage companies to demand their employees get the jab.

today i'm calling on more companies in the private sector to step up the vaccine requirements that will reach millions more people. if you are a business leader, a nonprofit leader, a state local leader that is there waiting for fda approval i calling you now to do that, require it. in germany, tighter restrictions have come into force to access to a wide range of services such as hotels — swimming pools — hospitality and hairdressers. in most german regions access to these facilities in high infection areas will be restricted to those who have been vaccinated, tested negative or have recovered from the virus recently. the paralympics begin on tuesday and not only is para—badminton making its debut at tokyo 2020, so is india's rising star palak kohli. here's her story.

my name is palak kohli and i'm an international pa ra—badminton athlete. i have transformed my disability into a super ability. even if the world says that it's not possible, but you have to say, "it's possible and i will show that." anybody who sees me for the very first time always asks me, "what has happened to your hand?" i used to say, "by birth." when i was a child, i didn't even know what the meaning of the word by birth, but i knew that i have to say this word. i never thought of taking any sports professionally. whenever i stepped into any kind of sport, everywhere

i used to hear that it's not a cup of my tea. rising from nowhere and coming up into the top six, and qualifying for the paralympics, it's something that was a long struggle, i would say, as well. there are opportunities in our way. we just need to be positive in order to grab those opportunities and that will take you to great heights. what a remarkably inspirational story. want to give you a reminder of our top story, the taliban have warned there will be consequences if the us and its allies extend their presence in afghanistan beyond the sist presence in afghanistan beyond the

31st of august. that's it for newsday. hello there. county in northern ireland was the warmest part of the uk on monday. and over the next few days, generally it's going to be the western side of the uk that sees the highest temperatures and the best of the sunshine. the high pressure is still in charge of our weather, so essentially it is fine and dry, coming towards the north sea coast there is this cloud pushing towards northern england. eventually towards northern england. across prince of wales and eventually across prince of wales and it could produce a few spots of drizzle, some misting us over the hills. mist and fog patches in scotland or there are little lift the sunshine comes out and south of the sunshine comes out and south of the cloud will get the sunshine across more so than preserving one across more so than preserving one as across more so than preserving one as well. let's move northwards into the north and i'll commit cloudy skies here instantly taking back the temperatures. elsewhere in scotland in many places enjoying lots of the sunshine temperatures in the west

getting up to 2425 degrees. sunshine for norther ireland, higher temperatures in the west of the country. particularly as you head down towards the north midlands, lincolnshire affecting north and mid wales. south of that more sunshine and strong for the english channel south coast of england. many parts of the country at story a cloud in several areas and clouded to the northeast as well. we will see a weather front approaching there as weather front approaching there as we head into wednesday. high pressure in charge of my deal and so some stronger winds as we head into wednesday across more southern parts of england and through the english channel. still have this cloud and central areas drifting down past the woodlands, may be moving a little further south and allowing more sunshine in northern england and northern ireland and scotland away from the northeast. typical temperature is 21 degrees or so and higher temperatures again across northern ireland, western scotland and this time in cumbria. not quite as warm in yorkshire but it should be dry for day one of the third test

but more cloud at a cooler feel for day two. that's because we will have a strong wind coming in off the north sea behind this whether front which is more a band of cloud than anything else. that will stretch its way down towards wales and the southwest that cloud tending to break up with the day. stronger winds down the eastern side of scotland and particularly eastern england will feel much cooler on thursday. thousand north sea coast could be no better than 15 or 16 degrees. 0ut could be no better than 15 or 16 degrees. out to the west we will see the highest temperatures and the best of the sunshine.

this is bbc news, the headlines.

the white house says president biden will decide in the next 24 hours if the us will keep its forces in kabul past the current deadline of the 31st of august. the taliban are hostile to an extension. pfizer's two—dose covid—nineteen vaccine has received full approvalfrom the us food and drug administration — the firstjab to be licensed in the country. the vaccine had up to now, only been given emergency use authorisation. in germany, tighter restrictions have come into force to access a wide range of services. they will largely be restricted to those who have been vaccinated, tested negative or have recovered from the virus recently. poland says it'll begin erecting a fence along its border with belarus in response to a surge in migration that it says is organised by minsk. belarus denies allegations it's orchestrating the crisis in response to sanctions.