>> this is dw news, live from berlin. it is the u.s. evacuation of americans and afghanistan -- president biden says the u.s. allies may need to stay in kabul after the withdrawal deadline. the taliban ones if that happens there will be consequences. record rainfall unleashes catastrophic results in

tennessee. some people had no chance. the tokyo paralympics kickoff and over 4000 athletes taking part. covid abound. competitors hoping that the focus can stay on the sport. i am brent goff. to our viewers in pbs, -- on pbs in the united states, welcome. chaos overwhelms kabul. pressure is growing on the u.s. to extend beyond withdrawal deadline of august 31. the taliban saying if that happens, there will be consequences. >> people coming here risk their

lives, dozens going on. international military personnel complete evacuation before the final u.s. withdrawal. >> there in communication with the taliban to increase throughput and facilitate safe passage for individuals working to gain access to the airport. >> the european union and the u.k. have called for an extension to the withdrawal deadline but the taliban responded with a warning that any delay would be met with unspecified consequences. >> president biden announced that they would withdraw all of their military forces.

if they extended, that means they are extending all of this. >> the situation in the kabul airport corrupted into more violence. desperate afghans have had their families split apart or put their lives on the line to escape. one woman gave birth aboard u.s. military plane just after it touched down at a german airbase. >> we realized the baby had not delivered and it was very close to delivery. >> danger is present for those still in kabul. there have been reports of taliban carrying out a door-to-door manhunt. >> we want peace, we want peace

don't we? we have had enough of war. >> as kabul settles under taliban rule, they wonder how it will impact the lives of afghanistan residents after 20 years. >> our guest joins from kabul. are you in safety tonight? are you thinking about leaving the country? >> thank you for having me. i dided that i was not going to leave the country despite emergency plans lifting from the aiort that day and i was offered by friends and colleagues to be on that plane. i decided i did not want to leave because if all of us left, there would not be any hope left for afghanistan.

there had to be people here who could help theociety functn, help reconcile the two worlds facing each other in afghanistan. >> the telegram says it does not want to have the brain train in afghanistan. do you think there can't be some type of reconciliation in a country ruled by the taliban? >> the taliban have been away for 20 years. for 20 years there has been an image constructed of them and also the conduct of groups while in war is much different to them and the conduct when there is a time of peace. the idea is they don't know much about us and we don't know much about them. people don't trust the taliban. the taliban have an arduous task of proving that they are trustable so they will have to match their actions and words and really show that even after the troops leave, they stand b

their word and they are trying to build a better afghanistan then what was their 20 years ago under their rule. >> would you be this confident if you were a woman? >> i have constantly said that it is not unpatriotic or cowardly to leave the country. right now i enjoy a certain level of safety net that other people don't, minorities and women might want that. obviously no one should risk their lives for a cause that might not have a very high probability of succeeding. that is why those who have been given more need to give back more to the society. i feel my position of privilege a sickly enforces a higher sense of her spots ability on me. >> you wrote about members of your family.

on the other hand, you are an electorate at the meriden university. do you believe there is a taliban 2.0 that we are dealing with right now question mark -- right now? >> etiquette is too early to pass judgment on that. i believe the taliban with regards to their statements have improved compared to a when they were in power last time around. it appears they see some worth in international recnition. they are seeing- saying they want minorities and women to participate in day-to-day life there has been specific conduct by individuals in the city and i am not whitewashing anything they have done but it is just that their party really needs to appoint a government soon and they need to have a functioning society soon. we can see if they are going to live up to their words. >> what do you make of the taliban saying today that if the

u.s. forces stay beyond august 31 there will be consequences? >> with regards to the management, the blame lies on multiple sides. both sides are creating a shadow economy. the more this date is solidified, the more that people will start exploiting this. all of that creates a filthy shadow economy that should not have existed. on the other end, the taliban really needed to realize the importance of setting up an admistration, even if they can't announce our government, they need to announce a point in term ministers so that the whole function of the airport could ve gone further much better. with regards to the international community, they need to engage with the tiban

andive them viable options. if nato presidents are problem, what about non-nato nations? we d't even have aviatio management as pernod because the chief ofhe aviation authority has left the country. there were a lot of vacuums that needed to be filled. that only happens in engagement rather than sitting behind media. rather than announcing what they are likely to do. >> we appreciate your time and your insight tonight. thank you. at risk afghans are still waiting to be evacuated from kabul airport. some are already out of the country. our next report focuses on two people that worked for the german army. they and their families traveled to germany last month at their own expense. sylvia picks up their story room

there. >> these two men are too scared to show their faces. they are not afraid for their own safety but that of their loved ones in afghanistan. they worked in the northern city. the only contact they have with their native country was by phone. >> my family is really in deep tension right now. i am really concerned about them. as the taliban find them and the taliban know that i have worked with internationals, they will of course find them and see them as hostages. >> everyone knows taliban and taliban are just killing people

like butchers and we cannot believe them. >> the men along with their wives and children are safe with these -- with their families in refugee shelters. quick they should bring all our families that they left behind in afghanistan because taliban will have killed them all. >> the fact that they made it to germany is little consolation to them given the current situation. >> of course, i am here. i am safe my mind is not safe, my heart is not safe. if my family is there, it means i am there. >> they talked to their relatives in afghanistan every

day. nothing has happened to people so far. they can only hope that it stays that way. >> let's look at some of the other stories making headlines around the world. the meeting aims to increase pressure on moscow to end its occupation of the black sea peninsula. armenia's international status has been unclear since russia unilaterally annexed the territory back into any 14. the president is in stable condition after an apparent suicide attempt. she had recently been charged with suicide. the european parliament considers her to be applicable. violence broke out on the streets of portland, oregon and the northwestern u.s.. one man was arrested and several people were injured and clashes

between far-right and left wing demonstrators happened. they attacked each other with paintball guns, fireworks and bear repellent splay. portland has been a magnet for clashes between political extremists since last year. staying in the united states, devastating floods have struck tennessee, killing 22 people. around 22 others are missing. record-breaking rainfall and flash floods surging through central areas of the state, sweeping away homes and because. a local resident said this was the third and worst flooding to strike the area since 2010. >> homes, hopes and lives destroyed. a resident filmed the fast-moving floodwaters that swamped the u.s. states of tennessee. caused by record rainfall. the national weather center says one county was drenched by 43 centimeters of rain in just 24

hours. children and adults drowned and people are still missing. even the rescuers fear it might be too late to find survivors. >> given the number of fatalities we have seen so far that we are going to see smoke -- we will see mostly recovery efforts at this point. >> residents are beginning to salvage with a can of their livelihoods. >> it is a total loss. we have about six feet of water inside the restaurant. all the equipment has been washed out. we have stuff of other businesses that washed out. we totally -- it is totally destroyed. >> as local people set up makeshift food stations to help their neighbors, u.s. president joe biden promised aid. >> 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 and we stand ready to offer them support. >> federal support cannot come soon enough as devastated communities in tennessee take stock of the damage. >> i am joint now by austin westerfield. he comes from a city in the state of indiana which is four hours up the road from the rest of the flooding in tennessee. he drove down to help with the cleanup after the storms. he is online with us now. you have been hoping with the recovery all day. tell me how bad it is. >> it is really bad, it is tragic. it is not anything you can say or phone or facebook. when you see it in person, it really hits here. >> you know this area pretty well. how does this compare to past floods that have hit the tennessee valley? >> we used to go down there and ride horses at the readily in

ranch and it would've was get a little high in the lower valleys but nothing like this. this is catastrophic. >> was this predicted? were the forecasts correct? >> i think they were calling for a lot of rain but i don't think they thought they were going to get exactly what they did. >> how are the people doing tonight question mark -- tonight? >> they are all still shook up. they don't know what they need to do. they are trying to find their loved ones. they're trying to cope with the family they lost and people they cannot find. they are trying to go through and find what little bits and pieces they can. they are not ready to lean up

everything at the moment. >> nelson, when they see this type of devastation connected with the weather, do they see a connection to climate change at all? >> i really don't think so. >> why do you think that is? >> i think they have enough on their mind. everything that is happening there is just happening in the moment. >> we wish you all the best. we know you did everything you can to help the people there. there was austin westerfield joining us tonight. thank you. >> thank you. >> the united states federal drug administration has created full approval to buy the pfizer vaccine. president biden welcome to the news today, calling fda approval

the gold standard. he called on private sector companies to use the full approval to encourage more people to get vaccinated. >> calling on them to step the vaccine requirements that will reach millions more people. if you are a business leader, a nonprofit leader, state or local leader who has been waiting for full fda approval to acquire vaccinations, and calling on you to do that. >> this comes as much of the united states is in the grip of a new wave rotavirus infections. the highly contagious delta variant has helped fuel a surge in hospital admissions, especially states with low vaccination rates and high skepticism. now, some former vaccine skeptics are voicing regret after falling ill. >> this is arkansas and the american south.

mostly rural, conservative and religious. here, the republicans are strong and the vaccination rates are we. >> health care workers prepare for another day's battle at the university hospital in the capital of little rock. the enemy's name is delta. this nurse is putting in an extra shift today because there is not enough staff to care for the current wave of the critically ill patients. more and more pregnant women and children are coming in. >> everybody has regret. it is heartbreaking. every patient here that is unvaccinated and sick has regret. it is so hard to watch somebody in the last days of their life know that it is their decision they made to be in this room, in this bed and know they are probably not going to make it. >> this family was dealt a heavy personal loss.

his wife is at home, traumatized by recent events. until just recently, they were a happy family, five children, active, no fear of covid and no vaccinations. delta hit. christine was six months pregnant as they both found themselves fighting for their lives for weeks. >> i still thought she would be ok but things got worse and worse and we started really worrying and worried about the baby. at some point the baby did not make it, she was too low on oxygen. i just worried about her after that. >> it is a contentious issue across the united states. one still being fired up by the political right, media outlets, preachers, politicians while infection rates soared. >> there will be no restrictions

and no mandates in the state of florida. the delta variant was nonsense. it is nonsense now. you will not wear masks this church. you will not wea masks in this chch. i am telling you right now, don't get vaccinated. do not get vaccinated. >> many people feel unsettled. anyone can come here in little rock and get vaccinated like everywhere else in the u.s.. a vaccination is as easy to get as a cough drop. more and more people show up every day concerned about new variants. like these kids who just want to go to school again and be carefree. the loss was painful but they say if they opt to protect themselves and vaccinate,

perhaps others could be spared similar grief. >> have a world away end with ash, hundreds of sex workers are now inoculated against the coronavirus. this was supposed to happen earlier but the vaccination campaign of the largest brothel was hampered by a shortage of doses. the pandemic continues to threaten the livelihoods of many sex workers. >> the nature of her profession puts her at particular risk of contracting covid-19. she is a sex worker but she hopes getting a vaccine means getting back to work. in these last two years, we have almost gone out of work. there are days when we had to start. people die of covid-19 around the world and we nearly died of hunger. we learned what hunger is. the women areaking part in a one-day inocation drive. they were to nearby at the largest brothel.

it is one of a few muslim majority nations where prostitution is legal. health officials started giving at the astrazeneca vaccine early this year until supplies ran out and now they -- bangladesh has received millions of the chinese may doses through the who initiative. >> we have almost 700 to 800 sex workers in the hotel. now we have prepared for 400 more. 400 more jabs today. >> at 26, she makes the cut. many more at the brothel are

underage. they remain unvaccinated. >> here is a look at some of the other heaines of th day. the new zealand prime minister has announced an extensioto a nationwide coronavirus lockdown until friday. the recent outbreak in the country has grown to 107 cases following six months without any transmissions. around 3% of the population has been tested in recent days. central china has been hit with ras that dame to buildings. rainstorms triggered flooding in shaji province over the weekend. this follows floods that killed more than 300 people in nearby region last month. the tokyo paralympic's kickoff on tuesday after a one-year delay due to the pandemic. they will run two weeks despite the covid challenges, athletes are about to get a chance to compete at the highest levels of

their sports. >> the tokyo para-limits will feature around 4400 athletes from some 160 countries and territories. they will take part in 22 sports with badminton and taekwondo making their paralympic debut this year. this is the pinnacle of their athletic careers. >> it was completely life-changing. the lipids helped me to overcome my visibility. for the athletes, it is the biggest motivation you can have. >> while some sports welcome athletes with any of the 10 impairments, others are restricted to only certain of the 10. athletes with a particular disability are grouped in classes due to the degree of

their activity limitation. it is similar to the way classes in boxing. because of covid-19, there will be no spectators this year because -- >> i was a little sad as well because i feed off of an audience. i love to perform in front of people. i like showing people what i can do. i not scared of sitting in front of 10,000 people and shooting the arrow into the target because when people see without -- a man without an arm shooting the bow, they go crazy. >> the athletes insist they do not want to be considered special because -- >> i am getting lucky. >> we are not special.

that is not what is like. >> we are definitely ordinary. >> we are human. >> we will be watching. you are watching dw news. after a short break, i will be back to take you through the day. we will be right back.

♪ >> welcome to olymliuve from pas -- live from paris. these are the news headlines. warning of dire consequences of the taliban said there will be no extension to the august 31 deadline for evacuations. this comes despite request from the u.s. and france that the deadline be extended. with eight days to go before the deadline to withdraw it, the situation in kabul airport becomes increasingly desperate. the coalition soldier apparently wanted, shot in the -- wounded shot, arm. people struck being corralled by the taliban.