forces and allied forces in afghanistan.hen i announced our drawdown in april, i said we would be out by september. we are on track to meet that target. excuse me. our military mission in afghanistan will conclude on august 31. the drawdown is proceeding in a secure and orderly way, prioritizing the safety of our troops as they depart. our military commanders advised me that once i made the decision to end the war, we need to do it swiftly to conduct the main elements of the drawdown. in this context, speed is safety. thanks to the way in which we have managed our withdrawal, no one u.s. forces or any forces have been lost. conducting our drawdown differently would have come with an increased risk of safety to our personnel. to me, those risks were unacceptable. there was never any doubt our military performed this task efficiently and with the highest level of professionalism. that is what they do. the same is true of our nato allies and partners who we are supporting and are supporting us as well as they conclude. i want t

troops from afghanistan. >> u.s. forces and allied forces in afghanistan. when they announced the withdrawal in april, i said be out by september and we are on track to meet that target. military mission in afghanistan will conclude august 31 the drawdown after a secure and orderly way for the safety of our troops depart. military commanders advised me to make the decision to end the war, we need to move swiftly to conduct main elements of the straw that. context, speed is safety and thanks to the way in which we manage our withdrawal, no one u.s. forces or any forces have been lost. conducting our drawdown differently would certainly have come with an increased risk of safety to our personnel. to me, the risks were unacceptable. there was never any doubt military performed for task efficiently and with the highest level of professionalism. that's what they do and the same is true of nato allies and partners we are supporting they are supporting us as well as they conclude their attribute. i want to be clear, they continue to the end of august, retain perso

we did not go to afghanistan to nation build. it is the right and the responsibility of the afghan people alone to decide their future and how they want to run their country. together, with our nato allies and partners, we have trained and equipped over -- nearly three hundred thousand current serving members of the afghan security force. hundreds of thousands more afghan national defense security forces trained over the last two decades. we provided our afghan partners with all the tools, trained equipment of any modern military. we provided advanced weaponry. we are going to continue to provide funding and equipment and will ensure they have the capacity to maintain their air force. most critically as i stressed in my meeting two weeks ago, afghan leaders have to come together. drive toward a future that the afghan people want and they deserve. in our meeting, i also assured that u.s. support for the people of afghanistan will indoor. we will continue to provide civilian and humanitarian assistance including speaking out for th

forces and allied forces in afghanistan. when i announced our drawdown in april i said we would be out by september, and we are on track to meet that target. excuse me. our military mission in afghanistan will conclude on august 31st. the drawdown is proceeding in a secure and orderly way for our ties and the safety of our troops as they depart. our military commanders advised me once i made the decision to end the war we needed to move swiftly to conduct the main elements of the drawdown. in this context, speed is safety. thanks to the way in which we have manage d our withdrawal, n one, no u.s. forces or any forces have been lost. conducting our drawdown differently would have certainly come with an increased risk of safety to our personnel. to me, those risks were unacceptable and there was never any doubt that our military performed this task efficiently and with the highest level of professionalism. that's what they do. the same is true of our nato allies and partners who have supported -- we are supporting and supporti

and we will begin relocation flights for afghanistan applicants and theirfamilies who flights for afghanistanlies who choose to leave. we have a point person on the state department led task force coordinating all these efforts. but our message to those in man and man is clear, there is a home for you in the united states if you so choose and we will stand with you just as you stay with us. when we made the decision to end the us military involvement in afghanistan, ijudged that it was not international interest of the united states of america to continue fighting this war indefinitely. i made the decision with clear eyes. and i am briefed on the battlefield updates. for those that argue that we should stay for six more months when just one more year, i asked him to consider the lessons of recent history. in 2011, the nato allies and partners agreed with and our combat mission in 2014. in 2014, some argued one more year. so we kept fighting. we kept taking casualties. in 2015, the same. and on and on. nearly 20 years of experience has shown us. the current security situation only confirms tha

withdrawal from afghanistan. let me give the viewers a phone line to call anything to join this conversation with michael hanlon of the brookings institution this morning. if you support the withdrawal (202)748-8000. ifhd you oppose it withdrawal (202)748-8001. i do want to hear the storieshe and the thoughts afghan war veterans (202)748-8002 is a special line he set aside for afghan war veterans would you go ahead and start calling and as we show this picture from the wall street journal this morning. army general scott miller on the left the top u.s. commander ending over the reins of the afghan operation to marine general frank mackenzie. michael o'hanlon, what can the united states do now? what does it mean to support afghanistan from over the horizon. what is that allow us to do?nk >> will john first of all thank you for having a special line for afghan veterans very think you want to join me in thanking all of them. this is a moment where the u.s. role is coming to an end. we have not managed at the kind of

this is not an easy time for afghanistan.ke i said earlier, none of the gains the taliban have made are irreversible. sure, taking territory militarily is one issue, but keeping it is not going to be an easy thing for the taliban. and we are working as we speak right now to consolidate some of our security forces in order to retake some of those strategic locations that will have consequences for our security forces, for our economy, for our people. ok, but we're talking about... we're talking about a landlocked country which is utterly reliant on the supply routes, supply routes like the wesh crossing in spin boldak, which is now in taliban hands. we still have many of the supply routes still open, so, yes, we have lost some and that's unfortunate and we need to take them back. but that doesn't mean everything is cut—off. we still have our major supply route to the north still open. we still have a major supply route to the east. 0k. you make the point that there were only 2,500 us troops, but there were 16,000 us contractor

we currently have just 600 troops in afghanistan. just about all of them were always expected to stay past the official withdrawal date to provide security at the u.s. embassy in kabul and at the kabul international airport. the only personnel left to withdrawal is general scott miller, and a handful of his staff. there is a handful more of security and logistics forces that the pentagon sent in temporarily to aid in the withdrawal. they will also depart. but out of the 2500 or so that president biden started out with, all but a handful are gone. host: when it comes to the decision, did the tell leaders at the pentagon support this position? guest: in the beginning of present biden's term, when it was not clear if he was going to pull out of afghanistan are not come i think that top generals saw them disagree with the logic behind withdrawing troops. i think we saw the market that there was a lot of evidence that the country will now collapse and the afghan security forces are not strong enough to hold off the out -- the taliban. so

and anything else related to afghanistan to afghanistan, again, let's face it.so it's up to the taliban. and that is a very, very pleased to be. to the broader question, i think it is crucial that we find a way to do the right thing [inaudible] we have a moral obligation here. it's also [inaudible] our national security. it is a truly global situation we face out there. what happens in one place has impact [inaudible] the world is watching to see what we do. we will be in future conflict. those conflicts are going to be kind of messy, complicated things that we've seen in iraq and afghanistan. we'll will have an emergent an urgent need for interpreters, not just to translate languages, but to translate cultures. the foreign services have always known this. fsns -- foreign service nationals -- around the world have been the backbone of our embassies. we could not function without them. the military is no learning, and that is a very good thing. if we do the right [inaudible] after this afghan experience, we are seen to be unwilling or ineffective or both and the

withdrawal from afghanistan with the deadline for all american service members to leave afghanistan by september 11th. the central command says that the drawdown is more than 90% complete now, but as the u.s. leaves, while the taliban for the right grow. congresswoman nancy mase joins us now a member of the veterans affairs committee, and the surge in afghanistan as the u.s. continues to withdraw congresswoman and what we expect to hear from president biden bottom of this hour as he speaks from the white house is a diplomatic solution, he is expected to pitch, how do you see this going so far, and what is your criticism of the white house with this withdrawal? >> i want to praise the administration for the withdrawal in afghanistan, because this was a policy that president trump supported. i came from a family of veterans, and serving to date that get deployed frequently, one of the things that i think it's a forgotten fact and figure in the troop withdrawal is that we have the department of defense has 16,000 contractors still in afghanistan, and they will remain there. 634 of those a

al qaeda was in afghanistan. taliban was in afghanistan.hey used to kill every single person for no reason. that's why i joined with the u.s. army, to bring peace and prosperity for my country. that's why i joined with the troops. in the beginning of 2004, i start with the army, just graduated from high school. i went to college for a month and i decided, no, let's see the troops. they had left their families and their country and were here to help my country. that's why i started working with the trooms. david: that's a powerful story. i'm going to ask colonel miska to put that in perspective for us. you worked extensively with interpreters who served in iraq . you think that we as general petraeus said have a moral obligation now, as this war is ending, to do everything we can to get these interpreters who risked their lives to safety? colonel miska: thank you, david. absolutely. the smile that comes to my face when i see people like fraidoon who served alongside of our soldiers in afghanistan safe here in the united states and not moving

troops in afghanistan. for the past several years many of us have expressed grave concerns about the challenges our allies face in navigating the special immigrant visa process. it currently takes an average of three years to complete the process, which includes numerous forms. applications, detailed documentary requirements, lengthy criminal background, and national security checks. this bill makes important changes to streamline the application without compromising the national security interests or the integrity of the program. i think back when we voted after 9/11 and i don't think any of us, i'll certainly speebling for myself, believed -- speak for myself, believed we were starting a 20 year war, the longest war in america's history. during that war afghans stepped forward to serve beside our brave military. and i'm proud that veterans in this congress, both republicans and democrats, have stepped forward to work together to make sure that this bill moves forward so that we can honor our commitment. a

troops in afghanistan. for the past several years many of us have expressed grave concerns about the challenges our allies face in navigating the special immigrant visa process. it currently takes an average of three years to complete the process, which includes numerous forms. applications, detailed documentary requirements, lengthy criminal background, and national security checks. this bill makes important changes to streamline the application without compromising the national security interests or the integrity of the program. i think back when we voted after 9/11 and i don't think any of us, i'll certainly speebling for myself, believed -- speak for myself, believed we were starting a 20 year war, the longest war in america's history. during that war afghans stepped forward to serve beside our brave military. and i'm proud that veterans in this congress, both republicans and democrats, have stepped forward to work together to make sure that this bill moves forward so that we can honor our commitment. a

this is the society in afghanistan. our commitment, we have to figure out what is next and it most definitely cannot be to leave them printed. >> ambassador jacobs, i love to bring you into this. >> yes, from the last set of comments, sounds like there are a good number of people who do not want to leave afghanistan who want to stay there and create the society they envision a that is more diverse and certainly for the women and girls. for the options for meetings, we have the process that we have heard a lot today about how complicated that is. other options might be and of course this depends on environment and you could establish in the country refugee program. the telematics are being charged, that could be difficult. but that is an option for identifying people who are being persecuted. and then joe mentioned, humanitarian poll i that would be another option pretty the department of homeland security. i would say that traditionally they have not been used to move large people. usually something that is used sparing

forces and allied forces in afghanistan. when i announced the drawdown in april, i said that we would be out by september. and we are on track to meet that target. excuse me. our military mission in afghanistan is going to conclude on august 31st, and the drawdown is proceeding in a secure and orderly way, prioritizing the safety of the troops as they depart. our military commanders advise me that once i made the decision to end the war, we needed to move swiftly to conduct the main elements of the drawdown. in this context, speed is safety. than tox way in which we have managed the withdraw, no one, no one u.s. forces or any forces have been lost. conducting our drawdown differently would have certainly come with increased risk of safety to our personnel. to me, those risks were unacceptable, and there was never any doubt that the military perform this task efficiently and with the highest level of professionalism. that is what they do. and the same is true of the nato allies and partners that we are supporting and supporti

is that a good outcome for afghanistan? [10.5s] -- for afghanistan?ghanistan is that if there is a political settlement which is inclusive, so they form some sort of a government that that includes all sorts of different factions there. obviously taliban part of that government. the worst situation in afghanistan would be if there's a civil war and a protracted civil war. and from pakistan's point of view, that is the worst case scenario, because we then, we have, we face two scenarios. one refugee problem: already pakistan is hosting over three -- 3 million afghan refugees. and what we fear is that a protracted civil war would be more refugees. and, you know, economic situation is not such that we can we can have another influx. secondly, the worry is that the civil war will flow into pakistan because, you know, the taliban are basically ethnic pashtuns. now they're more pashtuns on either side of the border than in afghanistan. and so the worry is that if this goes on, the pashtuns on our side will be drawn into it. so that -- that is the last thing

objective still needs to be an afghanistan at peace, an afghanistan that reflects diversity of its people , an afghanistan that can ideally bring elements from the taliban, the non-taliban forces that make up the government in kabul, women, pro-democracy advocates and all others living together peacefully within the framework. if we can get there, what should come next? we're going to grapple with some of these problems today. but there are very important things we can do for tens of thousands of afghans who we know are in danger because they worked with us very closely. >> senator shaheen, you have been very active and vocal, thank you very much. there has been a lot of energy on capitol hill in the last couple months. could you walk us through your thinking on how to proceed and the current activity in congress? >> yes. as ambassador wayne says, this is about the credibility of the united states, and also what should be done on the humanitarian -- we promised to make sure they were not threatened and are not slaughtered by the taliban as the taliban expands their include -- influence th

forces and allied forces in afghanistan. when i announced our draw down in april, i said we would be out by september. and we're on track to meet that target. our military mission in afghanistan will conclude on august 31st. the draw down is proceeding in a secure and orderly way, prioritizing the safety of our troops as they depart. our military commanders advised me that once i made the decision to end the war, we needed to move swiftly to conduct the main elements of the draw down. and in this context, speed is safety, and thanks to the way in which we have managed our draw, no one, no one u.s. forces or any forces have been lost. conducting our draw down differently would have certainly come with an increased risk to our safety personnel. to me, those risks were unacceptable. and there was never any doubt that our military performed this task efficiently, and with the highest level of professionalism. that's what they do, and the same is true of our nato allies, and partners, we have supporting and supporting us as well

host: do you see afghanistan becoming a safe haven? >> i highly doubt that the biden administration would commit suicide by reversing their decision. there is going to be escalated violence, there is always room for different groups to operate, it's going to spill over onto neighboring regions. again, the taliban have close familial ties with groups like al qaeda, insurgency has been fluid in its nature, fighters have been fighting and have allegiances to groups. that means the same fighters, and you can see this from prisoners. the idea is it is difficult to distinguish between them, especially during an armed conflict of this escalation. it's going to be difficult to stay true. host: the u.s. involvement was launched with widespread international support, but over the years it became popular. what would you say is the legacy of america's involvement in afghanistan? >> it was unfair because it created pockets of civilization. the united states catastrophically failed in making sure there was good governance within afghanistan, either

she was supportive of troops in afghanistan.ne of the reasons why it is because she saw the progress that can be made for young girls and women in afghanistan is a believer will have that society changed. sadly, i'm afraid afghan women and girls are going to suffer harm. >> is it a mistake? >> i think it is. the consequences will be unbelievably bad. i am sad. laura and i spend a lot of time with afghan women. they are scared. i think about all the interpreters and people who helped u.s. and nato troops. it seems like they will be left behind to be slaughtered by these pharaoh -- very brutal people. it breaks my heart. anchor: he was speaking in an exclusive interview with our washington euro chief. -- bureau chief. it is unusual for a former u.s. president to talk publicly about the decisions of a sitting president. but that is what george w. bush did when he sat down to talk you. give us a sense of how he really feels about this. reporter: it is important to understand that this interview was conducted because of angela merkel

you know, afghanistan has a deputy of defense. this will be reversed the more the taliban is able to gain control of this country. not only that, this is going to be so dire for afghan who's are forced to leave the country. already this year about 205,000 afghans have been displaced. 50,000 in recent days. and many of them are going to flee for iran, pakistan, europe. there are already three million registered afghan refugees worldwide. that is one in ten of all refugees. this is situation is only going to get worse. i think the world will look to the united states to help out to be able to fund the u.n. refugee agency and to be able to ask other countries including those in central asia to try to house them, try to help them, to repatriate them. >> this will raise questions in the middle of a global pandemic. thank you for joining us this hour. greatly appreciate it. >>> up next, new developments in the assassination of haiti's president. four suspects dead. a manhunt underway. esident. four suspects dead a manhunt underway 's co

you've got 34 provincial capitals in afghanistan. none of them have been seized as of today by the taliban. although they are putting pressure on the outskirts. seventeen of them in fact. but they try to do is isolate the major population centers. they try to do the same thing to cobble. to speak to the order of magnitude, a significant amount of territory has been seized by the taliban so the momentum appears to be strategic and sort of with the taliban. the afghan security forces are consolidating so part of this is they are consolidating because they are taking the approach and most of the population lives in the provincial capitals so right now as we speak they are adjusting forces to consolidate into the capital in cobble and it remains to be seen. we will find out the levels of violence whether it will go up or stay the same and there's a possibility to negotiate, there's a possibility of a takeover or any number of other scenarios, breakdowns and all kinds of things. we are monitoring very closely. i don't think the endgame is

withdraws from afghanistan. we discuss an uncertain future with the pakistani prime minister, imran khan. >> the u.s. has really messed it up in afghanistan. you see, first of all, they tried to look for a military solution in afghanistan when there never was one. >> woodruff: and, the "weight of the world"-- gymnast simone bilesteps aside saying she is not in a good place to compete. what it means for high-performing athletes to confront mental challenges. all that and more on tonight's pbs newshour. >> major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: >> a raymond james financial advisor tailors advice to help you live your life. life, well-planned. of everything, our u.s.-based customer service team is here to find a plan that fits you. to learn more, go to consumercellular.tv >> the john s. and james l. knight foundation. fostering informed and engaged communities. more at kf.org. >> and with the ongoing support of these institutions: and individuals. >> this program was made possible by the corporati

in afghanistan. i want to emphasize repeatedly, and i have said this before, a negative outcome, taliban takeover, is not a foregone conclusion. we will continue to monitor the situation closely and make adjustments as necessary. additionally, we will maintain the capability of self-defense. we possess the military means and have several options at our disposal to protect our force in afghanistan and throughout the region. if needed, the uss ronald reagan is on station. a package of long-range bombers, additional fighter-bombers, and troop formations are postured to quickly respond if necessary and directed. further, we will always protect our nation. we maintain an agile, counterterrorism capability that is effective now to detect and address any terrorism threat to the united states. in addition to our mission in afghanistan, we continue to defend this country from all kinds of other threats. we are monitoring russia, north korea, iran, we maintain strategic deterrence for china. the department of

. end of britain's commitment to afghanistan-— afghanistan. afu han afghanistan. millions more afghan children _ afghanistan. millions more afghan children including l afghanistan. millions more i afghan children including girls are now in school. after 9/11, the government also says the world is now safer. the legacy of the last 20 years. but the afghan security forces are now on the run and taliban already controlled nearly half of the country. a57 british troops lost their lives, most here in helmand. 12 years ago was one of the bloodiest. these are five soldiers who went out on patrol and never came home. mothers are still asking why. tell me what we achieved? i would like to see with my eyes, but did we achieve? what was the sacrifice for because it is too high a price to pay. we had five killed _ too high a price to pay. we had five killed and _ too high a price to pay. we had five killed and 35 _ too high a price to pay. we had five killed and 35 wounded, - five killed and 35 wounded, from — five killed and 35 wounded, from the company

it's not for afghanistan.: joining us now for more is retired brigadier general mark, who served as assistant secretary of state military affairs. thank you for being with us. is president biden washing his hands of afghanistan completely when he sayse didn't go there to nation build? guest: first of all i would remind everybody that when president obama was elected, vice president biden along with him said this is the war we have to win. they did not do that. is he washing his hands of it? i think his administration will say no. but we're going to increase our humanitarian aid. but it seems to the soldiers on the ground that they are being abandoned. laura: if kabul falls, could the u.s. re-think its decision, or what can it really do, providing air support from the uae? guest: we have got a sategy now to -- [indiscernible] that would be air support, intelligence support provided from the ground. kabul probably not be threatened for quite some time. i think everyone be surprised if that happened, unless the a

in afghanistan. and i want to emphasize and i said this before, a negative, a taliban take over is not a foregone conclusion. we will monitor the situation. we are going to maintain the capability of self-defense. we possess the military means and have several options to protect our forces in afghanistan and throughout the region. in centcom, the uss ronald reagan is on station. and additional fighter bombers are ready to quickly respond if necessary and directed. we will preekt our nation. we maintain a counterterrorism capability that is set up to detect and address any terrorism threat to the united states. in addition to our mission in afghanistan, we continue to defend this country from all kinds of other threats from russia, north korea and iran while maintaining deterrence to safeguard our peace. we are making sure there is no and keep a watchful eye on haiti and cuba. and i want to recognize the great efforts of our national guard and active duty soldiers that are fighting in wildfires in pac

x the history of afghanistan. -- that is the history of afghanistan. think we have spent enough blood and treasure. it's time to think of the poor soldiers that are suffering and go over to her after tour. host: that's kenneth. one more bit from president biden yesterday during the question-and-answer session, talking about what could happen with oppose withdrawal from afghanistan. talking to reporters about the u.s. strategy on that front. here's the president. [video clip] >> will the united states be responsible for the loss of afghan civilian lives that could happen? present biden: no. no, no, no. it's up to the people of afghanistan to decide on what government they want. not us to impose the government on them. no countries ever been able to do that. keep in mind, as a student of history, as i'm sure you are, never has afghanistan been a united country. not in all of its history. nodded all of its history. >> is this a mission accomplished moment? 5 -- present biden: no, there's no mission accomplished. we got osama bin laden, terrorism is not em

afghanistan stay. there's going to be a afghanistan stay.y. there's going to be a huge exodus because - afghanistan stay. there's going to be a huge exodus because of- afghanistan stay. there's going to be a huge exodus because of the. be a huge exodus because of the taliban — be a huge exodus because of the taliban. , ~ ., , ., be a huge exodus because of the taliban. , ~ ., ., taliban. does afghanistan have enou:h taliban. does afghanistan have enough troops? _ taliban. does afghanistan have enough troops? we _ taliban. does afghanistan have enough troops? we have - taliban. does afghanistan have enough troops? we have more| taliban. does afghanistan have - enough troops? we have more than enou~h, enough troops? we have more than enough. over— enough troops? we have more than enough, over 300,000, _ enough troops? we have more than enough, over 300,000, but - enough troops? we have more than enough, over 300,000, but we - enough troops? we have more than| enough, over 300,000, but we still need _ enough, over 300,000, but we still need the

nato's military mission in afghanistan is now all but over.ding britain, invaded the country in 2001, following the september 11th attacks. two decades later, the last of the troops are leaving, save around a thousand that will provide security. but as the us withdraws, the taliban is resurgent — and it's warned that if any international forces including contractors remain in afghanistan, they will be treated as an occupying force. from kabul, yogita limaye reports. afghan soldiers now managing what used to be america's biggest base. international forces making a quiet, hasty retreat. gains made here over 20 years in threat of being lost. people have voted in elections. once repressed by the taliban, afghan women are in school and work. for this woman, an mp, fears the taliban will be back in power. the women are finished here. it would be like black days for afghan women. notjust women, all the people. there won't be any rights, any freedom, any life here. how do you view international forces leaving afghanistan at this time? they are leaving

let me talk about where we are on afghanistan. i am proud of the professionalism our forces have displayed. power drawdown continues in a safe and orderly manner and we are on track to finish by the end of august. the president has made a decision that we are going to get it done right and we have four ongoing key tasks. we remain committed to protecting our diplomatic presence in afghanistan at providing funding to the afghan national defense and security forces and advising afghan security ministries and preventing the reemergence of transnational terrorist organizations. we have added a fifth urgent task, working closely in support of the state department as they relocate brave afghans and their families who have provided exceptional service during our long lesson -- long mission. these are friends of the united states who have done exemplary and courageous work and we take our obligations to them and their families very seriously. we will be hosting the first group of afghans at fort lee in virginia. we expect them to arrive s

does afghanistan have enough troo s? us. does afghanistan have enough heaps? we _ us.ps? we have _ us. does afghanistan have enough troops? we have more _ us. does afghanistan have enough troops? we have more than - us. does afghanistan have enough i troops? we have more than enough, us. does afghanistan have enough - troops? we have more than enough, we have over 300,000 _ troops? we have more than enough, we have over 300,000 troops _ troops? we have more than enough, we have over 300,000 troops but - troops? we have more than enough, we have over 300,000 troops but we - troops? we have more than enough, we have over 300,000 troops but we need | have over 300,000 troops but we need more than, we need the international community support, we need our air force built back up, notjust fighting terrorism and taliban for afghanistan, for the entire world. which territories are officials like yourself most concerned about. the most significant would be the taliban taking kabul, i presume? i’m taliban taking kabul, i presume? i'm not taliban taking kabul, i presume? i“n not

and are remaining in afghanistan by choice. we were really shocked and saddened to hear that claim made, as it does not work at all would -- in our experience with siv holders. in our experience, our allies want to come to the u.s. desperately, as they have often been tracked by the taliban in their own neighborhoods. however, the tickets for the few commercial flights out of afghanistan are often cost prohibitive for most afghans who have been fortunate enough to secure a visa. for those who cannot afford flights, they have to wait for an iom flight. in the past, it could take months for those to be scheduled, and it is what causes the daylight between the vision -- a visa issuance and arrival in the u.s. when siv recipients arrived by an iom flight, they can be connected with us and our resettlement agency. we pick them at the airport, we arrange for housing and we support them as they integrate. this is the work that we do. today, we are welcoming a family of 12 in one of our locations, and we are honored to be doing that. i

return to afghanistan with the return of the troops and reports of tele— band advances and afghanistaniticians are worried. the violence — politicians are worried. the violence has _ politicians are worried. the violence has raised - politicians are worried. lie: violence has raised and there politicians are worried. tte: violence has raised and there is a very strange way, the districts are falling. in very strange way, the districts are fallina. , ., ., ., falling. in georgia, far right protesters _ falling. in georgia, far right protesters of _ falling. in georgia, far right protesters of skill - falling. in georgia, far right protesters of skill of - falling. in georgia, far right protesters of skill of the . falling. in georgia, far right - protesters of skill of the building and torn down the rainbow flag and burned it. the pred march was scheduled to have been but it was cancelled after the government said it was unreasonable for it to take place. gunmen in nigeria�*s stock to the hospital and the school or within 2a hours, babies and nurses have been abducted and 150 school ove

our lead story comes from afghanistan. the u.s.its withdrawal from there is more than 90% complete. the taliban, meanwhile, continues its advance. let's turn to the u.k., the new health secretary says england is entering uncharted territory as it moves to lift all instructions for covid-19. here he is speaking to the bbc. >> no one is pretending the pandemic is gone, it is still very much there. case numbers are still high, and they are going to get higher. one of the things i said yesterday, currently we are seeing case numbers around 25,000 a day. i expect they will be as high as 50,000 a day by the time this easing happens. the difference is, this vaccine wall of the fence is working, and a link between cases and hospitalizations is severely weakened. ros: the decision to lift the restrictions comes at a time when cases are rising sharply in england because of the delta variant. that can lead to 100,000 new infections a day by the end of summer. the difference now, the government says, the vaccines are proven effective at avoidi