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Women banned from celebrations as Taliban marks fourth anniversary of Afghanistan takeover | Afghanistan
Thousands of men gathered across Kabul on Friday to watch flowers being scattered from helicopters to mark the fourth anniversary of the Taliban’s return to power – a celebration that women were barred from attending.
Three of the six “flower shower” locations were already off-limits to women, who have been prohibited from entering parks and recreational areas since November 2022.
The Taliban seized Afghanistan on 15 August 2021 as the US and Nato withdrew their forces at the end of a two-decade war. Since then, they have imposed their interpretation of Islamic law on daily life, including sweeping restrictions on women and girls, based on edicts from their leader, Hibatullah Akhundzada.
Friday’s anniversary programme, which also included speeches from cabinet members, was only for men. An outdoor sports performance, initially expected to feature Afghan athletes, did not take place.
Rights groups, foreign governments and the UN have condemned the Taliban for their treatment of women and girls, who remain barred from many jobs, education beyond sixth grade and most public spaces.
Members of the United Afghan Women’s Movement for Freedom staged an indoor protest against Taliban rule on Friday in the north-eastern Takhar province.
“This day marked the beginning of a black domination that excluded women from work, education, and social life,” the movement said in a statement shared with Associated Press. “We, the protesting women, remember this day not as a memory, but as an open wound of history, a wound that has not yet healed. The fall of Afghanistan was not the fall of our will. We stand, even in the darkness.”
There was also an indoor protest in the Pakistani capital, Islamabad.
Afghan women held up signs that said “Forgiving the Taliban is an act of enmity against humanity” and “August 15th is a dark day.” They were fully veiled, except for their eyes, in the photographs.
Earlier in the day, the Taliban leader had said God would severely punish Afghans who were ungrateful for Islamic rule in the country, according to a statement.
Akhundzada, who is seldom seen in public, said in a statement that Afghans had endured hardships and made sacrifices for almost 50 years so that Islamic law, or sharia, could be established. Sharia had saved people from “corruption, oppression, usurpation, drugs, theft, robbery, and plunder”, he said.
“These are great divine blessings that our people should not forget and, during the commemoration of Victory Day, express great gratitude to Allah Almighty so that the blessings will increase,” Akhundzada said in comments shared on X.
“If, against God’s will, we fail to express gratitude for blessings and are ungrateful for them, we will be subjected to the severe punishment of Allah Almighty,” he said.
Last month, the international criminal court issued arrest warrants for Akhundzada and the chief justice, Abdul Hakim Haqqani, accusing them of crimes against humanity for the persecution of women and girls.
The ICC said there were “reasonable grounds to believe” they had ordered policies that deprived women and girls of “education, privacy and family life and the freedoms of movement, expression, thought, conscience and religion”.
This year’s anniversary celebrations are more muted than last year’s, when the Taliban staged a military parade at a US airbase, drawing anger from Donald Trump about the abandoned American hardware on display.
Afghanistan is also gripped by a humanitarian crisis made worse by the climate crisis, millions of Afghans expelled from Iran and Pakistan, and a sharp drop in donor funding.
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College football picks: Predictions against the spread, odds, betting lines for top 25 games in Week 3
The first separation Saturday of the college football season is upon us, as a divide between contenders and pretenders will begin to form. High-profile in-league and nonconference games dot the day, which will culminate with a blockbuster evening slate for the SEC.
In the early window, No. 12 Clemson is traveling to Georgia Tech for a big ACC battle. At the same time, No. 19 Alabama will host Wisconsin as the Crimson Tide enter a must-win spot against a Big Ten opponent. The afternoon slate is highlighted by a showdown between No. 6 Georgia and No. 15 Tennessee and an in-state battle between No. 5 Miami and No. 18 South Florida.
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Among the evening headliners is a showdown between No. 3 LSU and Florida in a matchup that often produces drama. But the headliner of the evening slate may be No. 8 Notre Dame’s showdown with No. 16 Texas A&M. The Fighting Irish were off in Week 2 following a Week 1 loss at Miami and can ill-afford an 0-2 start on their College Football Playoff quest.
On the flip side, if the Aggies can march into South Bend and come away with a marquee victory, it would send the A&M hype machine into overdrive. By night’s end, we’ll have a clearer picture of what the national hierarchy looks like.
All times Eastern
Noon | ESPN fubo (Try for free) This pick is contingent upon King suiting up for Georgia Tech, which seems to be the case as of now. Philo’s a capable backup, but Georgia Tech is going to need King’s edge if it wants to pull off an upset. So far, regardless of who’s playing quarterback, the Yellow Jackets have looked like the better team. They beat Colorado on the road and handled business against an obviously overmatched Gardner-Webb team. Clemson lost at home to LSU and then struggled at home against what should have been an obviously overmatched Troy team. Georgia Tech may not have enough gas to fully pull off the upset, but it will keep it within a field goal. Pick: Georgia Tech +3.5 (-110) — Will Backus
Noon | ABC Fubo (Try for free) Wisconsin’s offense has not looked great in either of its first two games but managed to hit a few big plays in the passing game last week against Middle Tennessee. For some reason I don’t think the Middle Tennessee team that lost to Austin Peay is in the same weight class as Alabama, so it’s hard for me to imagine the Badgers having a lot of fun on offense here unless Alabama turns the ball over frequently. Pick: Alabama -20.5 — Tom Fornelli
USC at Purdue
3:30 p.m. | CBS, CBSSports.com, CBS Sports App, Paramount+ Premium Purdue pulling off the outright upset would be one of the biggest surprises of Week 3, but the rebuilt Boilermakers could have enough to keep this Big Ten opener to a respectable margin. Their path is clear: shorten the game and limit USC’s possessions. Purdue ranks 23rd nationally in called run play percentage (57.0%), while USC’s defense has struggled against the run, sitting tied for 80th in success rate (60.8%). If Purdue controls the tempo on the ground, it can hang around longer than expected. Pick: Purdue +20.5 — Cody Nagel
3:30 p.m. | ABC Fubo (Try for free) Georgia has been inconsistent on offense, but the Bulldogs are demolishing their opponents on defense. Kirby Smart has historically done a solid job locking down Josh Heupel’s offense. Vols quarterback Joey Aguilar will have some moments, but will falter during his first appearance on the big stage. Georgia will pull away at the end, but the under also could be a smart play. Pick: Georgia -3.5 — Shehan Jeyarajah
4:30 p.m. | CW Fubo (Try for free) USF has done great work to set itself up for a College Football Playoff run should the Bulls be able to win the American, but that giant-killer mentality will be put to the test against a Miami team that is an upgrade on both lines of scrimmage. As long as Miami can do a better job of applying pass rush to Byrum Brown and limit the explosive plays that powered each of the last two USF wins, the Hurricanes should be able to defend home turf and win handily. Pick: Miami -17.5 — Chip Patterson
No. 3 LSU vs. Florida
7:30 p.m. | ABC Fubo (Try for free) Florida is limping in after a loss to South Florida, but the defeat was about poor game management, lapses in discipline and substandard execution. The Gators have plenty of talent, and it’s way too soon to put them on quit watch. LSU’s offense is still finding its way and has yet to illustrate the explosive gear that will likely be required to pull away in SEC games. LSU should win, but Florida’s defense can keep it close. Pick: Florida +7.5 — David Cobb
7:30 p.m. | NBC Fubo (Try for free) It’s been 11 years since Texas A&M defeated a ranked team on the road. Avenging a 10-point loss at home to Notre Dame last season with a win Saturday at Notre Dame Stadium sure would be a nice break from the trend. Marcel Reed provides the Aggies’ offense a different dynamic that the Irish did not have to contend against last season, and for as much as Marcel Reed wants to be known for his passing, the key for him is sparking the rushing attack, which means he needs to tuck the ball and run for hard yards. Notre Dame has the better rushing attack with Jeremiyah Love and has a quarterback, CJ Carr, who proved himself a capable runner when needed. The feeling here is that the Irish run the ball more than the 28 times for 93 yards they had against Miami. Pick: Notre Dame Money line -258 — Brandon Marcello
SportsLine’s proven computer model has simulated every Week 3 college football game 10,000 times. Visit SportsLine now to see all the picks, all from the model that is 31-19 since the beginning of last season on top-rated money-line and over/under picks.
Rushdi AbualoufGaza correspondent and
Dearbail Jordan
ReutersIsraeli forces have stepped up their assault on Gaza City with a wave of heavy air strikes, marking a sharp escalation from previous military operations.
Unlike earlier phases of the war, the current offensive has relied heavily on aerial bombardments, with entire apartment blocks and large concrete structures reduced to rubble.
The intensification of strikes in recent days has triggered a surge in civilian displacement.
Israel has warned all residents of Gaza City to leave immediately in anticipation of a huge ground offensive.
On Sunday, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) said about 250,000 people had left the city and moved south. It also said it had destroyed a high-rise building that it said had been used “to advance and execute terrorist attacks” against its troops.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says the city is Hamas’s last major stronghold. But the plan to occupy Gaza City has brought international criticism.
The UN has warned an intensification of the offensive on an area where a famine has already been declared will push civilians into an “even deeper catastrophe”. Gaza City is the largest urban centre in the territory and a historic heart of Palestinian political and social life.
Residents say the Israeli military has been targeting schools and makeshift shelters, often issuing warnings only moments before bombardments.
Many families have been forced to flee in darkness toward western Gaza.
“We escaped certain death, my husband, our three children and I,” said Saly Tafeesh, a mother sheltering in the city. “My brother died in my arms after being shot by a quadcopter drone. We ran in the dark to the west of Gaza.”
The Israeli military has told residents to evacuate to the south of the territory – but many families say they cannot afford the journey, which costs up to $1,100 (£800). Hamas, meanwhile, has intensified its calls for residents to stay put and resist leaving the city.
Rubein Khaled, a father-of-nine preparing to move south, expressed frustration.
“The Hamas preacher at Friday prayers accused anyone leaving Gaza City of being a coward running from the battlefield,” he said.
“But why doesn’t he tell Hamas leaders to surrender and release the Israeli hostages so this war can stop? We don’t want to leave either, but we have no choice.”
Israeli forces have not yet reached some eastern neighbourhoods that have remained largely intact since earlier raids in January, but the current campaign suggests they may now be seeking to dismantle entire districts.
ReutersMeanwhile, a Qatari foreign ministry spokesman strongly criticised Israel’s prime minister in an interview with the BBC following this week’s Israeli strike on Hamas officials in the Qatari capital Doha.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Majed Al-Ansari told the BBC that the international community had “to deal with a Netanyahu problem”.
“He is not somebody who is listening to anybody right now, who is listening to any reason, and we have to collectively stop him in his tracks,” the official said.
He argued the strike in Doha showed the Israeli leader “never intended to sign any peace deal” to end the war in Gaza and instead “believes he can re-shape the Middle East in his own image”.
Five of the group’s members and a Qatari security officer were killed in Tuesday’s strike – though the Palestinian armed group claimed no senior leaders had been killed. Hamas members had been in Doha to discuss the latest US proposal for a ceasefire in Gaza.
Israel has faced widespread condemnation, including at the UN Security Council. Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel targeted the “terrorist masterminds” behind the 7 October 2023 Hamas attack on Israel.
Qatar’s Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani earlier said that Qatar did not get advance warning of the strike, only receiving a call from a US official 10 minutes after the attack had started.
On Friday, al-Thani had dinner with US President Donald Trump and his envoy Steve Witkoff in New York, having earlier met Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the White House.
Rubio is travelling to Israel this weekend in a show of solidarity with Israel ahead of a UN meeting later this month at which France and the UK are expected to formally recognise a Palestinian state.
ReutersOn Sunday, the Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza said the bodies of 47 people killed by the Israeli military had arrived at its hospitals over the previous day.
Since UN-backed global food security experts confirmed a famine in Gaza City on 22 August, the ministry has reported that at least 142 people have died from starvation and malnutrition across the territory. Israel has said it is expanding its efforts to facilitate aid deliveries and has disputed the health ministry’s figures on malnutrition-related deaths.
The Israeli military launched its campaign in Gaza in response to the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on 7 October 2023, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken hostage.
At least 64,803 people have been killed in Israeli attacks in Gaza since then, according to the territory’s health ministry.
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Trump calls on all NATO countries to stop buying Russian oil, threatens 50% to 100% tariffs on China
BASKING RIDGE, N.J. (AP) — President Donald Trump said Saturday he believes the Russia-Ukraine war would end if all NATO countries stopped buying oil from Russia and placed tariffs on China of 50% to 100% for its purchases of Russian petroleum.
Trump posted on his social media site that NATO’S commitment to winning the war “has been far less than 100%” and the purchase of Russian oil by some members of the alliance is “shocking.” As if speaking with NATO members, he said: “It greatly weakens your negotiating position, and bargaining power, over Russia.”
Since 2023, NATO member Turkey has been the third largest buyer of Russian oil, after China and India. according to the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air. Other members of the 32-state alliance involved in purchasing Russian oil include Hungary and Slovakia.
Trump’s post arrives after the recent flight of multiple Russian drones into Poland, an escalatory move by Russia as it was entering the airspace of NATO ally. Poland shot down the drones, yet Trump played down the severity of the incident and Russia’s motives by saying it “could have been a mistake.”
While Trump as a candidate promised to end the war quickly, he has yet to hit the pressure points needed to end the violence and has at times been seen as reluctant to confront Russian President Vladimir Putin. Congress is currently trying to get the U.S. president to back a bill toughening sanctions, after Trump last month hosted Putin in Alaska for talks that failed to deliver on progress toward peace.
Trump in his post said that a NATO ban on Russian oil plus tariffs on China would “also be of great help in ENDING this deadly, but RIDICULOUS, WAR.”
The president said that NATO members should put the 50% to 100% tariffs on China and withdraw them if the war that launched with Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine ends.
“China has a strong control, and even grip, over Russia,” he posted, and powerful tariffs “will break that grip.”
The U.S. president has already placed a 25% import tax on goods from India for its buying of Russian energy products.
In his post, Trump said responsibility for the war fell on his predecessor, Democrat Joe Biden, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. He did not include in that list Putin, who launched the invasion.
Trump’s post builds on a call Friday with finance ministers in the Group of Seven, a forum of industrialized democracies. During the call, U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent called on their counterparts to have a “unified front” to cut off “the revenues funding Putin’s war machine,” according to Greer’s office.
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