‘Everyone is holed up in their homes’: an account from Kabul
An Afghan resident speaks from the capital as the Taliban enter the city
Sun 15 Aug 2021 12.17 BST
“People are afraid. They are fearful for their families, their wives and their daughters especially. A few residents in Kabul with links to the Taliban are happy. But the majority are really afraid.
“This morning I was out and about in the city. I saw women crying by the side of the road. People were running, with everyone trying to find a vehicle to get home. There were no taxis. Before, a ride would cost $2. Now the prices have gone up five times and the taxis don’t take anyone.
“I heard some gunfire a few hours ago. Now the city is pretty quiet. Everyone is holed up in their homes, the shops and banks which were busy earlier are mostly closed. Schoolchildren were due to take examinations today. These are not happening.
Women's rights activist "surprised" at collapse of government and worries for the future
The rapid gains across Afghanistan by Taliban militants have stunned observers both at home and abroad. Mahbouba Seraj from the Afghan Women's Network told CNN she was "surprised" by how quickly the government collapsed.
"In a matter of two days, four provinces of Afghanistan going into the hands of Taliban. And I was wondering what on earth could be doing that?" Seraj said. "But then again, at the same time, because of the way this country has become in the corruption, the way it is in the world, and in Afghanistan today, I knew we were sold out."
After years in exile, Seraj – who was born in Kabul – returned to her homeland in 2003 to work with women and children. She says her goal was not to turn women into government officials but to help those that needed help the most. She spent years traveling around the country talking to women about their rights, education and healthcare.
Demoted, Suspended and ThreatenedPoland's Judges Are Fighting To Save Rule of Law and Their Own Jobs
Jarosław Kaczyński, who holds the levers of power in the Polish government, is well on his way toward turning the country into an autocracy. Just one thing stands in his way: a few courageous judges. They are the subject of systematic harassment and are desperately waiting for help from the EU.
By Maximilian Popp und Jan Puhl in Warsaw
Igor Tuleya has spent a quarter century serving the Polish state. As a judge in Warsaw, he has passed judgment on murderers, mafia dons and drug smugglers. These days, though, he spends most of his time working on his own legal defense.
The national conservative government in the hands of Jarosław Kaczyński, the head of the PiS party, has singled out Tuleya as an enemy of the state. Government prosecutors have opened seven disciplinary proceedings against him and have also suspended Tuleya’s immunity as a judge so that they can prosecute him.
Hong Kong group behind huge democracy rallies disbands amid China's clampdown
The Hong Kong protest coalition that organised record-breaking democracy rallies two years ago said Sunday it was disbanding in the face of China's sweeping clampdown on dissent in the city.
The dissolution comes as China remoulds Hong Kong in its own authoritarian image and purges the city of any person or group deemed disloyal or unpatriotic.
The Civil Human Rights Front (CHRF) was a major player in the months of democracy protests that convulsed Hong Kong in 2019.
But the group said Beijing's subsequent crackdown on democracy supporters and a de facto ban on protests had left it with little future.
Haitians scramble to rescue survivors from ruins of major quake
The 7.2-magnitude quake flattened hundreds of homes in a country still clawing its way back from another major temblor 11 years ago.
Haitians are scouring shattered buildings in search of friends and relatives trapped in the rubble after a devastating earthquake struck the Caribbean country, killing more than 700 people and injuring many others.
The 7.2-magnitude quake flattened hundreds of homes in the impoverished country, which is still clawing its way back from another major temblor 11 years ago and has been without a head of state since the assassination of its president last month.
Japan marks 76th anniversary of World War II defeat
By MARI YAMAGUCHI
Japan marked the 76th anniversary of its World War II surrender on Sunday with a somber ceremony in which Prime Minister Yosihide Suga pledged for the tragedy of war to never be repeated but avoided apologizing for his country's aggression.
Suga said Japan never forgets the peace that the country enjoys today is built on the sacrifices of those who died in the war.
“We will commit to our pledge to never repeat the tragedy of the war,” he said in his first speech at the event since becoming prime minister.
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