| | Terror attack warning at Afghanistan airport |
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Do not travel to Kabul airport. That’s the latest advice issued by some of countries racing to evacuate their nationals and eligible Afghans. Crowds have been gathering day after day since the Taliban seized control of Afghanistan more than a week ago. But now people outside the airport are being told to leave the area immediately due to a high threat of a terrorist attack. Australia, the US and UK are advising their citizens not to travel to the site. This warning comes after US President Joe Biden revealed there was an "acute and growing risk of an attack" from the Islamic State group in Afghanistan and said flights had to end soon because of this.
Australia's Minister for Foreign Affairs, Marise Payne, describes the threat as "ongoing" and "very high", the US State Department says it’s told those waiting in certain areas to "leave immediately", and according to the UK Foreign Office the security situation "remains volatile" and asked people to wait for further advice. The US has evacuated about 19,000 people in the past 24 hours and on Wednesday some 1,200 were flown out by the UK, which vowed to use "every hour and day that we've got left" to get British nationals and eligible Afghans out of the country. But there are thousands of people still waiting inside and outside the airport, hoping to be airlifted out, like the 82,000 or so before them. The details of the security threat have not been revealed but the airport will, until the 31 August deadline, be defended by 5,800 US and 1,000 British troops. | | |
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| | Covid jab preparation for 12 to 15-year-olds |
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| | | The UK could join the likes of the US, Canada, France and the Netherlands, which are vaccinating children aged 12 and over against Covid-19. Experts on the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation are looking at whether the UK should follow suit. And as they decide whether to recommend that course of action, NHS organisations in England have been told to prepare for a possible rollout to all 12 to 15-year-olds. Some children in that age group can book a jab but only if they live with a vulnerable adult or have certain health conditions. But for a wider rollout, the experts are weighing up the risks and benefits to children and are looking at how much it might slow the wider spread of the virus. The Department of Health says no decisions have been made but it is planning for a range of scenarios. | | |
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| | Light pollution linked to insect decline |
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| | | They help us see when it gets dark but it appears street lights, namely modern LED ones, may be contributing to "worrying" declines in insects. Insect numbers have been falling in recent decades and according to scientists, light pollution seems to disrupt the behaviour of nocturnal moths, reducing caterpillar numbers by half. They say their study is the strongest evidence yet that light pollution can have detrimental impacts on local insect populations. This, they say, then has consequences for the birds and other wildlife that rely on caterpillars for food. "If insects are in trouble - as we believe they are, and have evidence to support that - perhaps we should be doing all we can to reduce these negative influences," says lead researcher Douglas Boyes. | | |
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| | | | | | | | | | | A month ago, coronavirus cases were falling and the lifting of nearly all restrictions looked like it had been a success. But just weeks later, infections levels are rising again, with more than 30,000 new cases being confirmed each day, and there is growing evidence immunity through vaccination is waning - which was always expected.
Two studies suggest this may now be beginning several months after the second dose. And this illustrates, once again, why we need to get used to Covid circulating. Experts have been clear we should expect to be infected repeatedly over our lifetimes. But each reinfection should be milder than the previous one. And, for most, even those early infections will be milder than they would have been, because the vaccines remain highly effective at preventing serious illness. | | |
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| | | | | Nick Triggle | | Health correspondent | | |
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| | | | | | | The evacuation effort in Afghanistan features on some of the front pages this morning including the i, which splashes on Britain telling "Afghans to forget the airport and go to the border". It follows Defence Secretary Ben Wallace's briefing in which he said it may now be "safer" to try to escape over land. The Times also focuses on this story, quoting the defence secretary who admitted "not everyone is going to get out". The Daily Telegraph carries a picture of Afghans standing in a sewage drain outside Kabul airport pleading to be evacuated but the paper’s main story is about plans to rollout Covid vaccines for 12 to 15-year-olds. The Daily Mirror also covers vaccines but reports on the "race to get booster jabs" as deaths and infections rise. Read the newspaper review in full here. | | |
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| | | | | London Double murder suspect found with critical injuries |
| | | | | | | | | | NHS Some blood tests stopped due to vial shortages |
| | | | | | Paralympics Sarah Storey wins 15th gold as GB claim six medals |
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| | If you watch one thing today |
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| | If you listen to one thing today |
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| | If you read one thing today |
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| | Need something different? |
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| | | "Let it go, let it go, can't hold it back anymore, let it go, let it go..." That's the song you will have heard (time and time again) if you’ve watched Disney movie Frozen, and now the stage adaption is about to hit the West End. The cast has had extra time for rehearsals after the pandemic froze the theatre industry but will the stage musical recreate the film's magic?
You’re Bound 2 have heard his name, probably his music and possibly that he’s considering running for US president. Have you guessed who he is? Yes, it’s Kanye West, except soon he might be known as Ye. The rapper and record producer is hoping to be granted the Power to officially change his name. Is it history in the making? Find out here.
And finally staying with change, broom handles are helping to transform some overgrown moors in Northern Ireland. They’re being used to bash the stems of bracken - or fern - to restore the habitat. Take a look. | | |
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| | On this day | | |
| | | | 1994 A man receives the world's first battery-operated heart during pioneering surgery in Britain - watch our archive report about the procedure. |
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| | | Let us know what you think of this newsletter by emailing [email protected]. If you’d like to recommend it to a friend, forward this email. New subscribers can sign up here. | | |
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