America struck back against ISIS-K in Afghanistan in retaliation to Thursday’s attack on Kabul airport. Captain Bill Urban, spokesman for US Central Command, said: “US military forces conducted an over-the-horizon counterterrorism operation today against an ISIS-K planner. “The unmanned airstrike occurred in the Nangahar Province of Afghanistan. “Initial indications are that we killed the target. “We know of no civilian casualties.” The US drone hit a vehicle carrying an ISIS-K member believed to be “carrying out future attacks,” a US official told Fox News.” – Daily Express
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> Yesterday: David Lidington on Comment – There’s no alternative to our American alliance. But we also need a new strategic relationship with our European allies.
“A young British girl is missing in Kabul after the ISIS-K suicide bomb blast as her dad was named tonight as one of the 170 victims. Two Brits and the child of a UK national were killed in the attack at the airport in the Afghan capital on Thursday – just hours before the evacuation deadline. The three dead are from three separate families, including one teenage boy and two adults, with two more Brits injured. One of the victims has been named by the BBC as Muhammad Niazi – a British Afghan who travelled to Kabul from London to help his family at the airport. His wife, youngest child and eldest daughter are still missing, according to the corporation.” – The Sun
“Around 150 Brits will be left behind in Afghanistan after the airport gates were sealed this morning, the Defence Secretary has said. Ben Wallace confirmed that 1,000 Brits and Afghans already inside Kabul airport will be the last civilians to be evacuated today. It means desperate Afghans waiting at the gates – and any Brits who have fallen off the radar – will not be on an RAF flight out of Afghanistan. With a heavy heart Mr Wallace said: “The sad fact is not every single one will get out.” He said estimates suggest this includes 150 Brits, but admitted the figure is constantly changing. It also includes civilians who want to stay in the country such as journalists and aid workers. Between 800 and 1,100 Afghans eligible for UK settlement under the ARAP interpreter scheme will also be left stranded, Mr Wallace said.” – The Sun
“While the decision to leave the country has faced much criticism, the evacuation was remarkable in its scale and successes in extreme circumstances. In total 105,000 people were evacuated, with the UK alone responsible for getting more than 14,500 people out. This was more than double its target at the start of an operation that became the biggest airlift since the Berlin blockade in 1949. Speaking to those involved and terrified families in Kabul, The Times has pieced together an in-depth account of how it was achieved.” – The Times
> Today: ToryDiary – Red tape makes integrating refugees into our society harder and more expensive
“Ben Wallace, the defence secretary, criticised the Foreign Office yesterday over the botched evacuation of diplomats from the embassy in Kabul after The Times revealed that the identities of Afghan staff were left behind. He said on Times Radio it was “not good enough” that the contact details of Afghans working for the embassy and the CVs of locals applying for jobs were abandoned as diplomats scrambled out. He said that Boris Johnson would examine the details of the evacuation. Dominic Raab, the foreign secretary, will face questions from MPs.” – The Times
“She learned last night that Pen, having made it through Taliban checkpoints, had been finally allowed to board a flight with 150 rescue cats and dogs from his Nowzad charity – but he was forced to leave his staff members behind….Defence Secretary Ben Wallace initially dismissed Operation Ark, saying it would put ‘people before pets’ in the rush to flee Kabul. He later agreed to ‘seek a slot’ for the plane carrying out the mercy mission, but insisted the convoy would not be able to jump the queue. There were suggestions by Mr Farthing’s supporters that his change of tone was prompted by an intervention from Boris Johnson’s animal-loving wife Carrie – but this was denied by Downing Street sources.” – Daily Mail
“For months now, the Delta variant has been sweeping its way across the world. We’ve seen how mutations surface and thrive among unvaccinated people. We know that the more the population is protected by a vaccine, the more protection society as a whole will have from Covid-19. It is because of this simple principle, that offering all teenagers the jab would solidify our wall of protection and reduce the amount of infections, decreasing the risk of new variants emerging. If the expert clinicians recommend vaccinating 12 to 15-years-olds, I and the fantastic NHS and public health teams are doing everything to make sure we are ready with the same sense of urgency we have had at every point in this programme.’ – The Times
> Today: Sam Thurgood on Comment – Using health policy to level up
> Yesterday: Bella Wallersteiner on Comment – There’s no alternative to our American alliance. But we also need a new strategic relationship with our European allies.
“Ministers have told businesses to hire UK-based workers to address the country’s chronic shortage of lorry drivers, as hundreds of thousands of Britons prepare to leave the Covid-19 furlough scheme. Kwasi Kwarteng, business secretary, on Friday wrote to business leaders to bat away their call for looser post-Brexit immigration rules to remedy the shortage of hauliers, saying foreign labour only offered “a short-term, temporary solution”. With the furlough scheme ending on September 30, Kwarteng instead urged employers to help the “many UK-based workers [who] now face an uncertain future and need to find new employment opportunities”.” – Financial Times
“The UK government could approve a second Scottish independence referendum if support for staging one stays above 60% for a sustained period, Alister Jack, the Scotland secretary, has said. Jack said consistent support for a fresh vote would confirm to the government that one was justified, as he signalled a further softening of the Conservatives’ previously rigid rejection of Scottish National party demands for a second referendum. “If you consistently saw 60% of the population wanting a referendum – not wanting independence but wanting a referendum – and that was sustained over a reasonably long period, then I would acknowledge that there was a desire for a referendum,” he told Politico.” – The Guardian
“We want to see children back in the classroom; we don’t want to see the same level of disruption,” he said, seeking to draw a line under a year when his department was widely criticised for policy U-turns on school lockdowns. “My hope is that, combined with the mass testing we’re doing, children aren’t going to be in the situation of having to self-isolate.” However, Williamson’s optimistic outlook was tempered by warnings from educators and teaching unions that children will inevitably face some disruption as they recover from a year of heavily interrupted schooling.” – Financial Times