Show an ad over header. AMP

State Department urges U.S. citizens to leave Afghanistan

07 August 2021
Dan Ackermann

The U.S. Embassy in Afghanistan on Saturday urged all U.S. citizens to leave the country "immediately," adding that they should "not plan to rely on U.S. government flights."

The big picture: The warning comes as the Taliban capture their second provincial capital, Sheberghan in Jowzjan Province, in two days.

  • The Taliban on Friday took over Zaranj, a provincial capital in Southwestern Afghanistan.
  • The terrorist group also killed the director of Afghanistan’s Government Information Media Center, saying that the official was "punished to his deeds."
  • Deborah Lyons, the special representative of the United Nations' secretary-general for Afghanistan, warned at a special session of the United Nations Security Council on Friday that without intervention, the nation could fall “into a situation of catastrophe so serious that it would have few, if any, parallels in this century,” per the New York Times.

Details: The American embassy said that all citizens should leave using any available commercial flights, adding that they will offer loans for people who cannot afford to purchase a plane ticket.

  • The State Department in April ordered the departure of federal employees from the embassy in Kabul if their work can be performed elsewhere.
  • The travel advisory for Afghanistan is at level 4 due to "crime, terrorism, civil unrest, kidnapping, armed conflict and COVID-19."

What they're saying: The embassy also condemned the Taliban's "violent new offensive against Afghan cities."

  • "These Taliban actions to forcibly impose its rule are unacceptable and contradict its claim to support a negotiated settlement in the Doha peace process," the embassy added.
  • "They demonstrate wanton disregard for the welfare and rights of civilians and will worsen this country’s humanitarian crisis."

Go deeper: Biden defends Afghanistan exit as fears of collapse grow

Transcripts show George Floyd told police "I can't breathe" over 20 times

Section2

Newly released transcripts of bodycam footage from the Minneapolis Police Department show that George Floyd told officers he could not breathe more than 20 times in the moments leading up to his death.

Why it matters: Floyd's killing sparked a national wave of Black Lives Matter protests and an ongoing reckoning over systemic racism in the United States. The transcripts "offer one the most thorough and dramatic accounts" before Floyd's death, The New York Times writes.

The state of play: The transcripts were released as former officer Thomas Lane seeks to have the charges that he aided in Floyd's death thrown out in court, per the Times. He is one of four officers who have been charged.

  • The filings also include a 60-page transcript of an interview with Lane. He said he "felt maybe that something was going on" when asked if he believed that Floyd was having a medical emergency at the time.

What the transcripts say:

  • Floyd told the officers he was claustrophobic as they tried to get him into the squad car.
  • The transcripts also show Floyd saying, "Momma, I love you. Tell my kids I love them. I'm dead."
  • Former officer Derek Chauvin, who had his knee on Floyd's neck for over eight minutes, told Floyd, "Then stop talking, stop yelling, it takes a heck of a lot of oxygen to talk."

Read the transcripts via DocumentCloud.