Top story: Fleeing to border may be better, says Wallace
Morning everyone. I’m Martin Farrer and these are the top stories this morning.
Britain, the US and Australia have warned citizens and visa holders to stay away from Kabul airport unless otherwise instructed, citing the risk of terror attacks amid an increasingly desperate rush to flee Afghanistan. A very specific security warning from the US state department told people to leave three particular gates around the airport immediately, while UK defence sources voiced concerns about the risk of a suicide bombing by the group Isis-K, an Islamic State-affiliated group. Earlier, defence secretary Ben Wallace said people might be better off “trying to get to the border” than awaiting RAF evacuation, as British troops made last-ditch attempts to airlift at least 1,500 remaining interpreters and others who have supported the UK. Nearly 90,000 people have been airlifted by western forces, US officials said, but as many as 1,500 American civilians could also still be in Afghanistan.
Refugees hoping to reach Europe must navigate a treacherous route favoured by people smugglers and drug traffickers known as the “golden crescent”. It takes them through the deserts of Nimruz province over the border into the Balochistan region of Pakistan, and then across the mountains to Iran and on to Turkey.
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School Covid tests – Children in England are being urged to have twice-weekly Covid tests for “a more normal year” at school and college. The government campaign includes an Olympic gold medallist, the 18-year-old swimmer Matt Richards, telling students that regular testing allowed him to compete at Tokyo and will allow them to “get back to the things you love, like competitive sports and school matches”. School union leaders called the scheme “naive”. Turkey says it expects to be removed from the UK’s travel red list within days, as ministers prepare to update the traffic light system for the final time this summer. Some Covid rules will be relaxed for double-jabbed people in New South Wales but the Australian state still racked up a record 1,029 daily cases today. New Zealand could be split into North and South Island bubbles as the country struggles to contain its worst Covid outbreak.
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‘Deeply distressing’ – The number of British children who are unhappy with their lives has increased in the past decade, with many worrying about school, friends and how they look. The number of 10- to 15-year-olds who say they are not happy rose from 173,000 (3.8%) in 2009-10 to an estimated 306,000 (6.7%) in 2018-19, according to a study by the Children’s Society. The findings pre-date the Covid pandemic and the charity’s chief executive, Mark Russell, said it was “deeply distressing” to see the increase. “Unhappiness at this stage can be a warning sign of potential issues in later teenage years.”
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Westminster killings – A man wanted in connection with two fatal stabbings in Westminster has been found by police with life-threatening injuries. Lee Peacock was seen at North Wembley station on the evening of 19 August, when the two people were killed. Officers were “confident” that the man they found at just before 6pm on last night on a canal barge in Ealing was 49-year-old Peacock. The man was suffering from serious injuries – believed to be self-inflicted – and is now in hospital.
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Navalny speaks out – The jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny has given his first interview from prison, comparing it to a Chinese labour camp and saying he is forced to watch eight hours of state television a day. Navalny is being held in a maximum security prison colony in Pokrov, 100km east of Moscow, and told the New York Times the days of heavy labour in Soviet gulags were over – replaced by what he called the “psychological violence” of brainwashing and propaganda.
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OnlyFans U-turn – OnlyFans, the user-generated adult content site, has reversed its plans to ban pornographic content after securing agreement with its payment processors. The ban had provoked a backlash from users and creators, who argued that doing so risked driving such work underground.
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Sign of life? – Astronomers at Cambridge University believe life beyond our solar system could be detectable within two or three years after recent work suggested that a “mini-Neptune” more than twice the radius of Earth and more than eight times as massive may be habitable. Researchers have previously looked mostly for planets of a similar size, mass, temperature and atmospheric composition to Earth. But the new class of so-called hycean planets – hot, ocean-covered and with hydrogen-rich atmospheres – could provide a breakthrough.
Today in Focus podcast
After 21 competitors died during a 100km mountain race in Gansu province earlier this year, the Chinese government suspended all extreme sports. But those who love ultrarunning insist it can be safe – and has changed how they see the world. What keeps them coming back?
Lunchtime read: Life’s second act – ‘I just had to do it’
Emine Saner meets people who have had a stunning second act to their lives, such as Alison Webster, who didn’t fulfil her childhood dream of being a doctor until she was in her 40s. Elizabeth Hepworth was in her 50s when she became a barrister after battling through the legal profession as a single mother, and Robert Campbell gave up teaching to become a songwriter.
Sport
England will hope to build on their commanding position in the third Test against India at Headingley today when they resume 42 runs ahead with all 10 first innings wickets standing. Jimmy Anderson was delighted with his figures of 6-3 as India were bowled out for only 78. “We just absolutely nailed it today,” the veteran paceman said. Team GB’s cyclists missed out on another gold at the Paralympics in Tokyo as the Netherlands pipped them to top spot in the women’s B 1000m time trial. Dame Sarah Storey has described her emotions after winning a 15th gold – Team GB’s first – on the first day yesterday. Follow all the action at our live blog.
Harry Kane has found out the hard way that Spurs chairman Daniel Levy is a tough man to negotiate with after the want-away striker confirmed he is staying in north London. Pep Guardiola says he’s leaving Manchester City in two years time. Arsenal claimed their first win of the season with a 6-0 demolition of West Brom in the Carabao Cup, while Burnley inflicted more misery on Newcastle fans by winning their tie on penalties. Serena Williams, who is 40 next month, has withdrawn from the US Open because the hamstring she tore at Wimbledon has yet to heal. In cycling, Primoz Roglic claimed victory on stage 11 of the Vuelta a España to close the gap on Norway’s brilliantly named Odd Christian Eiking.
Business
British car factories produced the fewest cars for any July since 1956 as they struggled with worker absences and the global shortage of computer chips. Factories turned out 53,400 vehicles in July, a 37.6% drop when compared with the same month in 2020. Business leaders have called for a relaxation of post-Brexit visa rules to help ease labour shortages that they say threaten supply chains ahead of Christmas. The FTSE100 looks like slipping around 0.3% this morning, while your pound will buy $1.375 and €1.169.
The papers
The Times leads with Ben Wallace’s warning about Afghans with the grave headline “‘Not everyone is going to get out’ Wallace admits”. The Guardian also leads on the defence secretary’s comments with “Head for the border, UK tells Afghans trying to flee” and the i has a similar “Britain tells Afghans to forget the airport and go to border”. Vaccines concern some of the other titles. The Mirror reports on the “Race to get booster jabs”, the Express has “Urgent plea to roll out booster jabs” and the Telegraph says “NHS draws up plans to vaccinate 12 year olds”. The Mail claims an exclusive with “Harry and Meghan ‘considered naming the royal racist’”, while the FT has “FCA’s Binance warning heightens concerns over crypto-platforms”. In Scotland, the National has “FM’s £1bn plus pledge to make NHS ‘stronger than ever’”.
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