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Podcast: Afghanistan on the brink as Taliban 2.0 reclaims the country
By Bianca Hall
The Taliban has resumed its grip on power in Afghanistan after taking control of the capital, Kabul, on Sunday. The speed with which Taliban forces reclaimed the country has sparked chaotic scenes at Kabul’s airport as Afghans, foreigners and diplomats try to flee.
For the past 20 years, young Afghans have grown up under a relatively liberal US-backed government, with access to education and work for girls and women, social media and other freedoms.
Does anyone really expect Taliban 2.0 to be any different to the entity of 20 years ago and retain those freedoms? The early signs are ominous.
Overnight protests in Jalalabad province turned deadly, with Taliban gunmen killing several people and wounding more than a dozen others.
Today on Please Explain, world editor Michelle Griffin joins Bianca Hall to discuss the unfolding situation in Afghanistan and whether Western governments should have seen this coming.
Sydney backpacker hostel among NSW venue alerts
By Daniella White
A Sydney backpacker hostel is among new COVID-19 exposure sites listed by NSW Health.
Health authorities have stopped publishing venues visited by cases in Greater Sydney except for the most high-risk locations. Regional locations are still regularly updated.
Anyone who attended the following locations is a close contact (tier 1) and must get tested and isolate for 14 days:
- Newtown - Summer House Backpackers - all day on August 12 and 13
- Dubbo - Burger Urge - August 14 between 6.45pm and 7pm
Anyone who attended the following venue must get tested and isolate until receiving further advice:
- Raymond Terrace - Woolworths - August 8 between 7.20am to 10.50am
All exposures sites are available to view here.
Immigration Minister won’t put number on Afghan refugee intake
By Jennifer Duke
Immigration Minister Alex Hawke has not committed to match the UK and Canada’s promise to bring in 20,000 Afghan refugees.
Mr Hawke told the ABC that Australia’s promise to accept 3000 Afghan refugees will be a “floor” but wouldn’t provide an estimate for how high the intake might ultimately be. This figure comes out of this year’s existing humanitarian cap of 13,750 people.
Mr Hawke says women and children will be prioritised. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen
“We know it will go up and it will be a bigger number and we will continue to update people as the humanitarian crisis and the situation evolves after the immediate emergency of the evacuation from Kabul,” he said, adding families, minorities, women and girls would be prioritised.
There were 76 people evacuated overnight, including Australian citizens. Mr Hawke said some Australians had come forward in the past 24 to 48 hours and Australia had also offered New Zealand citizens passage.
Afghan nationals who worked in Defence or Foreign Affairs are being given the same priority as Australian citizens and permanent residents.
“Everyone has been caught short by the situation that is unfolding,” he said.
Asked whether he thinks the Taliban have changed, he said he was “sceptical”.
He said one test to determine whether the Taliban can be trusted is whether they meet their international obligations to the countries on the ground who are trying to evacuate people.
Meanwhile former SAS captain and federal MP Andrew Hastie has rebuked the notion Australia’s rescue mission in Afghanistan is behind the eight-ball, saying the government resettled 430 Afghans in the past three months alone.
“Our government was ahead of the curve. We started packing up several weeks, months ago in fact,” he told reporters in Perth.
Mr Hastie said “every interpreter who went out on the ground got shot at or exposed to roadside bombs” has had their case resolved by the government.
He said he was surprised at the speed at which the Taliban had wiped out the gains made by NATO forces in the country over the past two decades.
PM rubbishes idea of COVID-zero approach
By Jennifer Duke
The idea of reaching COVID-zero has been rubbished by Prime Minister Scott Morrison, who said this has “never” been the plan in Australia.
Mr Morrison said people often refer to different things when discussing the idea of COVID-zero and reaching no cases in quarantine and the community was not the Australian plan.
“I am assuming that is not what premiers are referring to when they say COVID-zero,” he said.
“What we are seeking to achieve is cases minimised as far as possible.”
He said a suppression strategy would not be successful without a higher level of vaccination than is currently in the community.
“Suppress, vaccinate, drive the cases as low as you can that are infectious in the community,” he said.
Mr Morrison said lockdowns were “terribly impactful” on the community, mental health and the economy and at 80 per cent vaccination rates COVID could be managed without necessarily requiring lockdowns.
In the meantime, lockdowns are part of the suppression toolkit but he said with Delta they were less effective.
“In some states they can get them down to those numbers and have zero infections in the community, some states are in that situation. Others are not,” he said. “What I do know is this: once Delta gets in it is very hard to achieve. But that doesn’t mean you stop trying.”
New joint operations centre in Dubbo to increase vaccination access
By Jennifer Duke
The NSW and federal governments will set up a joint operations centre for the far west and western part of the state based out of Dubbo to increase vaccination and testing services.
Health Minister Greg Hunt said the first of five health teams had been trained and would be deployed on Friday to provide assistance in these remote communities.
“These teams of up to 14 people each will assist with vaccination, testing, and clinical assistance if required,” Mr Hunt said.
Latisha Carr-McEwan and her children at a Dubbo testing clinic on Monday. Credit:Kate Geraghty
He said 29 Royal Flying Doctor services would be heading through different communities from August 12 to August 31.
Mr Hunt said a population the size of Brisbane had been vaccinated over a 10-day period.
“Over the last 24 hours, 309,010 Australian stepped forward to be vaccinated,” he said. “Every one of those is a dose of hope. Every one of those means more individual Australians are protected and more Australians collectively are protected.”
Prime Minister Scott Morrison said the advice on vaccinations for younger children was “imminent” but he was keen to see the roll-out happen this year.
“One of the best ways to protect your children is to get vaccinated yourself,” Mr Morrison said. “That was one of the clear pieces of advice coming out of the Doherty Institute modelling. One of the most effective ways of stopping the spread of COVID-19 to children is for parents to be vaccinated.”
Vaccination has already been open for children aged between 12 and 15 with underlying conditions or who are Indigenous or live in remote areas. This accounts for about 220,000 children. Mr Hunt said the states may be able to organise for schools to offer vaccinations for younger children more broadly.
Australians aged 16-39 eligible for vaccination from August 30
By Jennifer Duke
Switching to the COVID-19 vaccine rollout, Prime Minister Scott Morrison has announced that Australians aged 16 to 39 will be able to get vaccinated after August 30.
Despite speeding up the vaccination options, Mr Morrison has urged Australians not to make a booking yet.
“We will advise when bookings can be made. It isn’t today,” he said. “We will advise when the time will come over the course of the next week.”
Some under-39s have already been receiving doses through state-run clinics, such as this one in Sydney’s south which opened this week.Credit:James Brickwood
He said 16 to 39-year-olds represent 8.6 million Australians, of which 1.2 million are between 16 and 18 years old.
People under 40 have been able to access AstraZeneca provided they obtained GP advice and provided informed consent, but this will mean the Pfizer vaccine becomes more widely available.
Mr Morrison said he was still waiting for formal interim advice about vaccinations for 12 to 15-year-olds.
“We will take further steps but I want to assure parents in particular, vaccinating children is something we take really seriously and we do it very carefully,” he said.
PM says first flight of rescued Afghans will depart for WA soon
By Jennifer Duke
A flight of Australian citizens and Afghan visa holders will leave the Al Minhad Air Base in the next few hours for Western Australia but Prime Minister Scott Morrison has warned the weather is presenting a challenge.
Speaking at a press conference this afternoon, Mr Morrison said that last night 40 Australian Defence Force personnel were deployed into Kabul in addition to those already there and a provisions drop was provided through the UK to assist those on the ground in Afghanistan.
Australia’s rescue mission has so far taken 76 people out of Kabul. Credit:ADF
“On the same flight back out of Kabul that night, 76 people were evacuated including Australian citizens and Afghan visa holders, transferred to our base in Al Minhad,” Mr Morrison said.
“We have scheduled today a first flight to leave Al Minhad and come to Australia to Perth, which has not left yet but we anticipate that it should leave in the course of the next few hours, and will find its way to Australia,” he said.
The Prime Minister thanked the WA Government for providing quarantine facilities above the existing cap. A further three additional aircraft will be involved in the operations.
“The weather is closing in it, which will present challenges over the next few days, but equally the situation can always turn, and so we are moving as quickly as we can,” he said.
He said people were receiving medical treatment in Dubai but there is “quite a bit of trauma” for those who have left dangerous circumstances in Kabul.
Western Sydney mayor reopens playgrounds after public backlash
By Angus Thompson
A western Sydney council has reopened its playgrounds following an outcry from the community.
Blacktown mayor Tony Bleasdale said in a statement this afternoon the council’s decision to close playgrounds had been to reduce the number of people gathering outdoors to prevent the spread of the Delta variant.
The Sydney Morning Herald previously reported the council had shut playgrounds, turned off park lights and removed hoops from basketball courts following requests from local police.
There is no evidence of outdoor transmission of COVID-19 at playgrounds and NSW Health has not recommended the measure.
Caitlin and Liam Coyne playing on the new outdoor play equipment yesterday. Their parents bought it when they heard Blacktown council was closing all local playgrounds.Credit:Janie Barrett
Mr Bleasdale said the decision to reopen playgrounds was done after the council had “heard the calls from the community”.
“Council also made the decision being aware of the obligations of the Public Health Orders and noting that our neighbouring councils have kept their playgrounds open,” he said.
“Council will continue to maintain its high level of cleaning and maintenance of our parks, reserves and public spaces and additional signs will be erected reminding people of their responsibilities.”
Cr Bleasdale said that if public health orders changed to require playgrounds to close, then the council would implement those changes.
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews’ decision to close playgrounds in Melbourne has also been criticised by health experts who claim the move is unnecessary given the minimal risk, and the potential to harm children’s mental health.
Two more Sydney schools close after positive COVID cases
By Daniella White
Two public schools in Sydney’s inner-west and north-west have been forced to shut after COVID-19 cases were detected in the communities.
The NSW Department of Education said a staff member at Ferncourt Public School, in Marrickville, and a student at The Hills School, in Northmead, have tested positive to the virus.
The schools have closed, effective immediately, to allow time to clean and contact-trace.
All staff and students are asked to isolate until they receive further advice.
“The NSW Department of Education will continue to work closely with NSW Health to ensure the health and safety of all students and staff is maintained,” a spokesperson said.
Watch live: Prime Minister’s press conference
Prime Minister Scott Morrison will address the media at 3.15pm (AEST) in Canberra about the ongoing situation in Afghanistan.
He will also talk about the COVID-19 vaccine rollout after reached 50 per cent of the eligible population choosing to accept a dose.
Watch live below:
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https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMingFodHRwczovL3d3dy5zbWguY29tLmF1L25hdGlvbmFsL2F1c3RyYWxpYS1uZXdzLWxpdmUtbnN3LXZpY3RvcmlhLWFuZC1hY3QtY292aWQtMTktY2FzZXMtY29udGludWUtdG8tZ3Jvdy1hZmdoYW5pc3Rhbi1yZXNjdWUtZmxpZ2h0cy1iZWdpbi0yMDIxMDgxOC1wNThqdnkuaHRtbNIBngFodHRwczovL2FtcC5zbWguY29tLmF1L25hdGlvbmFsL2F1c3RyYWxpYS1uZXdzLWxpdmUtbnN3LXZpY3RvcmlhLWFuZC1hY3QtY292aWQtMTktY2FzZXMtY29udGludWUtdG8tZ3Jvdy1hZmdoYW5pc3Rhbi1yZXNjdWUtZmxpZ2h0cy1iZWdpbi0yMDIxMDgxOC1wNThqdnkuaHRtbA?oc=5
2021-08-19 07:03:46Z
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