Monday morning news - August 23, 2021

For WORLD Radio, I'm Kent Covington. 

Terror threats loom over Kabul evacuations » Terror threats from ISIS are forcing the U.S. military to develop new ways to get evacuees out of Kabul.

President Biden addressed the crisis in Afghanistan from the White House on Sunday.

BIDEN: We know that terrorists may seek to exploit the situation and target innocent Afghans or American troops. We’re maintaining constant vigilance to monitor and disrupt threats from any source.

The U.S. Embassy in Kabul issued a new security warning Saturday, telling U.S. citizens not to travel to the Kabul airport without individual guidance from the U.S. government.

The British military reported on Sunday that at least seven Afghans died in a panicked crush of people trying to enter the airport. Thousands are still trying to flee the country in a chaotic exodus.

Pentagon spokesman John Kirby told reporters over the weekend…

KIRBY: You have seen the images over the last 24, 48 hours yourself of the situation outside the perimeter of the airport, and it changes. It changes almost by the hour, and it changes in locations around the airport. It’s very, very fluid and dynamic.

President Biden says despite the chaos, evacuations are speeding up. He said Sunday U.S. and allied troops airlifted 11,000 people out of Kabul in a 36-hour period.

The Pentagon on Sunday ordered six U.S. commercial airlines to help move evacuees from temporary sites outside of Afghanistan.

At least 10 killed in Tennessee flash floods; dozens missing » President Biden also addressed catastrophic flooding that killed at least 22 people in Tennessee over the weekend.

BIDEN: I want to begin by expressing my deepest condolences for the sudden and tragic loss of life due to this flash flood. I know we’ve reached out to the community and we stand ready to offer them support.

Rescue crews on Sunday searched for dozens of people reported missing.

Gushing water swept cars off of roads, took out cellphone towers, and caused untold damage in rural areas just over an hour west of Nashville.

Dickson County Emergency Management Dir. Rob Fisher...

FISHER: It’s the most rain I’ve ever seen come though Dixie County. We’ve had areas flooding that we have never had flooded before.

Humphreys County Sheriff Chris Davis said many of the missing lived in the neighborhoods where the water rose the fastest.

Tropical Storm Henri stikes New England coast » Meantime, in the Northeast, Tropical Storm Henri slammed the Atlantic Coast with heavy wind and rain on Sunday.

The storm blew ashore on the coast of Rhode Island, knocking out power to over 100,000 homes.

The storm was downgraded from a hurricane before reaching New England. Many breathed a sigh of relief in a region that has not taken a direct hit from a hurricane in decades.

But FEMA administrator Deanne Criswell said the storm posed a threat to communities many miles from the coast.

CRISWELL: As we go inland into the mountainous areas that have already seen a tremendous amount of rain over the last couple of weeks, this additional rain is just going to cause more flooding inland.

Several major bridges in Rhode Island, which stitch together much of the state, were briefly shuttered Sunday, and some coastal roads were nearly impassable.

Supreme Court temporarily halts Remain in Mexico reinstatement » The Supreme Court is temporarily halting a lower court ruling that would have forced the government to reinstate the so-called “Remain in Mexico” policy at the southern border.

The Trump-era policy required migrants seeking asylum in the United States to wait south of the border as their applications were processed. President Biden reversed that policy.

Justice Samuel Alito issued the temporary stay over the weekend. It will remain in effect until tomorrow night so the high court can consider filings in the case.

A federal judge in Texas had previously ordered that the program be reinstated Saturday.

Officials have reported a months-long record-shattering surge of migrants at the southern border.

I’m Kent Covington. For more news, features, and analysis, visit us at wng.org. 

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