The United Nations has warned of an exponential rise in casualties from a powerful earthquake in eastern Afghanistan, as the Taliban said the death toll had surpassed 1, 400 on Tuesday, with more than 3, 000 people injured.
The figures provided by Taliban government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid were mainly for the province of Kunar.
Sunday night’s magnitude 6 earthquake affected several provinces, causing extensive damage. It flattened villages and trapped people under the rubble of homes constructed mainly of mud bricks and wood, which were unable to withstand the shock.
Rough terrain is hampering rescue and relief efforts, forcing Taliban authorities to airdrop dozens of commandos to evacuate the injured from places where helicopters cannot land.
A magnitude 5.2 aftershock, close to the epicentre of Sunday’s earthquake, rattled the area on Tuesday, according to the United States Geological Survey. There were no immediate reports of damage.
Indrika Ratwatte, the United Nations resident coordinator for Afghanistan, said rescuers are scrambling in a “race against time” to reach the mountainous and remote area. In a media briefing in Geneva on Tuesday, he warned of a surge in casualty numbers.
“We cannot afford to forget the people of Afghanistan who are facing multiple crises, multiple shocks, and the resilience of the communities has been saturated”, Ratwatte said, urging the international community to step forward.
“These are life-and-death decisions while we race against time to reach people”, he said.
It is the third strong earthquake since the Taliban seized power in 2021, and the latest crisis to beset Afghanistan, which is reeling from deep cuts to aid funding, a weak economy, and millions of Afghans forcibly returned from Iran and Pakistan.
Four-times Tour de France champion Chris Froome sustained a life-threatening injury to his heart in a training crash in southern France last week, his wife Michelle said.
The 40-year-old Briton was airlifted to hospital in Toulon after the August 27 crash, which also left him with broken ribs, a collapsed lung and a back fracture.
His wife said doctors discovered Froome had suffered a pericardial rupture – a tear in the protective sac surrounding the heart, often caused by blunt chest trauma.
“It was obviously a lot more serious than some broken bones,” she told The Times newspaper. “He’s fine, but it’s going to be a long recovery process. He won’t be riding a bike for a while.”
Froome, who has won seven Grand Tours – including two Vuelta a Espana titles and one Giro d’Italia victory – has struggled to regain his best form following a high-speed crash during training for the Criterium du Dauphine in 2019.
Last year, he expressed his desire to compete in the Tour de France one final time before retiring, but has faced further setbacks. He suffered a broken collarbone in a crash during the final stage of the UAE Tour earlier this year and was not selected for this year’s Tour de France.
No one even thought of this in their thoughts, according to a Kremlin aide who refuted Donald Trump’s claims that Russian, Chinese, and North Korean leaders were conspiring against the United States.
Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un discussed the deepening military partnership between Moscow and Pyongyang during talks on Wednesday in Beijing.
Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong-un, as they conspire against the United States of America, Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social.
Following a military parade in central Beijing, where Chinese President Xi Jinping presided over celebrations in Tiananmen Square to mark the 80th anniversary of the Japanese surrender and the end of World War II, the meeting was held at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse.
Difficulty number of world leaders, despite almost none from the West, were drawn to the event, which in part conveyed a message to the audience.
After a formal reception, the Kremlin claimed on social media that Putin and Kim travelled to the meeting in the same vehicle. Kim’s daughter Kim Ju Ae was present, according to images from North Korean state media.
Kim made his first public appearance alongside both Putin and Xi, which was a sign of unity during the parade in China.
Putin praised the bravery and heroism of North Korean soldiers, who he claimed fought alongside Russian forces in a Ukrainian incursion into Kursk, Russia’s border region.
Since Moscow and Pyongyang signed a strategic partnership pact in June 2024, Kim asserted, in turn, that cooperation has “significantly increased.”
If there is anything I can do to help you and the Russian people, I will act as if there is something more that is needed, a fraternal duty, a duty that we must bear, and I will be ready to do anything to help, Kim said.
According to South Korean officials, North Korea has sent about 15, 000 soldiers to Russia since last year in order to bolster Moscow’s war effort in Ukraine, along with significant military supplies, including artillery and KN-23 ballistic missiles.
According to analysts, Pyongyang is receiving cutting-edge Russian military equipment in return, including satellite guidance systems that could expand its missile arsenal.
For the first time in 24 years, Putin and Kim signed a treaty establishing a “Comprehensive Strategic Partnership” that revived diplomatic ties between the two sanctioned states in July 2024. Kim has previously had three meetings with Vladimir Putin.
North Korea only acknowledged that its soldiers had been killed in combat and that it had only confirmed that it had sent troops to support Russia’s war in Ukraine in April.
Kim met with the families of the soldiers killed last week in Ukraine, offering condolences for their “unforgiveable pain” and promising the bereaved “a beautiful life,” according to state media.
Kim hosted the families of the fallen soldiers, according to a report from the state-run Korean Central News Agency on Saturday, and he expressed “grief at having failed to save the precious lives of those who gave their lives to defend the country’s honor.
The North Korean leader expressed sympathy for the children who lost their fathers in his “heart breaks and aches.”
On Tuesday morning, Israeli drones were reportedly dropped close to peacekeepers removing roadblocks that were preventing them from reaching a UN position near the southern Lebanese border with Israel (UNIFIL).
Since the cessation of the hostilities agreement in November last year, this is one of the most serious attacks on UNIFIL personnel and assets, according to a statement released on Wednesday.
One grenade struck UN personnel and vehicles within 20 meters and three within 100 meters.
Israel has been violating the ceasefire that it signed in November of this year with Hezbollah, carrying out near-daily attacks on Lebanon, claiming to target Hezbollah members and sites, as well as killing numerous civilians, displaced communities, and destroyed infrastructure and residential structures.
According to UNIFIL, the Israeli army was informed of the location’s southeastern road clearance work.
According to UNIFIL, any actions that put an end to the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah and interfere with their legitimate duties are unacceptable and a serious violation of Resolution 1701 and international law.
UNIFIL patrols Israel’s southern border with Lebanon since it was established in 1978.
The UN Security Council approved a year-long, orderly and secure drawdown and withdrawal of Lebanon last week until the end of 2026.
Israel and the United States have heavily pushed for UNIFIL’s closure, despite the fact that UNIFIL has not fulfilled its stated purpose. They claim that the organization has provided political cover for Hezbollah since the 2006 war.
In addition to its invasion of south Lebanon in October, Israel is still occupying at least five locations on Lebanese territory. Israeli troops should leave south of Lebanon, according to the November ceasefire agreement, but that has not yet been done.
Naim Qassem, the group’s secretary-general, has criticized growing pressure to disarm the organization and warned that achieving Lebanon’s sovereignty could only be achieved by putting an end to Israel’s “aggression.”
Before talks on a national defense strategy can begin, Qassem claimed last month that the Lebanese government must first ensure that Israel adheres to the ceasefire agreement from November 2024.
The Hezbollah leader said that the resistance would continue to serve as a “strong barrier” that would prevent Israel from achieving its objectives and that it would be impossible for Israel to remain in Lebanon or carry out its expansionist project there.
At an ITV party after the pair, Chase star Paul Sinha blasted comic Adrian Edmonson.
Adrian Edmondson and his The Young Ones co-stars including Nigel Planer, Christopher Ryan and Rik Mayall(Image: PA)
Adrian Edmondson has been criticized as the “biggest douchebag in TV,” according to Paul Sinha, the Chase star.
The 55-year-old quizzer has claimed the Bottom star, 68, who is married to fellow comic Jennifer Saunders, 67, insulted him when he bumped into his comedy hero at an ITV bash.
Paul, who appeared on the Bad Boys Done Good podcast, said: “I was trying to fan boy him at an ITV party a few years ago.
Does anyone even know who this t*** is, he asked his mate in the end. and left laughing, of course.
You’re not even the funniest person in your marriage, I told you.
Prior to beginning a stand-up comedy career, Paul was a junior doctor in London before launching a quiz career on TV shows like The Weakest Link, Mastermind, and University Challenge: The Professionals.
Adrian Edmondson with wife Jennifer Saunders(Image: GETTY)
Paul previously discussed the effects of Parkinson’s disease on his comedy career after being diagnosed with it in 2019.
He claimed on Richard Herring’s podcast about Leicester Square Theatre, “I have no idea how long I’ll be a stand-up for, because I get more and more worn out each year.”
I simply want to stage a fun show there.
My time is running out, I declare without making the sound of dread. How much time is running out, exactly?
It could be five or ten years. I’m just enjoying myself, so I’m going.
“I believe that ending your career without regrets is important.”
Paul experienced two heart attacks while performing at the Edinburgh Fringe in 2023, making it the “worst week of his life.”
He had heart attacks, so he had to cancel two of his Fringe shows because he worried about “financial ruin.”
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If the funnyman pulled out of more shows, he said he would lose about £20,000 in sales.
After seeing the band perform in her home country of the UK and America, one lucky Oasis fan commented that there was a significant difference.
Kirsty saw the mega band in both the UK and United States(Image: Lewis Evans/Big Brother Recordings)
There was a significant difference between the shows that an Oasis fan who had the opportunity to watch the band perform on their comeback tour in both the UK and the US discovered.
Kirsty McCormack, deputy entertainment editor for The Mirror US, was lucky enough to secure tickets to watch Manchester rock icons Liam and Noel Gallagher at London’s Wembley Stadium and at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.
Kirsty and her partner managed to get tickets for the band’s August 3 show in London after fighting online with countless other devoted fans clamoring for tickets. Being able to see them at Wembley Stadium was even more special because it was close to where I was born and raised, she said, “and I genuinely felt privileged to have an Oasis ticket.”
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Liam Gallagher, Paul ‘Bonehead’ Arthurs, and Noel Gallagher onstage at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey on August 31(Image: Getty Images)
Kirsty told the Mirror US that seeing Liam and Noel Gallagher perform live on August 3 was “worth every penny I spent.” These kinds of memories are incomparable.
There’s nothing better than being surrounded by thousands or even thousands of total strangers who support a band the same way you do. Even though it’s nice to have a seat at a concert occasionally, I was SO glad to be in the middle, even if it did feel like a workout at times! !
The emotions were unfathomable. Everyone had the best of intentions, and the energy was contagious; without being there, I don’t think you can describe it. The “Oasis blues” are real, FYI.
Kirsty’s friends even spotted the differences from her social media posts(Image: Getty Images)
Kirsty, who is based in New York, acknowledged that she was jealous of some of her friends who were purchasing tickets for New Jersey dates at the end of August. She was able to get two tickets to the performance on August 31st, but she was concerned that the American audience might not be as enthusiastic as the UK audience.
She admitted, “I was skeptical about how the US crowd would compare to the UK crowd. I went to the Manhattan pop-up store last week and met a fantastic turnout of British and American fans eagerly anticipating the NJ shows.
Oasis has always been accused of “getting the US,” or of implying that America had no idea what the band and their cause were. And to be completely honest, I enjoyed the New Jersey show’s vibes.
“Yes, of course everyone went crazy as Liam and Noel walked onstage to their 2000 track ‘F–kin’ in the Bushes’, and there were plenty of singalong moments throughout the night, but the atmosphere just wasn’t the same. Even one of my friends replied to my Instagram Story the morning after and commented, “The crowd is tame!
No shade to the Americans, but they appeared to be quite reserved. Remaining silent, I actually feel bad for the people next to me and my partner! Oasis! is the band you can really let loose to.
She claimed that despite the fact that the crowd was “really lacking that feistiness,” she still had “an amazing time,” despite the fact that it wasn’t quite the same as Wembley.
Oasis Live ’25 will travel to Pasadena after playing two shows in New Jersey. On September 6 and 7, the band, which includes Cage the Elephant and Cast, will play at the Rose Bowl.
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The band will then spend two nights in Mexico on September 12 and 13, before returning to London for two more Wembley appearances.
Although rumors are already rifling about potential 2026 dates as fans ponder possible shows that will commemorate the legendary 1996 Knebworth and Maine Road concerts, the tour is currently scheduled to wrap up in So Paulo on November 22 and 23.
