KEY COVID NOS. WORLDWIDE

Pos   /   Country   /   New Daily cases   /   Total Deaths   /        Daily Deaths /           Active Cases   /           Deaths/1M Pop

               World    5,73,626              /             45,32,374            /             8,793     /             1,86,26,752        /             581.5

1             USA        1,27,502              /             6,57,861              /             1,185     /             84,13,604            /             1,974

2             UK          32,181   /             1,32,535              /             50           /             11,90,730            /             1,940

3             Iran        31,319   /             1,07,794              /             643        /             6,78,342              /             1,265

4             Russia    17,813   /             1,83,224              /             795        /             5,54,687              /             1,255

5             Turkey   21,893   /             56,710   /             252        /             4,94,404              /             664

6             Brazil     25,586   /             5,80,525              /             882        /             4,61,895              /             2,709

7             Spain     7,767     /             84,340   /             194        /             4,07,827              /             1,803

8             Mexico  5,564     /             2,58,491              /             326        /             3,96,205              /             1,981

9             France   19,425   /             1,14,444              /             136        /             3,95,143              /             1,749

10           India      43,072   /             4,39,054              /             462        /             3,85,516              /             315

11           Malaysia              20,897   /             16,664   /             282        /             2,67,863              /             507

12           Honduras             1,180     /             8,850     /             11           /             2,23,060              /             877

13           Japan     13,638   /             15,994   /             48           /             2,21,812              /             127

14           Vietnam               12,607   /             11,064   /                            /             2,12,172              /             112

15           Argentina            6,731     /             1,11,812              /             205        /             1,99,667              /             2,448

16           Indonesia            10,534   /             1,33,023              /             532        /             1,96,281              /             480

17           Thailand               14,666   /             11,589   /             190        /             1,71,368              /             166

18           Poland   285        /             75,345   /             5             /             1,56,241              /             1,993

19           South Africa       7,084     /             82,261   /             431        /             1,50,835              /             1,367

20           Philippines           13,827   /             33,448   /             118        /             1,45,562              /             301

25           Pakistan               3,838     /             25,788   /             118        /             94,573   /             114

42           Bangladesh         3,357     /             26,195   /             86           /             48,438   /             157

AFGHANISTAN: JOE BIDEN DEFENDS US PULL-OUT AS TALIBAN CLAIM VICTORY

The hardline Islamist Taliban celebrated their total return to power on Tuesday with gunfire and diplomacy, after the last U.S. troops flew out of Afghanistan to end two decades of war.

Thousands of Taliban supporters on Tuesday poured on to the streets of Kandahar, the spiritual birthplace of the Islamist movement, waving flags and shouting “God is greatest”, celebrating the momentous U.S. exit from Afghanistan.

A chorus of car horns filled the main square of Afghanistan’s second-biggest city as a joyous crowd hailed the withdrawal of the last American troops after a 20-year war.

Volleys of “Allahu akbar, Allahu akbar” (God is greatest) rang out across Shaheedan Square, which was awash with men and boys in traditional clothing, many waving the black-and-white Taliban standard.

“Congratulations to Afghanistan... this victory belongs to us all,” Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid told reporters hours later on the runway of the airport.

Mujahid said the Taliban’s victory was a “lesson for other invaders”.

Speaking from the White House, US President Biden said the nation owed a debt of gratitude to the troops who died in the evacuation mission. “Thirteen heroes gave their lives,” he said in a speech in which he offered no apologies for either his decision to end the war or the way in which his administration executed that mission. “We owe them and their families a debt of gratitude we can never repay, but we should never, ever, ever forget.”

Biden appeared intent on forcefully rejecting criticism of the end of the 20-year war in Afghanistan, offering a defensive recounting of his decision-making and blaming former president Trump for negotiating a bad deal with the Taliban that boxed Biden and his team in. “That was the choice, the real choice between leaving or escalating,” Biden declared, his tone angry as he opened the first minutes of his remarks. “I was not going to extend this forever war.”

Biden hailed what he called the “extraordinary success” of the evacuation of Kabul as he vehemently defended his decision to end America’s war in Afghanistan, just one day after the end of a two week rescue of 1,25,000 people from Kabul.

AT UNSC, RESOLUTION STRESSES SAFE PASSAGE

A divided UN Security Council adopted a resolution late on Monday night asking the Taliban to allow safe passage for those seeking to leave Afghanistan and demanding that it should not harbour groups that threaten or attack any country or to shelter and train terrorists.

With abstentions by China and Russia, the other 13 members, including India and the US, voted in favour of UNSC Resolution 2593 which specifically mentioned Lashkar-e-Toiba, Jaish-e-Mohammed, etc. that are still listed as terror groups by the UNSC.

The resolution did not mention the proposal backed by France for the creation of a safe zone in Kabul. It was tabled by Permanent Members — the US, France and the UK. Russia and China objected to the exclusion of groups like ISIL (Islamic State in Iraq and Levant) and East Turkestan Islamic Movement.

The resolution also stressed the importance of upholding human rights, reaching an inclusive political settlement and combating terrorism.

CHINA OPENS FIRST ROAD-RAIL TRANSPORT LINK TO INDIAN OCEAN

The first shipments on a newly-launched railway line from the Myanmar border to the key commercial hub of Chengdu in western China, that provides China a new road-rail transportation channel to the Indian Ocean, were delivered last week, state media reported on Tuesday.

A “test cargo” through what is being called the China-Myanmar New Passage arrived at the Chengdu rail port in Sichuan province on August 27, the official China News Service reported.

The transport corridor involves a sea-road-rail link. Goods from Singapore reached Yangon Port, arriving by ship through the Andaman Sea of the northeastern Indian Ocean, and were then transported by road to Lincang on the Chinese side of the Myanmar-China border in Yunnan province. The new railway line that runs from the border town of Lincang to Chengdu, a key trade hub in western China, completes the corridor.

“This passage connects the logistics lines of Singapore, Myanmar and China, and is currently the most convenient land and sea channel linking the Indian Ocean with southwest China,” the China News Service said, adding that "the one-way journey saves 20 to 22 days”.

JAPAN SEEKS FRESH HIKE IN MILITARY BUDGET TO COUNTER CHINA

Japan's defense ministry is seeking an annual budget increase that will add to past hikes to expand military spending over a decade by almost a sixth.

The ministry's budget proposal, released on Tuesday, seeks an increase of 2.6 percent in spending, to a record 5.48 trillion yen (US$49.93 billion), for the year starting April 1.

Finance ministry officials will review, and could amend, the request before sending it to Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga's cabinet for approval.

With the defense spending increases, Japan's strategy is to build a force armed with the latest equipment.

Big-ticket spending requests include 130 billion yen for 12 Lockheed Martin Corp F-35 stealth fighters, four of which will be short take-off and vertical landing (STOVL) B variants operating off converted helicopter carriers.

The defense ministry is asking for 105 billion yen next year to develop its first new domestic jet fighter in three decades. The project, expected to be completed in the 2030s, at a cost of about US$40 billion, is being led by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries.

Japan's forces, which defend its islands alongside US units, also want money for new compact warships and funds to buy and develop longer-range missiles to strike distant enemy targets, including land bases and also for for space-related forces, such as satellites and lasers to track targets beyond the atmosphere.

SIX SENTENCED TO DEATH IN B’DESH FOR KILLING GAY ACTIVISTS

Six members of an Islamist militant group were sentenced to death on Tuesday by a court in Bangladesh for the killing of two gay rights campaigners five years ago. Xulhaz Mannan, 35, the editor of Bangladesh’s first LGBTQ+ magazine, and actor Mahbub Rabbi Tonoy, 25, were hacked to death in Dhaka in 2016 in an attack claimed by Ansar Al Islam, the regional arm of al-Qaida. The killings were part of a series of attacks on atheist bloggers, academics and other minorities.

SOUTH KOREA BANS GOOGLE, APPLE PAYMENT MONOPOLIES

South Korea’s National Assembly has approved legislation that bans app store operators such as Google and Apple from forcing developers to use their in-app payment systems. South Korea is reportedly the first country in the world to pass such a bill, which becomes law when it is signed by the president, whose party has backed the legislation. The tech giants have faced widespread criticism over their practice of requiring app developers to use in-app purchasing systems, for which the companies receive commissions of up to 30%. The legislation bans the requirement, which means the companies must allow alternative payment systems. It says the ban is aimed at promoting fairer competition.

DRONE ATTACK ON SAUDI AIRPORT; 8 HURT

A bomb-laden drone on Tuesday crashed into an airport in southwestern Saudi Arabia, wounding eight people and damaging a civilian plane, the latest assault amid its war in neighbouring Yemen. The Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen blamed the assault on Iran- backed Houthi rebels, saying it was the second such strike on Abha airport. An earlier ballistic missile attack scattered shrapnel across the tarmac but caused no casualties.