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The UK and the US are facing criticism over their handling of the deepening crisis in Afghanistan.

Donald Trump has called for Joe Biden to resign in the wake of the Taliban’s takeover – describing the current situation as a “disgrace”.

In a statement, the former president wrote: “What Joe Biden has done with Afghanistan is legendary. It will go down as one of the greatest defeats in American history!”

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The end of America’s ‘forever war’

Live updates on Afghanistan as Taliban enters Kabul

However, Mr Trump has also been strongly criticised for the situation in Afghanistan as it was his administration which made the decision to withdraw troops and which made a deal with the Taliban in exchange for security guarantees.

The Trump administration agreed to the deal with the Taliban in February 2020.

Meanwhile, UK Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab has been accused of “going AWOL” after spending the past week on holiday abroad as the situation was unravelling.

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Tom Tugendhat, a veteran and Conservative MP who now chairs the Commons Foreign Affairs Committee, told the BBC that he does not know how the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office will respond – adding this is “the biggest single policy disaster since Suez”.

Government officials have said that Mr Raab is personally overseeing the Foreign Office’s response, has engaged with international partners, and returned to the UK yesterday.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said that the Taliban should not be recognised as the government of Afghanistan, but added it was clear there will be a new administration in the country very soon.

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PM: ‘There is a change of regime happening’

He has also called for the West to adopt a “united position … so that we do whatever we can to prevent Afghanistan lapsing back into being a breeding ground for terror”.

Mr Johnson confirmed that Sir Laurie Bristow, the UK’s ambassador to Afghanistan, has been “working around the clock” to evacuate British citizens – and has been at Kabul’s airport to help process applications.

The prime minister added: “Our priority is to make sure that we deliver on our obligations to UK nationals in Afghanistan, to all those who helped the British effort in Afghanistan over 20 years, and to get them out as fast we can.

“We are going to get as many as we can out in the next few days.”

The UN Security Council is going to meet later today.

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Afghans try to flee at airport

Another 1,000 troops have been sent to Afghanistan to help evacuate US personnel and keep Kabul’s airport secure – taking over air traffic control in the process.

However, the rapid collapse of the country’s government means American officials are increasingly concerned about the potential for a rise in terrorist threats against the US.

Back in June, senior leaders at the Pentagon had said that an extremist group such as al Qaeda could regenerate in Afghanistan and pose a threat to the US homeland within two years.

Because of the evolving situation, they now believe that terrorist organisations may be able to grow much faster than expected.

US intelligence agencies are now working on a new timeline based on these developing threats.

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The moment the Taliban took over Kabul

All of this comes as officials push back against criticism of what has widely been seen as an intelligence failure – and the hurried evacuations out of Kabul have been likened to the 1975 fall of Saigon.

Last month, President Joe Biden said the prospects of the Taliban “overrunning everything and owning the whole country is highly unlikely” – something that the hardline Islamist group has now managed to achieve in just over a week.

One senior intelligence official told the AP news agency: “A rapid Taliban takeover was always a possibility … As the Taliban advanced, they ultimately met with little resistance. We have always been clear-eyed that this was possible, and tactical conditions on the ground can often evolve quickly.”

Veterans have also expressed dismay at how quickly Afghanistan has fallen after 20 years of conflict, with more than 450 British personnel losing their lives during the war.

Jack Cummings, a former Royal Engineer, said: “Was it worth it, probably not. Did I lose my legs for nothing, looks like it. Did my mates die in vain, Yep.”

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Trump pick Matt Gaetz withdraws from consideration to be US attorney general

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Trump pick Matt Gaetz withdraws from consideration to be US attorney general

Donald Trump ally Matt Gaetz has withdrawn his name from consideration to be the next US attorney general.

Mr Gaetz, a controversial pick to be the country’s top legal official, said his selection was “unfairly becoming a distraction” to the transition of Mr Trump’s administration into the White House.

The Florida Republican had faced significant scrutiny over a federal investigation into sex trafficking allegations involving a 17-year-old girl.

He said in a post on the X social media platform: “There is no time to waste on a needlessly protracted Washington scuffle, thus I’ll be withdrawing my name from consideration to serve as attorney general. Trump’s DOJ (Department of Justice) must be in place and ready on Day 1.

“I remain fully committed to seeing that Donald Trump is the most successful president in history. I will forever be honoured that President Trump nominated me to lead the Department of Justice and I’m certain he will Save America.”

Mr Trump said in a post on his own social media site, Truth Social, that Mr Gaetz had a “wonderful future”.

“I greatly appreciate the recent efforts of Matt Gaetz in seeking approval to be Attorney General,” he wrote.

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“He was doing very well but, at the same time, did not want to be a distraction for the administration, for which he has much respect.”

Mr Gaetz previously faced a nearly three-year Justice Department investigation into sex trafficking allegations involving a 17-year-old girl, which ended in February 2023 without him facing any criminal charges.

He has always denied the allegations.

He has also been under scrutiny by the House Ethics Committee over wider allegations including sexual misconduct, illicit drug use and accepting improper gifts.

The inquiry was dropped on Wednesday 13 November when Mr Gaetz left Congress – the only forum where the committee has jurisdiction.

The Senate ethics committee is deadlocked on whether their report can be released.

Mr Gaetz’s withdrawal is a blow to Mr Trump’s push to install steadfast loyalists in his incoming administration and the first sign that he could face resistance from members of his own party.

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Dad who called 911 for help during break-in killed by Las Vegas police officer

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Dad who called 911 for help during break-in killed by Las Vegas police officer

A 43-year-old man was shot dead by police after calling 911 to report intruders had entered his home in Las Vegas.

Brandon Durham was at home with his 15-year-old daughter when he called the emergency line to report armed intruders were trying to break into his property on 12 November.

Bodycam footage shows Mr Durham struggling with a person over a knife in the moments before he was shot and killed at the scene.

“The loss of life in any type of incident like this is always tragic, and it’s something we take very seriously,” Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Assistant Sheriff Dori Koren said on Thursday.

The force is investigating the incident.

Mr Durham called 911 to report multiple people were outside shooting at his residence in Las Vegas’ Sunset Park neighbourhood, where he had been staying with his 15-year-old daughter, Sky News’ US partner network NBC reports.

It was one of multiple emergency calls reporting a shooting in the area.

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Mr Durham then said someone had managed to get into his home through the front and back doors of the property and he was locking himself in the bathroom, according to a police statement from 14 November, two days after the incident.

Officers reported to the scene at approximately 12:40am and could hear screaming from inside the residence.

One of the officers, Alexander Bookman, kicked open the front door and once inside, saw Mr Durham and another individual, later identified as 31-year-old Alejandra Boudreaux, struggling over a knife in a doorway.

Mr Bookman ordered them to drop the knife and about two seconds later, the officer fired the gun and Mr Durham appeared to be struck, the bodycam footage shows.

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Both Mr Durham and Mr Boudreaux fell to the ground and the officer fired another five shots. Roughly three seconds are believed to have gone by between the first and last shot, NBC reports.

Attempts were made to save the 43-year-old but he died at the scene.

Ms Boudreaux was taken into custody and is facing charges of home invasion with a deadly weapon; assault with a deadly weapon domestic violence; willful or wanton disregard of safety of persons resulting in death; and child abuse, neglect or endangerment.

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Homeless man charged in plot to bomb New York Stock Exchange

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Homeless man charged in plot to bomb New York Stock Exchange

A homeless man has been arrested and charged over a plot to bomb the New York Stock Exchange.

The 30-year-old man from Florida, Harun Abdul-Malik Yener, was arrested on Wednesday and charged with attempting to use an explosive device to damage or destroy a building used in interstate commerce, having unveiled some of his plans to undercover agents, according to the FBI.

They began investigating Yener in February based on a tip that he was holding “bomb-making schematics” in a storage unit.

Bomb-making sketches, many watches with timers, electronic circuit boards and other electronics that could be used for building explosive devices were found, the FBI said.

It also said he told undercover FBI agents that he wanted to detonate the bomb the week before Thanksgiving and that the stock exchange in lower Manhattan would be a popular site to target, and that doing so “will wake people up”.

An agent also allegedly recorded him saying: “I feel like Bin Laden.”

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He described how he hoped the bomb would “reboot” the US government, explaining that it would be “like a small nuke went off,” killing everyone inside the building, according to court documents.

The documents also claim he had rewired two-way radios so that they could work as remote triggers for an explosive device and planned to wear a disguise when planting the explosives.

Yener, who had also searched online for things related to bomb-making since 2017, was sacked from his job at a restaurant in Florida last year after his former supervisor said he threatened to “go Parkland shooter in this place”, the FBI added.

He had his first court appearance Wednesday afternoon and will be detained while he awaits a trial.

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