At least 46 killed in bomb attack at Afghanistan mosque

Published

3 years ago

October 8, 2021

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At least 46 people have been killed and more than 140 wounded after a suicide bomber attacked a mosque in Afghanistan’s northeastern Kunduz province, a state-run news agency has reported.

Photos from the scene show bodies and bloodstains surrounded by rubble inside the mosque.

Rescuers could be seen carrying bodies wrapped in blankets from the building.

The bomb went off during the weekly Friday prayer service at the Gozar-e-Sayed Abad Mosque while the venue was packed with worshippers.

“This afternoon, an explosion took place in a mosque of our Shiite compatriots … as a result of which a number of our compatriots were martyred and wounded,” Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said on Twitter.

He said Taliban special forces had arrived at the scene and were investigating.

No group immediately claimed responsibility for the blast, but Islamic State militants have regularly attacked Afghanistan’s Shia minority.

The Bakhtar news agency, which is run by the ministry of information, reported that 46 people were killed in the blast and 143 wounded.

World

Polls open in French election that could see far-right in government

Published

3 hours ago

June 30, 2024

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Polls open in French election that could see far-right in government

Voters in France are heading to the polls today for a parliamentary election that could usher in the country’s first far-right government since the Second World War.

French President Emmanuel Macron called a surprise vote after his centrist alliance was soundly beaten in the European elections by Marine Le Pen’s far-right National Rally earlier this month.

Voting began at 8am (7am UK time), closing at 4pm in smaller towns and 6pm in bigger cities. A winner may be apparent on Sunday night.

France has a semi-presidential system, which means it has both a president and a prime minister.

The voting taking place today will determine who is prime minister but not president, with Mr Macron already set on remaining in his role until the end of his term in 2027.

If Ms Le Pen’s party wins an absolute majority, France would have a government and president from opposing political camps for only the fourth time in post-war history.

How does the election work?

There are 577 constituency contests, one for each seat in the National Assembly, which is the lower house of parliament.

Candidates with an absolute majority of votes in their constituency are elected in the first round.

In most cases, no candidate meets this criteria and a second round is held, which will be next Sunday – 7 July – when the final outcome will be confirmed.

To qualify for the run-off, candidates need first-round votes amounting to at least 12.5% of registered voters.

The top scorer wins the second round.

When will we have a result?

Voting ends at 8pm (7pm UK time), when pollsters publish nationwide projections based on a partial vote count.

Official results start trickling in, with counting usually fast and efficient and the winners of almost all seats likely to be known by the end of the evening.

World

New York Times calls on Biden to quit race after disastrous debate

Published

24 hours ago

June 29, 2024

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New York Times calls on Biden to quit race after disastrous debate

A defiant Joe Biden has attacked Donald Trump at a rally a day after the president’s “shocking” performance in a head-to-head debate.

His showing in the debate against Trump on Thursday night was described as an “unmitigated disaster” by some in his own party after he paused and stumbled his way through, prompting calls for him to step down.

Adding to those calls, The New York Times urged the president to quit the race to give another candidate a better chance at defeating Trump.

“Mr Biden has been an admirable president,” the newspaper said in a piece by its editorial board.

“But the greatest public service Mr Biden can now perform is to announce that he will not continue to run for re-election.”

It added: “As it stands, the president is engaged in a reckless gamble. There are Democratic leaders better equipped to present clear, compelling and energetic alternatives to a second Trump presidency.

“There is no reason for the party to risk the stability and security of the country by forcing voters to choose between Mr Trump’s deficiencies and those of Mr Biden.”

‘I can do this job’

Mr Biden has tried to quell anxieties since his performance. At a rally in North Carolina, he appeared to acknowledge the criticism, but struck a defiant tone.

“I don’t walk as easy as I used to, I don’t speak as smoothly as I used to, I don’t debate as well as I used to, but I know what I do know,” said Mr Biden. “I know how to tell the truth.”

“I give you my word as a Biden, I wouldn’t be running again if I did not believe, with all my heart and soul, I can do this job,” he told the rally.

Mr Biden attacked the former president’s criminal record, calling Trump a “one-man crimewave”.

“My guess is he set a new record for the most lies told in a single debate,” he added, telling the crowd he spent “90 minutes on the stage debating a guy with the morals of an alley cat”.

Hours later, Donald Trump was jubilant at a rally in Chesapeake, Virginia.

“Never mind that crooked Joe Biden spent a week at Camp David, resting, working, studying – he studied so hard he didn’t know what the hell he was doing,” Mr Trump told the crowd.

“Biden’s problem is not his age, […] he’s got no problem other than his competence. He’s grossly incompetent,” he added.

Bad debate nights happen

Barack Obama tweeted his support for President Biden on Friday evening, saying: “Bad debate nights happen. Trust me, I know.”

Joe Biden had a cold and sore throat during last night’s debate, the White House said.

But others remained unconvinced he should run for president.

“I do not think President Joe Biden can be the Democratic Party’s standard-bearer in 2024,” former White House director of global engagement Brett Bruen told Sky News’ Yalda Hakim.

“Last night’s performance was astonishingly bad. You cannot just be strong on the teleprompter,” he said.

But Anthony Scaramucci, former White House communications director, blamed the president’s poor performance on his preparation.

“He wasn’t prepped right for that debate. He’s an older man,” Mr Scaramucci told Yalda Hakim.

“You don’t fill his head with facts and figures he’s never going to remember.”

There have been repeated calls for President Biden to step down.

It’s “time to talk about an open convention and a new Democratic nominee,” one Democratic politician told Sky’s US partner network NBC News.

However, while Vice President Kamala Harris acknowledged that President Joe Biden had a “slow start” in the debate, she insisted that he finished “strong”.

President Biden’s campaign spokesperson said there are no conversations taking place about the president stepping aside from his re-election bid.

He also still plans to take part in the next debate against Donald Trump, which is slated for 10 September, said the spokesperson. They added that last night’s debate has not changed the campaign strategy.

At a Waffle House restaurant in Atlanta after the debate, Biden told reporters he did not have concerns about his performance. “It’s hard to debate a liar,” he said.

World

‘Double haters’ who dislike both Biden and Trump may well have swelled in number after debate

Published

24 hours ago

June 29, 2024

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'Double haters' who dislike both Biden and Trump may well have swelled in number after debate

On the pier in California’s Manhattan Beach, 21-year-old Stella and her friends are crowded round a phone watching videos of two old men rowing about their golf handicap.

It’s not the level of discourse they, or anyone else, hoped for from the presidential debate.

“It sounds like a drunk, blackout conversation they’re having at 3am,” one young woman says.

“I think Joe Biden is cognitively declining,” says another. “I think he was never fit to be president, and I don’t think he is now. I think there’s a clear, obvious answer to who is fit and that is Trump 2024.”

In affluent Manhattan Beach, 65% voted for Joe Biden in 2020 but some Democrat voters here are troubled by the version of the president they saw during the debate: Feeble voiced, stumbling over his words and unable to sell his vision for America.

“I felt disappointed, forlorn, despairing,” says Loretta. “He didn’t speak well at all. I believe that he’s not demented as people accuse him of, but his communication difficulties were evident.”

Loretta is a lifelong Democrat voter, but Biden’s debate performance might have changed her mind.

“I might have to hold my nose and vote for Trump,” she says. “He has bad character traits. But it’s certainly given me food for thought. Bad food, food poisoning.”

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Biden’s debate performance is one that has already spawned a thousand memes as well as panic in his own party that he might not have the vitality to prevail over Trump in an election campaign.

Genie, from Manhattan Beach, is 81, the same age as Biden. “Maybe at our age we’re a bit slower to articulate what we’re thinking, but I think he’s still viable and has the mental capacity to do the job,” she says. “My concern is the energy level.”

Harry Swanson, a Trump voter from New York, visiting his daughter in California, was not so forgiving in his assessment. “Biden’s out to lunch,” he says. “It’s no fault of his own. He’s just an older guy, put in an awkward position.”

“I don’t know who pulls the strings to put these people where they are,” he adds. “If Trump, who I like, was mentally like Biden, there’s not a chance I’d consider him. I mean, how could you?”

Biden has insisted he won’t step down as the Democratic Party’s nominee, but chatter has intensified about potential alternatives, including the governor of California.

Gavin Newsom is a rising star in the Democratic Party, tipped as a successor to Biden. But he’s standing squarely behind the leader for now.

“We’ve got to have the back of this president,” he says. “You don’t turn your back because of one performance.”

Scott, from Manhattan Beach, says he would prefer to see Newsom as the nominee. “He’s a very powerful presence and someone younger would be good,” he says. “I think he’d have more chance of beating Trump.”

Martin, from Chicago, agrees. “It would be in their best interests to get Biden to step down and have somebody else run for the Democrats because by the looks of it, it’s not looking good,” he says. “I just know that I would vote for anyone but Biden or Trump.”