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☆ ‘Nobody wants to come this way’
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Filed: February 1, 2023, 11 a.m. GMTTheir journey starts with a humanitarian visa for Brazil: one of the few remaining exit routes for Afghans fleeing Taliban rule. More than a year after the chaotic U.S. withdrawal from Kabul, the number of Afghans crossing the U.S.-Mexico border to seek asylum in the United States has soared. Hundreds of people each month are risking their lives to get there on a human smuggling route notorious for kidnapping, robbery and assault. Eleven said they made it to the United States; Reuters has not been able to confirm the whereabouts of one person a reporter interviewed in Mexico. In recent weeks, Taliban spokesmen have said that Afghanistan is the “home of all Afghans” and that those who have left can come back.

☆ Utah is poised to be the first state to pass a gender-affirming care ban in 2023
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-28 | by ( Jo Yurcaba | Jo Yurcaba Is A Reporter For Nbc Out. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +5 min

Utah is likely to become the first state to ban gender-affirming medical care for transgender minors this year. The Utah Senate approved a bill Friday that would bar minors from receiving gender-affirming surgeries and place an indefinite moratorium on their access to puberty blockers and hormone therapy. Spencer Cox, who became the second Republican governor last year to veto a bill that bars transgender students from playing girls’ sports. Bri Martin, the editor of the student newspaper at West High School, described gender-affirming care as “nothing short of life-saving,” the Salt Lake Tribune reported. The bill also allows minors to sue medical providers for malpractice for gender-affirming medical care if the minor “later disaffirms consent” before they turn 25.

☆ Afghan malnutrition rates at record high, U.N. food agency says
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

Malnutrition rates in Afghanistan are at record highs — with half the country enduring severe hunger year-round — a spokesman for the U.N.'s World Food Program said. “Half of Afghanistan endures severe hunger throughout the year, regardless of the season, and malnutrition rates are at a record high for Afghanistan,” said Phillipe Kropf, a spokesman for the United Nations food agency in Kabul. The Taliban takeover in August 2021 drove millions into poverty and hunger after foreign aid stopped almost overnight. Ebrahim Noroozi / APAid agencies have been providing food, education and healthcare support to Afghans, including heating, cash for fuel and warm clothes. “Since the Taliban have come, the economic condition is so bad and people don’t have food to eat.

☆ How Scripps News, the streaming and broadcast network formerly known as Newsy, is pivoting to anti-partisan, 'fact-based' reporting
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( Claire Atkinson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

Streaming and broadcast news network Newsy has been rebranded as Scripps News. The network formerly known as Newsy has a presence on TV stations owned by Scripps and its ION Media stations and is accessible via free over-the-air digital antenna and several streaming platforms — including Roku, Amazon Fire and Apple TV. The company, which pulled Newsy from cable packages in 2021, boasts that Scripps News offers the only free 24/7 national news broadcast. Scripps News is also absorbing scores of executives from a national desk that fed the company's 61 local stations. Its local stations pulled in $208 million in ad revenue thanks to the midterm elections.

☆ Americans can sponsor refugees directly under program launching this week
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( Ted Hesson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, Jan 18 (Reuters) - Groups of Americans will be able to directly sponsor refugees for resettlement in the United States under a new program launching on Thursday, three people familiar with the matter told Reuters, a step that could bolster admissions and reduce government costs. The sponsor groups will also be required to pass background checks and create a support plan. The program will aim to find U.S. sponsors for 5,000 refugees in fiscal year 2023, which ends on Sept. 30, another of the sources said. The administration also used parole to admit Afghans and Ukrainians and piloted sponsor programs to support them in the United States. Refugee Resettlement Program, which takes referrals from the United Nations and U.S. embassies.

☆ Americans can sponsor refugees directly under program launching this week -sources
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( Ted Hesson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

☆ Killing of Former Afghanistan Lawmaker Highlights Plight of Women Under Taliban
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-17 | by ( Sune Engel Rasmussen | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The killing of a former lawmaker in her home has shocked Afghans and drawn attention to the lack of protection for women in the country as the Taliban continue to impose strict limitations on their rights, pushing them further out of public life. Mursal Nabizada , who was shot dead in her home in the early hours of Sunday by “unknown, armed individuals,” according to Kabul police, was one of a few female members of parliament who stayed in Kabul after the Taliban took control of the country in August 2021.

☆ WWE's smaller rival AEW interested in merger, sources say
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( Alex Sherman | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

All Elite Wrestling, a professional wrestling league owned by the Khan family, is interested in merging with World Wrestling Entertainment , according to people familiar with the matter. The idea that Vince McMahon, the controlling shareholder of WWE, would merge his company with the much smaller AEW is a long shot. AEW hasn't had talks with McMahon or Nick Khan, the company's chief executive, said the people. It's unclear what type of job McMahon would want with WWE after a sale, but WWE is a much larger and more established organization than AEW. McMahon, who was worth more than $3 billion as of July, is also known as the primary creative force behind WWE's storylines.

☆ Taliban criticises Prince Harry over Afghan killings comment
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Harry's highly personal book "Spare" went on sale in Spain days before its global launch on Jan. 10. When asked about Harry's comments, a spokesperson for Britain's Ministry of Defence said: "We do not comment on operational details for security reasons." Representatives of Prince Harry did not immediately respond to a request for comment. As is usual for the royal family, spokespeople for King Charles and Prince William have declined to comment. Some of those who were willing to talk said they thought Harry had gone too far.

☆ No more Newsy: The streaming and broadcast network rebrands as Scripps News under Warren Buffett-backed E.W. Scripps
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-31 | by ( Claire Atkinson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

Streaming and broadcast news network Newsy is being scrapped and rebranded as Scripps News. Parent company E.W. Bellini is a San Francisco-based reporter for Newsy, the 14-year-old streaming news platform owned by E.W. Scripps News is also absorbing scores of executives from a national desk that fed the company's 61 local stations. Its local stations pulled in $208 million in ad revenue thanks to the midterm elections.

☆ Save the Children, others suspend Afghanistan efforts after Taliban bar on female staff
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The administration on Saturday ordered all local and foreign non-governmental organisations (NGOs) to send female staff home until further notice. The joint statement also highlighted the effect of the ban on female staff on thousands of jobs in the midst of an enormous economic crisis. Earlier, international aid agency AfghanAid said it was immediately suspending operations while it consulted with other organisations, and that other NGOs were taking similar actions. Chargé d'Affaires Karen Decker had posted on Twitter questioning how the Taliban planned to prevent hunger amongst women and children following the ban. She pointed out that the United States was the largest humanitarian aid donor to the country.

☆ UK wages next year will be at their lowest level since 2006, report says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-23 | by ( Hanna Ziady | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

The report confirms that wages have stagnated in Britain even as inflation hits double digits, sparking the worst cost-of-living crisis in decades. That’s led to widespread strikes across the UK economy, encompassing railways, schools, nurses, hospitals and the postal service. “Despite a contracting economy, the UK remains an attractive destination for workers,” PwC economist Jake Finney said in a statement. “The rise in inactivity poses serious challenges to the UK economy. PwC’s Kupelian added that UK inflation likely peaked in October and “will gradually begin to return to target over the next two years.”

☆ Reversing a Trump-era decline, more people are now coming to the US — and fewer are leaving
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-22 | by ( Charles R. Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Net international migration to the US is projected to increase for the first time since 2016. Net international migration refers to the number of new immigrants minus those who have left. "This is the first time net international migration increased since 2016, marking the largest single-year increase since 2010," according to the bureau. Net international migration is calculated by counting the number of new immigrants coming to the US and subtracting the number of people who have left the country. The increase in net international migration comes despite a Trump-era border measure known as Title 42 remaining in effect.

☆ Foreign workers killed working on U.S. bases likely didn't get compensation required by U.S., report says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-20 | by ( Andrew W. Lehren | Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Courtney-Kube-Circle-Byline-Template.Jpg | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +5 min

Tens of thousands of workers from Nepal, the Philippines and other developing countries took jobs at U.S. military bases in Afghanistan. Called third-country nationals, or TCNs, because they were not from the U.S. or Afghanistan, they worked as cafeteria workers, janitors and often armed guards for the bases. When a car bomb or other Taliban attack occurred, Afghans and TCN contractors “were far more likely to be killed or injured,” said the report. During the interviews, Coburn and Gill found 12 different contract workers injured or killed who did not appear to have received proper compensation. When contractors are found to have violated insurance requirements, there is little punishment, according to the report.

☆ How one family’s struggle illustrates problems with the program meant to help Afghans who helped the US
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-13 | by ( Jim Sciutto | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —For more than a year, I have been trying to help a family leave Afghanistan for safety and a new life abroad. However, SIV approval does not equal freedom for him and other Afghans with similar status – far from it. And last week, Congress removed language from the National Defense Authorization Act that would have extended the program for another year. To get to one of those countries, Afghans need passports – a relative luxury for many. The State Department tells CNN it had been managing to get only about 250 Afghans and their family members out of the country per week.

☆ Factbox: Recent attacks on foreigners in Afghanistan
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

KABUL, Dec 12 (Reuters) - The Taliban took back control of Afghanistan last year as U.S. and foreign troops withdrew after 20 years of conflict following the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the United States. Following is a list of recent attacks on foreigners in Afghanistan:December, 2022* At least three attackers were killed by security forces in Afghanistan on Monday after armed men opened fire inside a hotel in central Kabul popular with Chinese nationals. * Cross-border shelling and gunfire between Afghanistan and Pakistan killed six Pakistani civilians and one Afghan soldier, officials on both sides of the frontier said, with each side accusing the other of starting the fighting. September, 2022* Two Russian embassy staff were killed in a suicide bombing near the country's diplomatic mission in the Afghan capital, Kabul, the Russian Foreign Ministry said. Compiled by Sudipto Ganguly in Mumbai; Editing by Arun KoyyurOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

REUTERS/Toby MelvilleLONDON, Nov 24 (Reuters) - Net migration to the United Kingdom rose to a record high of around 504,000 in the year to June 2022, official statistics showed on Thursday, driven by an increase in the number of non-European Union nationals. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said a recovery of travel following COVID-19, and an increase in arrivals of international students who had been studying remotely during the pandemic had contributed to the rise. At the time then Prime Minister David Cameron had failed for several years to hit a net migration target of less than 100,000 a year. The previous record high for net migration was just over 330,000 in 2015. August saw the highest number of small boat arrivals of any month since data has been collected, it said.

☆ Amy Schumer calls out Ye for antisemitic remarks in SNL monologue
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-06 | by ( Julianne Mcshane | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

Amy Schumer called out Ye, the rapper formerly known as Kanye West, for his antisemitic remarks in her Nov. 5 "Saturday Night Live" monologue. The comedian, 41, called out Ye, 45, in the context of a joke about her husband, Chris Fischer, who she has said has been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. His antisemitic comments also led sports brand Adidas, luxury fashion label Balenciaga, Gap and Foot Locker, among others, to end their business relationships with him. The latter restrictions were subsequently lifted, but Ye no long appears to have an active Twitter account. Sometimes, his remarks have included disavowing the diagnosis.

☆ Qatar to suspend evacuation flights for U.S.-bound Afghan refugees while it hosts soccer World Cup
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-25 | by ( Dan De Luce | Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Julia-Ainsley-Circle-Byline-Template.Jpg | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

Qatari officials have said they plan to suspend evacuation flights for Afghan refugees hoping to resettle in the U.S. while the country hosts soccer’s World Cup next month, according to refugee advocates, congressional aides and a source familiar with the Qatari government’s plans. Afghan refugees trying to book flights to Doha have received emails saying it’s not possible to reserve a seat until January, Afghans and advocacy groups said. Flights are continuing to operate at the moment but refugee organizations are worried the planes will soon stop flying out of Kabul. The Biden administration has not released up-to-date numbers on how many Afghans are in the pipeline for special immigrant visas. A State Department spokesperson said the U.S. has issued more than 18,000 special immigrant visas to Afghan applicants and their family members from January 2021 to Sept. 30, 2022.

☆ Afghan refugees camp out in Brazilian airport in search of new life
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-14 | by ( Fernando Cardoso | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Brazil has approved about 6,000 humanitarian visas for Afghan refugees since late last year. But local authorities near Sao Paulo's Guarulhos airport said they had little idea there would be dozens of Afghans arriving daily this month. The refugees told Reuters they arrived without promises of a place to stay and now the local government is scuttling to find places for them outside the airport grounds. Afghan women talk near makeshift tents made out of blankets as they camp at Sao Paulo International airport in search of refuge in Guarulhos, Brazil, October 12, 2022. The Sao Paulo state government is working with municipal authorities and civil society to attend to basic needs of the arriving refugees.

REUTERS/Ali KharaKABUL, Sept 27 (Reuters) - The Taliban have signed a provisional deal with Russia to supply gasoline, diesel, gas and wheat to Afghanistan, Acting Afghan Commerce and Industry Minister Haji Nooruddin Azizi told Reuters. Azizi said the deal would involve Russia supplying around one million tonnes of gasoline, one million tonnes of diesel, 500,000 tonnes of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and two million tonnes of wheat annually. The office of Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak, who is in charge of oil and gas, also did not immediately respond. He said Afghanistan also received some gas and oil from Iran and Turkmenistan and had strong trade ties with Pakistan, but also wanted to diversify. The European Union will ban Russian crude imports by Dec. 5 and Russian oil products by Feb. 5.

☆ Amazon, Pfizer Among Companies Pledging to Hire 20,000 Refugees
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-19 | by ( Jessica Donati | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

NEW YORK—Major U.S. companies will pledge to hire more than 20,000 refugees over the next three years, a number that refugee advocates say will help integrate the wave of Afghans and Ukrainians who arrived last year. The hiring commitments are expected to be announced later today at an event organized by the Tent Partnership for Refugees, which is pressing corporations to hire refugees. The group said that the pledges reflect a growing awareness by U.S. companies that hiring refugees benefits their business. It said research shows that consumers value ethical behavior and refugees make more loyal employees.

☆ Afghanistan is being overrun by crystal meth
▼ + stars: | 2021-05-07 | by ( Ali Latifi | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +14 min

The US is leaving behind a flourishing, violent trade in heroin and crystal meth in Afghanistan. HERAT, Afghanistan — For weeks, Afghan police had been staking out a single-family house they believed was being used as a meth lab. Afghanistan's drug trade generates an estimated $35 million a month for the Taliban and drug gangs. A mysterious grassIn 2017, rumors circulated in western Afghanistan that a mysterious form of grass had been found to contain the key ingredient in crystal meth. "So long as this war continues, the drug trade will continue to grow bigger and bigger.

☆ Meet Afghanistan's fearless Gen Z influencers, who are blowing up on TikTok and have more Instagram followers than the president
▼ + stars: | 2021-03-05 | by ( Ali Latifi | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +14 min

A group of women in Afghanistan are breaking through as Gen Z influencers on TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube. More Afghans are online, and dozens of Afghan women have 50,000 or more followers on at least one social platform. A generation of Afghan women in their 20s have mastered the art of living their lives on social media. The 26-year-old posts several times a day, and she has more followers on Instagram than the country's president, Ashraf Ghani. Ayeda Shadab photographed at the ancient Citadel in Herat, Afghanistan.

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