Afghan women photography by Amber Clay
By Michelle Rahimi
Italy update
A plane carrying Italian diplomats and their Afghan assistants arrived in Rome from Kabul on Monday as Prime Minister Mario Draghi vowed all Afghan citizens who assisted Italy’s mission in the country would be protected. Draghi said in a statement that Rome was working with its European partners to find a solution to the crisis in Afghanistan which would protect human rights, particularly those of women.
The Italian ambassador to Kabul was on the flight along with roughly 20 Afghan citizens. One of them was Alif Uriake, a doctor, who called the situation he had fled in his country “a total disaster.”
France update
French firefighters hampered by strong winds battled on Tuesday to contain a fast-spreading wildfire in the southern tourist region of Var as campsites were evacuated in the latest summer blaze around southern Europe. Waves of extreme heat have hit much of the Mediterranean region in recent weeks, with wildfires from Spain to Turkey raising uncomfortable questions over global warming and preparedness.
Planes carrying water and 900 firefighters tackled the blaze, which began late on Monday. Some 5,000 hectares (12,350 acres) of land have been burnt so far, the Var prefect’s office said.
Afghan cities fell in just days and on Monday civilians thronged Kabul’s international airport after President Ashraf Ghani fled, saying he wanted to avoid a bloodbath, and the Taliban seized the capital.
“Afghanistan must not become the haven for terrorists that it once was,” Macron said in a national address. “It is a challenge for peace and international stability, against a common enemy. We will do everything we can so that Russia, the United States and Europe can cooperate efficiently, because our interests are the same.”
About the author:
Michelle Rahimi is a Diplomacy and International Relation’s Master’s candidate at the School for International Training, located in Brattleboro, Vermont, United States of America.
She obtains an extensive passion for international relations with first-hand knowledge from traveling across many countries and is experienced in working with different teams and individuals from diverse cultural and socio-economic backgrounds.
