COVID surge prompts U.S. Embassy to issue health alert "strongly" suggesting Americans plan to leave Afghanistan ASAP
CBSN
A surge in COVID-19 cases in Afghanistan has led the U.S. Embassy in Kabul to "strongly" suggest that Americans "make plans to leave Afghanistan as soon as possible."
The embassy issued a health alert Thursday describing dire developments in the pandemic. "New cases and deaths from COVID-19 have risen sharply throughout Afghanistan," the alert said. "Hospitals are reporting shortages of supplies, oxygen, and beds for both COVID-19 and non-COVID-19 related patients. U.S. citizens have reported being denied admittance to hospitals due to lack of space."Noumea — France's president held a flurry of meetings with local representatives in the restive Pacific territory of New Caledonia on Thursday, urging calm after deadly rioting, and vowing thousands of military reinforcements will stay in place to quell what he called an "unprecedented insurrection."
Kathmandu — Nepali climber Phunjo Lama on Thursday reached Mount Everest's summit in 14 hours and 31 minutes, smashing the record for the world's fastest ascent of the mountain by a woman. Climbers usually take days to reach the top of the 29,032-foot mountain, spending nights on its different camps to rest and acclimatize.