The Taliban on Saturday raised their flag over the Afghan presidential palace, the Associated Press reports.
The big picture: The milestone coincides with the 20th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks in the United States and comes less than one month after the Taliban took control of Afghanistan.
Abimael Guzmán, the founder of the Peruvian guerrilla group Shining Path that killed tens of thousands in the 1980s and '90s, died Saturday, government officials announced on Twitter.
The big picture: Guzmán, who died in prison at 86 years old, was captured in 1992 in Peru's capital, Lima. He was sentenced to life in prison after he was found guilty of aggravated terrorism and murder.
World leaders — from Queen Elizabeth II to Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau — paid tribute on Saturday to those lost in the 9/11 attacks 20 years ago.
Why it matters: World leaders honored the almost 3,000 victims lost as well as the bravery and resilience of first responders with ceremonies, tributes and messages.
The U.S. has withdrawn its most advanced missile defense system from Saudi Arabia in recent weeks, while the country faces persistent air attacks from Yemen’s Houthi rebels, the Associated Press reports.
The big picture: Tens of thousands of American forces remain in the Arabian Peninsula, but Gulf Arab nations are increasingly worried about the U.S.'s plans "as its military perceives a growing threat in Asia that requires those missile defenses," the AP writes.
Tens of thousands of Afghans have arrived in the U.S. over the last several weeks, but President Biden needs Congress' help to provide them needed care and expedited immigration pathways.
Why it matters: These refugees will be one of the lasting legacies of 9/11 and the 20-year war in Afghanistan that ended with America's withdrawal last month.
Twenty years after 9/11, U.S. counterterrorism strategy relies more on drones in the air than boots on the ground.
Why it matters: The days of a massive military presence to battle international terrorists are over. President Biden now plans to combat terror groups in Afghanistan from "over the horizon," and warns that the threat has "metastasized" beyond Afghanistan and al-Qaeda.
Welcome to a special edition of Axios AM that looks at the lasting impact of the Sept. 11 attacks and what we can expect in the coming years. It's led by Dave Lawler, author of the Axios World newsletter, with contributions from expert reporters across the Axios newsroom.
Why it matters: Immigrants comprise a quarter of the essential workers who remained active in the Île-de-France province during lockdowns, per data from a French health observatory.
The White House announced Friday that 21 U.S. citizens and 11 lawful permanent residents have been brought safely out of Afghanistan in the latest departures since the full U.S. troop withdrawal on Aug. 31.
State of play: A chartered Qatar Airways flight held 19 U.S. citizens while two other U.S. citizens and 11 lawful permanent residents traveled separately overland.
Queen Elizabeth II and the royal family support the Black Lives Matter movement, a senior representative said in a television interview that will be broadcast Friday, AP reports.
The big picture: The remarks come after Prince Harry and Meghan in March accused the family of racism, saying unnamed relatives expressed concern about how dark their baby's skin would be.
Lebanese President Michel Aoun on Friday announced the creation of the new government, with billionaire businessman Najib Mikati serving as the country's prime minister.
Why it matters: Lebanon has been without a government for more than a year, exacerbating its devastating economic crisis.
Construction was officially completed Friday on the controversial Nord Stream 2 pipeline, which will allow Russia to bypass Ukraine in delivering natural gas directly to the heart of Europe, according to Russian energy giant Gazprom.
Why it matters: The $11 billion pipeline has been condemned as a "Kremlin geopolitical project" by the Biden administration and is vigorously opposed by Ukraine, which considers it to be a grave threat to national security.
The European Central Bank just sent a signal that mirrors that of its U.S. counterpart: peeling off unprecedented pandemic-era support won’t be quick — leaving a full return to normal far out.
Why it matters: When and how the crisis-era measures end have big implications for global financial markets that have been buoyed by them.
President Biden used a call with Xi Jinping on Thursday night to test whether personal diplomacy with the Chinese leader can make more progress than the meetings among subordinates, who have been snubbing and rebuffing Biden's aides.
Driving the news: The call was the first between Biden and Xi in seven months. Since Biden's election they had only spoken once previously, on Feb. 10.
Epic Games says it "intends" to re-release its popular "Fortnite" battle royale game on iPhones and iPads in South Korea, citing the country's new law involving in-app purchases.
Why it matters: Epic's plan, announced tonight via a Tweet, would allow it to achieve one of its key goals in its ongoing fight with Apple, at least in one country.
Afghanistan is close to universal poverty, according to a United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) report released Thursday.
Why it matters: The U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan along with the COVID-19 pandemic and severe drought have set up the poverty rate to balloon. As much as 97 percent of Afghans could be below the poverty line by mid-2022, according to the UNDP.
