AI is already creeping into election campaigns. NZ’s rules aren’t ready 
Trump Says U.S. Attacks on Iran Will Continue, Warns of More American Casualties 
Marco Rubio to Brief Congress After U.S.-Israeli Strikes on Iran 
Netanyahu Suggests Iran’s Supreme Leader Khamenei May Have Been Killed in Israeli-U.S. Strikes 
Israel Launches Fresh Strikes on Iran After Death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei 
Trump Announces U.S. Strikes on Iran Navy as Conflict Escalates 
HHS Adds New Members to Vaccine Advisory Panel Amid Legal and Market Uncertainty 
UK Accepts U.S. Request to Use British Bases for Defensive Strikes on Iranian Missiles 
Failure of US-Iran talks was all-too predictable – but Trump could still have stuck with diplomacy over strikes 
Iran Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei Killed in Israeli, U.S. Strikes: Reuters 
Trump Launches Operation Epic Fury: U.S. Strikes on Iran Mark High-Risk Shift in Middle East 
Middle East Conflict Escalates After Khamenei’s Death as U.S., Israel and Iran Exchange Strikes 
Australia Rules Out Military Involvement in Iran Conflict as Middle East Tensions Escalate 
Argentina Tax Reform 2026: President Javier Milei Pushes Lower Taxes and Structural Changes 
Macron Urges Emergency UN Security Council Meeting as US-Israel Strikes on Iran Escalate Middle East Tensions 
Trump to Address Nation as U.S. Launches Strikes in Iran, Axios Reports 
The US and President Joe Biden have been taking criticism from many regarding the withdrawal of the US from Afghanistan and the rapid takeover of the Taliban. The former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Tony Blair added on to the criticism, calling the withdrawal “imbecilic.”
Blair wrote a piece that was published on his website, the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change, criticizing Biden’s decision to withdraw US troops from Afghanistan. The decision was met with very mixed reactions, mostly from lawmakers and commentators, as many veterans in the US have voiced their support for the withdrawal. Despite the criticism, Biden has defended his stance on the US exit from the war-torn country even as the Taliban took over Afghanistan.
To note, Blair was the prime minister when the UK and the USA started the war in the country and ordered the UK’s invasion of Afghanistan. Biden kept the agreement former President Donald Trump, and former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo made with the insurgent group back in 2020.
“We didn’t need to. We chose to do it. We did it in obedience to an imbecilic political slogan about ending the ‘forever wars.’ We did it with every jihadist group around the world cheering,” wrote Blair.
Blair also criticized the so-called “abandonment” of Afghans as acting opposite from the interests of both the US and the UK. The former prime minister’s comments follow reports of violence that occurred in Kabul, with seven people getting killed at Kabul airport at the hands of the insurgent group.
Meanwhile, a poll by NBC released Sunday showed that Biden’s job approval ratings have taken a dip in the midst of the criticism over the Afghanistan withdrawal and the rising COVID-19 cases in the country. The poll showed that 49 percent of all adults that took part in the survey approved of Biden’s performance while 48 percent disapprove, a rise in nine percentage points in the latter.
From all the survey participants who are registered voters, 50% have said they approve of Biden’s performance as president, while 48% disapproved. 1000 adults were interviewed by the network, and the survey has a margin of error of either plus or minus 3.10 percent. The survey also took place between August 14 and August 17.
