In early July, as Taliban insurgents were seizing territory from government forces across Afghanistan, fighters from the group walked into the offices of Azizi Bank in the southern city of Kandahar and ordered nine women working there to leave reut.rs/3yPiB7a 1/6
The gunmen escorted them to their homes and told them not to return to their jobs. Instead, they explained that male relatives could take their place, according to three of the women involved and the bank's manager 2/6
The incident is an early sign that some of the rights won by Afghan women over the 20 years since the hardline Islamist militant movement was toppled could be reversed if it returns to power 3/6
Two days after the episode at Azizi Bank, a similar scene played out at a branch of another Afghan lender, Bank Milli, in the western city of Herat, according to two female cashiers who witnessed it 4/6
Gains made in women's right have been touted as one of the biggest accomplishments during the two decades that U.S.-led forces have been deployed in Afghanistan, although they have mostly been made in urban centers 5/6
On the broader question of whether women would be allowed to work in banks in areas it controls, Mujahid added that no decision had yet been made reut.rs/3g3f8KK 6/6 via @rupamjn
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Taliban insurgents tightened their grip on Afghanistan on Friday, wrestling control of the second- and third-biggest cities as Western embassies prepared to send in troops to help evacuate staff from the capital, Kabul reut.rs/3xJeHva (1/6)
The defeats have fueled concern that the U.S.-backed government could fall to the insurgents within weeks, as international forces complete their withdrawal after 20 years of war (2/6)
Withdrawal has precipitated a worsening in the refugee crisis in Afghanistan reut.rs/37GrsMA (3/6)
Millions of dollars are being spent on non-fungible tokens (NFTs), including virtual clothes for online avatars, reports @e_howcroftreut.rs/3jVjuoG (1/5)
NFTs are unique items and their exclusivity makes them particularly desirable, which is why they can sell for so much reut.rs/3lVuAwf (2/5)
Hiroto Kai, whose real name is Noah, designs Japanese-inspired garments.
The 23-year-old sells kimonos for around $140 each. He says in the space of three weeks he made between $15,000-$20,000 (3/5)
Australian marine rescuers were working to free a humpback whale entangled in a shark net off Queensland's Gold Coast reut.rs/3lTkzQk
Footage showed Sea World staff reaching out with blades at the end of long poles to try and cut a large mass of netting with orange buoys and yellow weights off the whale's tail as it let out cries and thrashed its tail on the surface of the sea
The endeavor to assist the whale had begun on Wednesday when surfers in the area had tried to free the trapped animal from the netting
⚽ Lionel Messi's financial package in his move to Paris Saint-Germain includes a payment in #cryptocurrency fan tokens, a source told @Reutersreut.rs/3k4qEHh
Messi said he wanted to power PSG to their first Champions League trophy, putting the tearful farewell he bade to Barcelona behind him after signing a two-year contract with the deep-pocketed French powerhouse reut.rs/37DHKFP
Replica shirts bearing Messi's name are flying off the shelves, followers are flocking by the million to his new club's social media accounts and TV rights suddenly look a bargain: Lionel Messi's arrival in Paris has set the money train in motion reut.rs/3lXVdAD
This summer, millions of U.S. families have relied on a school meal program that the government has made less restrictive. It’s been a key social safety net experiment during the pandemic. But its future is uncertain reut.rs/3AtTxmy 1/6
Loosened rules allow families to pick up food from school districts to bring home to their children, instead of requiring kids to eat on site. There are also fewer limits on who is eligible reut.rs/3AtTxmy 2/6
The program allows parents like James Terry in Michigan to quickly pick up meals and return to work, and for grandparents or neighbors to get food for kids who can’t leave home. It’s helped stave off historically high rates of hunger among children reut.rs/3AtTxmy 3/6