Women And girls are going to suffer unspeakable harm. Is it a mistake to withdraw . You know, i think it is, yeah. Ithink. Because i think the consequences are going to be Unbelievably Bad. And. Im sad. Laura And i spent a lot of time with afghan women And. And theyre scared. And i think about all the interpreters And people that help not only us troops, but nato troops. And therejust. It seems like theyre just going to be left behind to be slaughtered by these very brutal people. The warning from former President Bush comes as the taliban say theyve captured the strategic Spin Boldak Border crossing with pakistan, the second busiest crossing between the countries, which gives afghanistan access to pakistani ports to the south. The afghan government has denied the reports, however videos online show the talibans White Flag flying next to the pakistani flag at the Border Crossing with militants chatting to pakistani border guards. Controlling the Border Point would bring the taliban significant Customs RevenueAnd adds to other crossings theyve captured along the borders with iran, tajikistan And turkmenistan. Im joined now by Professor Marvin Weinbaum director of pakistan And afghan studies at middle East InstituteAnd a former analyst at the us state department. Very at the us state department. Good to have you with what very good to have you with us. What do you make of this taking of the crossing as it appears to have happened . How important symbolically And strategically is that . I symbolically And strategically is that . , ~ symbolically And strategically is that . , ~ , is that . I do think this is uuite is that . I do think this is quite significant. Is that . I do think this is quite significant. As is that . I do think this is quite significant. As you | is that . I do think this is quite significant. As you say it is symbolic. It shows that the taliban are prepared now to actually hold territory And that they will do so openly And i think what really stAnds out here is that the hAnds of the government seem tied. It would be very difficult at this point to launch a Military Operation to launch a Military Operation to clear that area. Of course it should be mentioned that the revenue that comes from all of these Border Crossings is really what little the government has going for it in terms of being able to fund anything. The rest is funded by the united states international community. So this is quite significant. Community. So this is quite significant community. So this is quite siunificant. ~. ,. , significant. We have heard that warnin significant. We have heard that warning from significant. We have heard that warning from former significant. We have heard that warning from former president | warning from former president george bush, do you think he is right in his assessment that the us withdrawal is an Unbelievably Bad decision . The view is shared Unbelievably Bad decision . Tue view is shared by Unbelievably Bad decision . Tte view is shared by many people here. Many other people are going to be in harms way. Yes, the women, i think that that stAnds out as perhaps the one type of. How do you say, repression, that will most resonate. But at the same time, there are going to be other people against whom the taliban will be exacting retribution. Those who worked for the government, those who certainly worked for the united states military, are in harms away. And so those together with the many people whose livelihood depends on there being a republic. Depends on there being a republic depends on there being a reublic. �. ,. , republic. Although we should sa that republic. Although we should say that the republic. Although we should say that the us republic. Although we should say that the us has republic. Although we should say that the us has outlined | republic. Although we should | say that the us has outlined a plan to evacuate afghan interpreters who have worked with the us led forces for their protection. I suppose the question is, if the withdrawal of us And nato troops, as the former president says, is Unbelievably Bad, i wonder what the alternative is. If they have not achieved a solution to bring And-stability'>Peace And Stability to afghanistan in 20 years, what will staying the 20 achieve . Well, the internationalforces, which they succeeded in doing, And probably good for some time, was to stabilise the situation enough so that the taliban could not make major gains in the Population Centres. They have done quite well in the rural areas, of course. But in the Population Centres they could hold for some time. What to do with that time is another matter which you could argue, this gives an opportunity for the countrys political elite to pull together And it also gives Breathing Room here, breathing time for the national security forces to be reinforced And for the united states to be able to be in a position to give some support, which right now it is not giving at all. It is a stability we are talking about. 0k. Professor Marvin Weinbaum from the middle East Institute, many thanks indeed for your analysis. Yet a knockout you are welcome. South africa has announced a tenfold increase in the number of troops to be deployed in response to widespread violence sparked by the jailing of the former president , Jacob Zuma. Up to 25,000 soldiers are to be sent onto the streets of Kwazulu NatalAndGauteng Provinces. More than 70 people have now died with the worst violence in years centred on durban And johannesburg. Heres our South Africa correspondent nomsa maseko. Factory after factory after factory, ransacked And burned by looters. Two young men are lying dead beside a railway line, 48 hours after they died. This is what six days of And-rioting'>Looting And Rioting in Kwazulu NatalAndGauteng Provinces in South Africa looks like. Violent protests broke outjust hours after South Africas former president , Jacob Zuma, was jailed forfailing to comply with a Court Order to give evidence at a corruption inquiry. However, speculation is rife that even though this may have started out as a pro zuma protest, it was a well orchestrated plan designed to embarrass the current president , cyril ramaphosa, And to ensure he doesnt get another term in office. But yesterday, amid fear And desperation, a moment of hope. People were screaming, throw her, throw her, throw her And i was scared, i was really scared, but there were people down in the streets. I wasnt. They werent always panicking. I was trusting anyone for my baby, to take my baby away from me, because the flames were spreading And there was a smoke outside. And today, firefighters lined the streets to start cleaning up. Armed with broomsticks, residentsjoined in, chasing away anyone trying to loot whatever is left. Not that much remains. Is today the first time that youve come to see the trail of devastation that was left here since the rioting started . Yeah, its the first time we came down. We have our driver live next door, so he came two times to see whats going on. The first day, they only came through a small hole in the front And broke And stole a few watches, but later that night, they broke everything open And they looted all the shop. It cant happen again. I Cant Board up this business again And after six months or a year, its happening again. I cant build up this business again And after six months or a year, its happening again. The rioting comes as the country experiences the highest number of covid 19 cases in africa, with many wondering if South Africas economy will ever recover. Nomsa maseko, Bbc News, durban. Ajudge in Los Angeles has ruled that Britney Spears can choose her own lawyer in her ongoing struggle to end her controversial conservatorship. Addressing a court for the second time in less than a month, the us Pop Star demAnded once again that her father be removed from the legal agreement that has controlled her affairs for years. 0ur Los Angeles correspondent David Willis has the latest. For the second time in three weeks Britney Spears gave very emotional testimony. She said that her Fathers Control of her affairs was abusive, And she did succeed in getting her own lawyer to represent her after 13 years in which shes been represented by a court appointed attorney. That lawyer, mathew rosengart, said that he plans to file immediately a Motion Seeking to have Britney Spears fatherjamie stripped of his control over her life. He called Mr Rosengart in Court Forjamie spears to stAnd down immediately in the interests of his daughter, And said, you have claimed that you love your daughter so you should step down now from this position, but a lawyer representing Jamie Spears flatly refused to do so she called some of the accusations levelled againstJamie Spears by his daughter unsubsta ntiated. David, if we can take a step back And remind people And those coming to this perhaps without so much Background Knowledge why there was this agreement in place under which Britney Spears had had so little control continues to have so little control over her personal And business affairs. Well, this conservatorship called a guardianship in some other states was put in place back in 2008 when you might remember there were some scenes in which Britney Spears appeared to lose control in public there were clashes with the paparazzi, at one point of course she shaved her head. Now, a conservatorship is something that is supposed to be put in place for a very short period of time until somebody recovers, or is imposed in the case of someone who is unable to deal with their own affairs. Now, The Point has been made in recent hearings that Britney Spears is more than able to deal with her own affairs she has been a judge on a Reality Tv ShowAnd even been on tour in las vegas. There is a lot of contention over her Fathers Role as far as this 60 Million estate which is what her fortune amounts to going forward. He has been the one solitary figure that has been in control of this vast estate for the last 13 years. Its emerged over recent months, over the course of the last year, that Britney Spears does not want that arrangement to continue, And that she clearly has some very real issues with her father. That was David Willis. Stay with us on Bbc News, still to come. The And-footballer-jadon'>EnglAnd Footballer Jadon sancho says hate will never win after receiving online Racist Abuse, over his missed penalty in the euros final. After months of talks And missed deadlines, a deal has been struck to keep greece within the Euro Zone. The immediate prospect of greece going bust in the worst crisis to hit the Euro Zone has been averted. Emergency services across Central Europe are stepping up their efforts to contain the worst floods this century. Nearly 100 people have been killed. Broadway is traditionally called the great white way by americans, but tonight, its completely blacked out. Its a timely reminder to all americans of the problems that the Energy Crisis has brought to them. Leaders meet in Paris Fora Summit on pollution, inflation And third world debt. This morning, Theyjoinedl The Revolution Celebrations for a show of military might on the champs elysees. Wildlife officials in australia have been coping with a penguin problem. Fairy penguins have been staggering ashore And collapsing after gorging themselves on a huge shoal of their favourite food, pilchards. Some had eaten so much, they could barely stAnd. This is Bbc News the latest headlines. Former us President George W bush has criticised the withdrawal of nato troops from afghanistan, saying civilians were being left to be slaughtered by the taliban. South africa is to increase to 25,000 the number of troops deployed in response to widespread violence sparked by the jailing of former president Jacob Zuma. More than 70 people have been killed. Lets get more now on the situation in South Africa. Ive been speaking to Steve Bhengu a journalist with east Coast Radio whos been on the ground in Kwazulu Natal during the disturbances. 0bviously, recently, as you are aware, we have seen not only property being burnt to the ground And looted but, even being on the ground, i have also witnessed various elements such as violence And racial profiling, so we have seen the army being deployed, as well. There isnt much visibility, unfortunately, as far as the army is concerned, but we are hoping that somehow we will see things starting to slow down AndAnd-order'>Law And Order essentially prevailing. What do you think is motivating the violence, in your assessment . Is it purely about the jailing of the former president Jacob Zuma, or was that simply the short term trigger, the match that struck the tinderbox of discontent for all sorts of other reasons . It is sort of layered. So initially you had obviously the jailing of the former president Jacob Zuma. I was there just 45 minutes before midnight a convoy left his Home State of nkAndla And took him to the estcourt correctional centre. 0bviously, literally a few hours later, the next morning, you then started having sporadic gatherings under the hashtag freejacoquma banner. So obviously while these do not gain much momentum, but what started happening was they started losing mAndate of the agenda And a focus on the mAndate And then essentially started spreading out to becoming events of looting. While, obviously, we live in a country where protesting is quite common And it is quite common that you see Business Being disrupted but none thought it would be at this level. So now we are seeing things such as looting, burning of property, dismantling of infrastructure And even loss of life. And whats being said from the Zuma Camp on this . Are they trying to get people to calm down, are they encouraging it what are we hearing from them, if anything . It is quite interesting. You have obviously the immediate family of zuma, such as his children, who have shared sentiments that are of support for this. So, for instance, his Son DuduzaneAnd daughter duduzile, who somehow believe that this is still about freeing their father, And that somehow it will translate to him being released from prison. But obviously what were seeing now is that this is something completely different. Its essentially given rise to other elements which we have seen. We know that South Africa is a very uneven society. We have one of the richest people living right next to one of the poorest people. And obviously it is these poorest of the poorest who now see an opportunity to put more food on the table And essentially that has been the argument, saying, well, you know, we have been looted for many years through the system our resources, our energy And when we try to put food on our table, why are we all of a sudden the bad guys . That is essentially the conversation happening right now. It is certainly far away from freeing Jacob Zuma or any of the conversations around the former prisoner being incarcerated it essentially has now become about, look, the poorest of the poor putting something on the table for something to eat. Steve bhengu there from east Coast Radio in South Africa. Brazils President Jair Bolsonaro has been taken to hospital for tests after suffering persistent hiccups. He apologised for hicupping throughout this press conference, saying hed had them for over a week. He was originally expected to remain under observation for 2a to 48 hours, but has since been transferred to Sao Paulo for additional tests for an obstructed intestine And possible surgery. In a tweet, Mr Bolsonaro said he would be back soon, god willing. Dom phillips is a journalist based in salvador. He says the brazilian president has been struggling for a number of days. Bolsonaro has been complaining for about ten days now of hiccups And hes been clearly struggling to talk in Social Media videos taken by his supporters, who he quite often meets at the president ial headquarters he goes behind the fence And talks to them And hes been clearly struggling to talk And hiccuping quite badly. We should remember that in 2018 he was stabbed during his Election CampaignAnd sustained damage to his intestines And serious internal bleeding. He was originally at the armed Forces Hospital in brasilia And he was transferred to Sao PauloAnd is being treated by the same doctor who treated him after he was stabbed in the stomach. He is undergoing tests to see if he needs surgery. The hospital said he is being submitted to clinical Lab Image EvaluationsAnd theyre trying to work out whether he needs an operation or not. He has an obstruction in the intestine so its a bit more serious thanjust hiccups. I see. All of this comes at a time where hes under a significant amount of pressure And theres a lot of dissatisfaction. We are seeing people out on the streets protesting against his government And the way he has hAndled the whole pAndemic in brazil. Its probably the worst moment in his entire presidency so far, And its been a very tumultuous presidency. His support is at its lowest, hes under extreme pressure from a Senate Inquiry into his governments disastrous hAndling of the covid pAndemic, which has killed over half A Million brazilians. The inquiry has uncovered very strong indications of corruption in the purchase of vaccines, which is disastrous for a president who came to office as an anti corruption campaigner. It has also found that his government ignored a series of offers of vaccines from pfizer. One of his original allies when he won the election in 2018 came out in an interview today, a Millionaire Businessman called paulo marinho, And said he thinks he is on the verge of a nervous breakdown. His former Campaign Director when he won 2018 said hed be lucky to be. He wont even get through the first round, hed be lucky to be voted, to be put in charge of his building. And so he is under massive pressure at the moment, And has been hiccuping very badly. His supporters have been calling for people to pray for him because he is sort of evangelical And catholic, And his wife is evangelical at midnight tonight. Its also worth mentioning, And this has been a theme of brazil in Social Media today, that bolsonaro does have a certain obsession with death. In 2015, he said he hoped his predecessor dilma rousseff, who was president at the time, had a Heart Attack or got cancer. He said brazils Military Dictatorship did not kill enough of his opponents. Hes freed up Arms Possession rules, leading to an explosion in gun sales, And hes fond of making the finger gun sign. So its a very polarising issue in brazil. People who dont like him, of which you say, there are more And more people falling against bolsonaro. Mm. Not really sure what to make of this, And his supporters are calling for prayers. Dom phillips there. Lets get some of the days other news. The un says the Andemic'>Coronavirus PAndemic is leaving millions of Children At Risk from measles And other deadly diseases. 23 Million children missed out on basic vaccines last year as Health Services were hit by covid restrictions And many parents shunned Vaccination Clinics for fear of exposure to the virus. A Coronavirus Cluster has been found among staff at a japanese hotel that is hosting a number of brazilian olympic athletes. Seven Staff Members tested positive for the virus. 0lympic officials say, that the affected workers have not been in contact with the brazilian delegation, which includes judo athletes. Around 1,000 visitors to a festival held in the netherlAnds over the first Weekend Injuly have picked up coronavirus there. In total, 20,000 people attended the Verknipt Outdoor FestivalAnd they all had to show proof of vaccination or a negative coronavirus test. Earlier this week, the dutch Prime Minister apologised for Lifting Covid restrictions too early. The And-footballer-jadon'>EnglAnd Footballer Jadon sancho has made his first public comments following the Racist Abuse he received after missing a penalty in the euro 2020 final saying hate will never win. It comes as the prime Minister Borisjohnson said changes will be made to Football Banning orders. 0ur DeputyPolitical EditorVicki Young has this report. It was a heartbreaking Defeat But PostMatch Analysis has focused on far broader issues than englAnds abilities on the pitch. 0nline Racist Abuse aimed at the three players who missed penalties has left the Conservative Party divided over anti racism campaigning, And pressure has forced the government to make a hasty announcement about changing the law. I utterly condemn And abhor the racist outpourings that We Saw on sunday night. So what we are doing is today taking practical steps to ensure that the Football Banning order regime is changed, so that if you are guilty, mr speaker, of Racist Abuse online of footballers, then you will not be going to the match. Ministers have announced a 12 week consultation, but campaigners want them to go further. Boris johnson wants to focus on practicalities, saying hes coming down tough on Social Media platforms, threatening them with massive fines if they dont remove online abuse. But the Conservative Party has been on the back foot on this whole issue, as it struggled to explain whether it supports players taking the knee or not. EnglAnd manager Gareth Southgate said his team were doing it to highlight racial inequality, And that it was nothing to do with the political organisation black lives matter. The Labour Leader said the Prime Ministers promise to act now rang hollow. Either the Prime Minister is with the englAnd players in their stAnd against racism, or he can defend his own record, those of his ministers And some of his mps. But he cant have it both ways. Tonight, a heartfelt message from jadon sancho, one of the young players subjected to racism. As a society we need to do better, he said, And hold the abusers accountable. Hate, he said, will never win. Vicki young, Bbc News, westminster. After a very scaled down ceremony last year due to the pAndemic, this years Bastille Day Celebrations returned to paris. This was the scene as night fell fireworks at the Eiffel Tower to celebrate frances national day. Covid rules limited the number of spectators to 10,000, all of whom had to wear masks And produce proof of a vaccination. A spectacular display for the city of light. You can reach me on twitter im benmboulos. Thanks for watching, i will see you soon. Hello, there. Sunshine did wonders for the temperatures on wednesday. Aboyne in Aberdeenshire One of the places that got above 25 degrees with scenes like this. Parts of southern englAnd saw similar temperatures, as well. And over the next few days, with more sunshine on the way, those temperatures could have a little further to climb maybe up into the high 20s in parts of the south over the weekend. But its not all about sunshine. This is the earlier Satellite Picture from wednesday. You can see this cloud that spilt in across scotlAndAnd northern irelAnd that working down into englAndAnd wales, as well. So a lot of places having a fair amount of cloud through thursday, maybe even giving the odd Light Shower in eastern englAnd. But that cloud will tend to break. We will see spells of sunshine. I think the best of those across parts of northern englAnd, northern irelAndAnd a good part of scotlAnd. And in the sunniest places, temperatures will get up to 25, maybe 26 degrees. But some Eastern Parts of englAnd will be affected by a keen breeze, And that will feed more cloud in across East AngliaAnd the southeast once again as we head through Thursday Night into friday. At the same time, cloud will topple in from the northwest, but in between a slice of clear sky And a mild start to friday morning. Now, through friday, this area of High Pressure continues to establish itself. That means mainly settled conditions, but we do have a frontal system close to the north of scotlAnd, so the closer you are to that frontal system the more cloud you are likely to see. Northern And western scotlAnd, parts of northern irelAnd, too, quite breezy, quite cloudy maybe with the Odd Spot of drizzle. Cloud first thing towards the southeast, that will tend to clear. For most places friday will bring plentiful sunshine And temperatures well up into the middle 20s celsius. And then we get on into saturday. Again, more cloud up towards the northwest of scotlAnd. Some light And patchy rain is possible in the northwest highlAnds, but further south it is largely fine with plenty of sunshine And temperatures likely to peak at 27 degrees. But those temperatures could climb even further by sunday. This area of High Pressure is still with us into the second half of the weekend. This frontal system still with us in the north, as well, And that may reinvigorate a little through the day. So we could see some slightly more widespread And heavier rain into the far northwest of scotlAnd later. But elsewhere, some good spells of sunshine, And in the south we are looking at highs of 29 degrees. Thats all from me for now. This is Bbc News, the headlines the former us President George W bush has criticised the withdrawal of nato troops the withdrawal of nato troops from afghanistan, from afghanistan, calling the decision calling the decision Unbelievably BadUnbelievably Bad before warning that before warning that in his opinion, civilians in his opinion, civilians were being left to be were being left to be slaughtered by the taliban. Slaughtered by the taliban. President biden insisted President Biden insisted soldiers will be pulled out soldiers will be pulled out by september 11th. By september 11th. South africa is to increase South Africa is to increase to 25,000 the number of troops to 25,000 the number of troops deployed in response deployed in response to widespread violence sparked to widespread violence sparked by the jailing of former by the jailing of former president Jacob Zuma. President Jacob Zuma. The government has said the government has said the unrest had brought shame the unrest had brought shame on the entire country. To recreate the Hajj Experience on the entire country. The pop singer Britney Spears the pop singer Britney Spears has secured the right has secured the right to choose her own lawyer, to choose her own lawyer, as she tries to end as she tries to end the conservatorship that the conservatorship that controls her personal controls her personal And business affairs. And business affairs. The approval comes three weeks the approval comes three weeks after the singer made after the singer made an emotional address an emotional address in which she called the in which she called the existing arrangement abusive. Existing arrangement abusive. Now on Bbc News, now on Bbc News, click looks at the tech trying click looks at the tech trying to recreate the Hajj Experience