Life well planned. The freeman foundation. By judy and Peter Blum Kovler foundation; pursuing solutions for americas neglected needs. And by contributions to this pbs station from viewers like you. Thank you. Nada i am nada tawfik in new york, and this is bbc world news america. A new wave of violence in afghanistan risks reversing the progress made in peace talks. Violence in afghanistan is an everyday kind of violence afghans being killed as they leave their schools and go to work, as they are sitting in their homes. Nada police in the United States have arrested mexicos former defense minister for helping one of the worlds most notorious drug cartels laundering money and narcotics. With just 18 days until the u. S. Election can we take a look at a topic that has been largely missing from the president ial campaign and find out where the candidates stand on foreign affairs. Nada welcome to world news america on pbs and around the globe. The United Nations in afghanistan has warned that a new wave of violence between the afghans and taliban risks reversing one has been a downward trend in civilian casualties. The situation is threatening the fragile peace talks underway in the gulf state of qatar. While Zalmay Khalilzad has eeted about the Peace Process can he says that following several meeting general miller and i have agreed to reset actions by adhering to implementation of all elements of the u. S. Taliban agreement and all commitments made. We will be speaking with Juice International correspondent lyse doucet shortly. But here is a report. Warning, it contains some images that viewers may find distressing. Lyse in a time of peace talks, afghans are still fleeing war. This week it is helmand in the south. More lives destroyed, more afghans dying from taliban and government weapons. In eastern afghanistan, a classroom of empty spaces, of aching loss. Two other boys used to sit here. A few days ago, a truck bomb killed them. That day is still in my mind. It goes round and round my thoughts. When the explosion happened, there was a massive cloud of smoke from an even people far from here heard the explosion. Lyse this was the target, a security base. 60 civilians killed or injured. The bomber struck midday. His students headed home. In a province with taliban and Islamic State fighters, no one says they did it. We thought that when the peace talks started, the war would end. But the war continues right here. Lyse the violence in afghanistan is an everyday kind of violence. Afghans being killed as they leave theischools and go to work, as they are sitting in their homes. There is another sinister threat, too, in broad daylight on the streets, targeted assassinations. There is tight security, but no one feels safe. There has been a wave of attacks on academics, poets, and politicians. No one admits to doing it. A 28yearold has already escaped two attempt on her life. She is a mayor in a province largely controlled by the taliban. She blames them. I believe they want to kill my friends, my abities, and the thoughs i am conveying with my hard work to the women of this country. Commanders what will happen or no matter what will happen or how and when, but nothing can stop me. Lyse every afghan has a story of loss. On every side of this war which has dragged on for decades. This public hearing in kabul is one of the only spaces where they can share their stories come and say their voices must be heard, including at the peace talks. We are hopeful about the future in this case,we are not hopeful about the future in this case, because maybe another war starts after the peace it brings, because the ones are still open. The wounds are not healed. Lyse someday, she will tell her story of her room. Wounds. She was shot in the legs in may, just two hours old. Her mother and others killed in a clinic after giving birth, in an attack claimed by the Islamic State group. The blankets a shocking symbol of this merciless war. But she survived. The doctor saved her legs and her life. She is perfect, you know. Im really happy. Definitely she is a symbol of resilience for all of us, for afghanistan, for kabul, for everyone. Including her father. If i tell you about the pain i have suffered, no one in the world shall suffer like this. My wife was murdered two hours after she gave birth. Despite this, my child and my country will have a future. Lyse in a week like this in helmand, afghans are asking again, when will there be peace. There is so much violence now, even the peace talks may not survive. Nada lyse joins me now from kabul. Your piece so powerfully capture the terror that afghans are still enduring. With talks of the reset with the u. S. Taliban agreement, does anybody know what that entails . Lyse it is a vague term, isnt it, nada . It is all about reducing the violence. Even though the terms of the u. S. Taliban deal reached in february were vague about violence when it comes to the afghans security forces, what we are expecting to see is that the taliban dont want the United States to be carrying out the kind of airstrikes that they conducted in helmand this week to back up the Afghan Government allies. The u. S. Military definitely does not want the taliban to be connecting the kind of offenses that they unleashed this week in southern afghanistan. We are not seeing any sign yet on the ground that this is over. But i think what we expect to see in the coming days is an easing of violence not just in helmand, but elsewhere in afghanistan. We understand that they have discussed in greater detail how they would monitor this and actually come to establish what was a violation in the spirit and letter of the agreement they signed. Nada here in the u. S. We have seen mixed messages from washington about drawing down troops. President trump tweeted that all troops would be out by christmas. Could the United States withdraw even if the taliban has not committed to cutting ties with militant groups . Lyse well, you call the mixed messages in washington. Can you imagine what it is like to be in afghanistan when the departure of u. S. Troops could make the difference literally between life and death in your own lives . There was a scurrying around of senior officials and diplomats when that tweet from trump was posted completely out of the blue, and at the same time the National Security advisor saying that the troops would come down to 2,500 by earlier in the year. What we have heard also from the top military official in the United States, general mark milley, he emphasized what is being emphasized in the pentagon it all depends on the conditions on the ground. For the United States, this is about National Security. They have made it clear that the taliban are not keeping their promise to move away from al qaeda, to stop al qaeda from carrying out attacks against the United States. I think they are going to really keep an eye on that, no matter what President Trump he is the commanderinchief, but general milley emphasize and what afghan and nato allies want to see is a responsible withdrawal, not an abrupt yanking away of the forces. Nada lyse, we will have to leave it there. Interesting to see how this will affect the interafghan peace talks as well. Thank you so much. Here in the United States, federal prosecutors have formally charged a mexican former defense minister of Drug Trafficking and money laundering. General salvador cienfuegos was arrested at the airport in los angeles on thursday. He led the army for six years under the presidency of henrique pena nieto, and current president lopez over torsos that it showslopez obrador says it shows the extent of corruption in the former government. Will grant has the story. Will the thing that jumps out is the name. Prosecutors allege hwas known as the godfather, an extraordinary allegation against a man who was at t time the countrys defense minister. The list of allegations i have here, the list of charges, involved first protecting the h2 cartel for military operations. Secondly, directing military operations against their rivals. Also, securing Maritime Transportation for drug shipments. Those drug shipments involved methamphetamine, heroin, and cocaine. Introducing Cartel Members to bribetaking officials in the government. And warning the cartel of u. S. Investigations against them. That is a very damming indictment of a man charged with leading the fight against drug cartels. In terms of the political ramifications, i see two, one for the incoming president. This will bolster efforts to present himself as the man leading the charge against corruption in public life. Secondly, for his predecessor, former predecesso president enre pena nieto, this is the second highprofile member of his government be rested in recent months. The former head of the staterun Energy Company was arrested on alleged bribery charges, and now this situation with the former defense minister. Thisomes at a time to air to change the law on impunity for former president s, all of which makes this extremely uncomfortable for former president enrique pena nieto. Nada along with mexico, the entire world has a stake in u. S. Foreign policy, and therefore the upcoming president ial election. Americans will either reelect President Trump, a man who is chicken of the global system with his America First national isshaking of the global system with his America First nationalism, or former Vice President joe biden, who is coming to piece the International Order back together again. What would change under a biden presidency . Here is barbara plettusher. Barbara President Trump has made history. Yes praise autocrats and he has praised autocrats and disrupted allies. Mr. Biden hes the most reckless and incompetent commanderinchief we have ever had. Barbara joe biden says the president has damage interests abroad and is promising a Foreign Policy reset. I dont want to overstate this, but the future of the global order is at stake. We have two fundamentally different visions of what the world should look like and wt American Leadership in the world shou look like. Barbara so what would actually change . A few things stand out. The approach to allies, to Climate Change, and to the middle east. At the top of mr. Bidens todo list is repairing strained relationships, especially in nato, and reengaging global alliances. He would also make fighting Climate Change of priority and rejoined the paris climate agreement, which is one of the International Accords that donald trump dumped, as is this. Pres. Trump i am announcing today that the United States will withdraw from the iran nuclear deal. Barbara this is another pullout that mr. Biden would reverse, but only if iran resumed its compliance with the deals nuclear restrictions. What he would end this u. S. Support for the saudiled war in yemen. I do think that on the middle east there will be a sea change, a more proiran policy unless prosaudi policy and less prosaudi policy. Barbara like mr. Trump, mr. Biden wants to end the forever wars in afghanistan and iraq, although he would keep a small troop presence to counterterrorism. Russian policy would not change th much. The china policy might change less than you would expect. On russi the relationship at the top would certainly look from. President trump often personally seemed ready to forgiva Vladimir Putin for violating international norms. These administration punish russia with sanctions, and that would probably continue under a biden presidency. On china, mr. Trump has traded his friendship with xi jinping for accusations about spreading the coronavirus. For harsh measures and new cold war rhetoric. Mr. Biden also wants to get tough on china, especially with trade. But he would be less confrontational and work more closely with allies to pressure beijing. Joe biden says he not only wants to revive American Leadership, but reinvent for the times. The world has also changed over the past four years, not only the United States, and his efforts could reveal just how much. Barbara plettusher, bbc news, washington. Nada lets take a quick look at other needs. British Prime MinisterBoris Johnson says the United Kingdom should prepare for leaving the European Union without a trade deal at the end of the year. Mr. Johnson once that unless the eu fundamentally changes its negotiating position, britains future relationship with the bloc would be based on the terms of the world trade organization. French president Emmanuel Macron is visiting the scene of a gruesome attack where a teacher was decapitated in a suburb of paris. The attack was shot dead by the police. They can was said to have the victim was said to have shown cartoons of the prophet mohammed to his students. The World Health Organization says the drug remdesivir makes no substantial difference to coronavirus patients. It had been thought to cut Recovery Time from covid19 by up to five days. President trump says he used the drug earlier this month, and the drugs manufacturer has questioned the findings, saying the who trial has not been peerreviewed. You are watching bbc world news america. Still to come on tonights program, nigerias government orders investigations into claims of Police Abuses that have sparked protests across the nation. Nada the first flight from the ceiling to australia under a socalled travel bubble has landed in sydney. More on this historic flight. Reporter the flight was almost full. This is the first time that a socalled travel bubble has been activated between new zealand and australia. It has been in the works for quite some time. It is limited in many ways. One is that it is a oneway travel bubble. New zealanders can come to australia, but not the other way around. It is still unsafe for new zealand to open exporter to australians. But those coming from new zealand can arrive in new south wales, where i am, or the northern territory. Officials are hoping that this could expand to other states. The big things that they are not required to quarantine, unlike any other passengers coming into australia. They are required to quarantine for two weeks at their own expense. Nada nigerians have taken to the street for what is the second week of nationwide protest against police brutality. It follows allegations that a Notorious Police unit in the country had been harassing yo uth, extorting money, and participating in extrajudicial killings. Sars has been dissolved and a panel has been set up to ok at the allegations. Just to warn you, some of the images in this report may be distressing. Reporter cracking down on dissent. This is socialmedia footage filmed in lagos on monday purportedly shows live ammunition was used to Disperse Protesters against police brutality. A bystander had stepped out of his car when he was hit by a stray bullet. Socialmedia footage analyzed by the bbc shows he was more tha 250 meters away from the protest center. The police initially said he was killed by demonstrators. Eyewitnesses disagree. A troopers wife is still in shock. I cannot believe he died like this. I cannot believe that my husband would just suffer like this he needed the money. Needed the money to go to work. God be with you, god protect you and guide you. Reporter the governor of lagos announced the arrest of four officers involved in the shooting. Young nigerians say the violent crackdown on policebrutality protests, including the use of live rounds, show nothing has changed. It rained here earlier, and many thought that would dampen the protest. That has not been the case. Hundreds of young people have shown up. There is a carnival atmosphere, but it is very serious. They are here to fight police brutality. Activists have used social media to organize street demonstrations, raising funds and recruiting volunteers. I just want to encourage the protesters to make sure that you dont go hungry, you dont go tired, you dont get wet, you have everything you need. It has been amazing, the support weve received. Reporter we have banded together on the unifying factor of anybody can be killed, ande are sustaining as the unified youth to ask for a better nigeria. Reporter the authorities have been slow to deliver. The Central Government is yet to address key demands. Activists want compensation for the families of the victims and better funding for the police. They will not be easily appeased. Nada many countries saying seeing the ynger generation calling for more reform in police departments. Another issue of global concern is the coronavirus. President trump has been in floridto drum up support with seniors, a powerful voting bloc in the state. Glen and matt are a similar age as the president , and like him, both have been hospitalized with covid19. The bbc spoke with them about recovering from the virus and the differing views of the president and his handling of the pandemic. Es. Trump my favorite people in the world, the seniors. Im a senior [laughter] my gut reaction is that he is genuine, for one thing. He seems genui. That was 100 spin doctor talking. It is not as simple of an illness as donald trump portrays. My name is matt thomas. Im 75 years old. My name is glen perkins. I am 74 years old. Same age as me. I had covid. I spent 76 days in various hospitals. I went to the emergency room. They said i had pneumonia and i was positive for covid. They shipped me to icu. They told her, your husband has less than 48 chance of surviving. They told my family to prepare for the funeral. My family even contacted a funeral parlor. My doctor said i have the worst case of covid they had seen. They tried everything in the book. They did the same with my son. On the one i am the one that should have died, not my 33yearold son. I dont remember anything until 32 days later. Pres. Trump i went into the hospital a week ago. I was very sick. I took this medicine, and it was incredible. It was incredible. I couldve walked out the following day. My suggestion to donald is shut your mouth and let the people who have had to do the talking. You dont know nothing. You didnt have it. You had a mild case. The republicans, shut up, man. Pres. Trump i learned so much about the coronavirus, and one thing that is for certain, dont let it dominate you. Dont be afraid of it. I listened to the president when he said dont be afraid of covid, and i agree with m. Dont fear the disease. Use caution, but dont fear it, because if you get it, theres nothing you can do yourself to get rid of it. You see these people who dont wear masks, they dont practice social distancing. It just irks me. Out on the campaign trl and having all these people close together in proximity, that i dont ink was very very good. What is it, 200,000 or more who have died from it . Remember those people. Pray for them. Pray for their family. Things like that. A died they died not because they wanted to, but because backs were turned to them. I want america to remember if you are a patriot, you will remember those peoe. Nada before we go, a Little Something to make you smile. This was the moment when 10 penguins were released into the wild in brazil. Look at their excited waddling when they get out of the cage. They had been found washed ashore weak and hungry in july and august. The young thing was most likely lost theiray on their first annual migration from patagonia in search of food. They received medical attention, and now they are happily back in the ocean. Thks for watching bbc world news america. Narrator funding for this presentation othis program is provided by. Language specialists teaching spanish, french and more. Raymond james. The freeman foundation. By judy and Peter Blum Kovler foundation; pursuing solutions for americas neglected needs. And by contributions to this pbs station from viewers like you. Thank you. Girl we are the curious. Woman 1 wow man 1 the adventurous. Man 2 oh daniel tiger grrr woman 2 those venturing out for the first time. All blast off [rocket explosion] man 3 and those who have never lost our sense of wonder. Man 4 whoa man 5 are you seeing this . [quacking] vo we are the hungry. Cookie monster cookie man 6 the strong. Muhammad ali i must be the greatest vo the joyful. Bob ross a happy little cloud. Man 3 we beeve there is always more we can uncover. Girl more we can explore. Woman 3 we believe. Man 6 . In the capacity for goodness. Vo and the potential for greatness. Man 7 the torch has been passed to a new generation of americans. Man 1 pbs. Man 3 pbs. Girl pbs. Captioning sponsored by newshour productions, llc woodruff good evening. Im judy woodruff. On the newshour tonight a tale of two town halls. A combative President Trump declines to disavow fringe conspiracy theorists, while joe biden criticizes the administrations pandemic response. Then, disinformation. Intelligence agencies warned the white house that russian intelligence used Rudy Giuliani as a vessel to undermine the biden campaign. Plus, the virus on the rise. Many countries in europe see a surge in covid cases, prompting a reimposition of travel restrictions and concern over healthcare resources. Health officials here