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U.S. Pledges to Get Americans, Afghans Left Behind; Afghan Interpreter Recounts Family's Harrowing Escape; Kabul-based Photographer on What's Ahead in Afghanistan; Bumped from Safe Travel List. Aired 1-2a ET
Aired August 31, 2021 - 01:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[01:00:11]
JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, everyone. I'm John Vause. You're watching CNN NEWSROOM live from Studio 7 at CNN's world headquarters in Atlanta.
U.S. troops have now left Afghanistan, so too expectations of a better future, hopes for a more open and tolerant society, and two decades of progress on women's rights.
From bad to worse. Over a million Louisianans without power as concern now turns to a heat advisory.
And game over. New restrictions from the Chinese government will limit game time for kids, just 3 hours a week. More details from Beijing.
(MUSIC)
VAUSE: The Taliban once again rule Afghanistan virtually unchecked, with a two decades security presence but United States oh now over. The last U.S. military transport took over from Kabul just before midnight local time.
And this image from U.S. Defense Department captures the very last U.S. service member to stand on Afghanistan soil. It was a cause for celebration for Taliban fighters. Gunfire and fireworks lighting up the night sky over the capital. The Taliban, the hasty withdrawal by U.S. troops, has handed a mother lode of high tech and sophisticated weapons. The U.S. Central Command though sys some of the military equipment was disabled.
There are now grave concerns, though, for a few hundred Americans who have now left and presumably tens of thousands of Afghan allies in their families who were left behind.
These heartbreaking scenes outside of Kabul shows the absolute desperation shown by many in a country struggling with food shortages, as well as drought and COVID pandemic.
The U.S. secretary of state insists America will continue its work in Afghanistan.
(BEGIN VIDOE CLIP) ANTONY BLINKEN, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: A new chapter of America's engagement with Afghanistan has begun. It's one in which we will lead with our diplomacy. We will continue our relentless efforts to help Americans, foreign nationals, and Afghans leave Afghanistan if they choose.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: We get more now from CNN's Phil Mattingly reporting from the White House.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, it was just one minute before the deadline, of august 31st for U.S. forces to completely withdraw from Afghanistan, self imposed deadline. The last military flight lifted off the ground in the Kabul airport. It was the end of America's longest war, 20 years, thousands of lives, billions if not trillions of dollars, now coming to an end.
It ended in a chaotic and bloody fashion over the course of several weeks. The U.S. implementing and carrying out and airlift that was extraordinary to even those who were involved in it, and didn't think the possibility of getting out evacuating more than 120,000 coalition partners over the course of 20 days was even remotely possibly.
Yet that was able to be accomplished on the ground. Yet massive questions remain. There are hundreds of American citizens who want to leave Afghanistan and still haven't. This was how the Central Command General McKenzie frame things.
(BEGIN VDEO CLIP)
GEN. KENNETH MCKENZIE, COMMANDER, U.S. CENTRAL COMMAND: There's a lot of heartbreak associated with his departure. We did not get everyone out the we wanted to get out. But I think we'd state another 10 days, we would've got everybody out there we wanted to get out, and are still would've been people who are disappointed with that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MATTINGLY: But then that is one of the primary things that the Biden administration is going to have to deal with when it comes to Afghanistan moving forward. Secretary of State Antony Blinken making clear this is a diplomatic effort from here on out. President Biden putting out a lengthy statement, saying the Taliban has made commitments regarding the safe passage of those who want to leave the country. And the U.S. and its international partners tend to hold him to those commitments.
But those commitments are something it's really an open question right now, whether they will be held to, there's not a lot of past precedent, with the Taliban agreeing to do anything they were saying they would do, particularly when it comes to U.S. or its international partners. But the stakes are still extraordinarily high. One White House officials said that when the final plane left the
ground, it was an exhale moment for the White House and then a recognition of how much work still needs to be done in the days and weeks ahead.
President Biden will speak in this issue specifically on Tuesday in the afternoon. Again, no shortage of questions to be answered, no shortage of answers that people are looking for, not just going forward, but also looking back to what transpired over the course of the last several weeks.
Phil Mattingly, CNN, the White House.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: CNN's Anna Coren was recently in Kabul. She's covered Afghanistan for years and is with us live now from Hong Kong.
And, Anna, we just heard Phil Mattingly reporting these commitments that was made by the Taliban. Even if these promises are made in good faith by the Taliban's leadership, there are questions about whether or not, you know, those promises will be followed through follow down the ranks.
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It doesn't seem to be a lot of discipline there, and there seems to be some kind of splintering within the group.
ANNA COREN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, I think that's a really good way to phrase it, splintering. We are seeing these fissures within the Taliban leadership. You have the more moderate political ring of the Taliban leadership, which is in communication with the United States, with other countries. We know that they have been having meetings in Doha. And then you have the military wing of the Taliban which is run by the Haqqani network, which is much more hard-line and responsible for much bloodshed and trauma in Afghanistan over the last 20 years. They are, you know, fundamentally in charge of the security.
So this is why we are not seeing a government form with the Taliban as of yet. This is, at least, what we are hearing from experts who are in touch with, you know, key Taliban people. But, certainly, you know, they have a huge challenge ahead. They have to govern now for 38 million people. It's one thing to fight the American enemy. It's another to govern for the people. When they came in rolled in to Kabul on the 15th of August, that's exactly what they said, that they would govern for all Afghans.
You know, will they keep their promise? And saying that girls can go to school? Say that women can join the workforce and be part of civil society? Will they allow things like music? Like television, things that they ruled out, the oppressed during their reign from 1996 to 2001?
On top of that, John, you have a humanitarian crisis that is impacting Afghanistan. The United Nations say is that at least half the population is malnourished. Afghanistan has been going through a terrible drought. This is all affecting the society, and we also have to remember that this is a country that has been propped up for the last 20 years by the United States and by the international community.
So perhaps this is the only leverage that the United States has in dealing with the Taliban. We know that the U.N. Security Council passes safe passage zone, it's resolution, China, Russia abstain, on surprisingly, but will the Taliban heed this, will they allow those tens of thousands of people who want to leave Afghanistan, you know, will they allow them safe passage to the airport so that they can depart?
These are all questions that I guess will get the answers to in the coming days and weeks. But, you know, huge question mark, will the Taliban keep to its word?
VAUSE: Yeah, Ana, thank you. That is a big question right now amongst the other questions.
Anna Coren live for us in Hong Kong.
Well, the latest terror attack in Kabul airport apparently came from and vehicle that was uses an improvised rocket launcher. The burned out remain of the car appeared to be modified with six launch tubes. A U.S. official says five rockets were fired at the airport, most likely by ISIS-K. An automated defense system intercepted and destroyed the rockets before they reached their target. But the U.S. warns ISIS will be an ongoing threat in Afghanistan.
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MCKENZIE: They remain a very lethal force and I think we would assess that probably, there are at least 2,000 hard-core ISIS fighters enough cannot stand now, and, of course, many those come from prisons that were open a few days ago. So that numbers up and it's probably as high as it has ever been in quite a while. That's going to be a challenge for the Taliban I believe in the days ahead.
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VAUSE: Lieutenant Generally Mark Hertling is a CNN military analyst who served four decades, rising to the rank of commanding general of U.S. Army Europe and Seventh Army.
Good to have you back. Good to see you.
LT. GEN. MARK HERTLING, CNN MILITARY ANALYST: Tough day.
VAUSE: Yeah, it has been a tough day I guess for a lot of people looking at those images. So, I was wondering what your reaction has been, you know, the last U.S. soldier out, Commanding Major General Chris Donahue from the 82nd airborne, seeing, the Taliban roaming through the airport hangars, what were your thoughts?
HERTLING: Yeah, I just -- just a little while ago, I saw the picture of Johnson Donahue walking up the ramp of the C-17. And that was striking. First of all, from a leadership perspective, the last guy out was the commander of the NEO operations, and he did in my view, a magnificent job, under very tough and complex and non-permissive conditions.
So, kudos to General Donahue, all the 82nd Airborne troopers, the marines, the air mobility command, and the NATO forces that were all there at the airfield.
But at the same time, you see the pictures of the Taliban celebrating the departure, walking to the airfield with CH-47s, even though as General McKenzie mention in his press conference today, those have all been disabled. They will never fly again, but it's still tough to see that.
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And also, I was privy to list of all the things that had been provided to the Afghan national army over the last couple years, and it's a significant amount of stuff. And as we are seeing the Taliban walking around Kabul, they are all sporting the M4s and some of the night vision goggles that were provided to the Afghan army.
And now all of those things, over 300,000 rifles, couple of hundred thousand machine guns, some helicopters that weren't destroyed, although probably never be able to fly them, radios, night vision goggles, all -- it's tough, it's tough to see that, when you are giving that kind of equipment to a partner on the battlefield and then unfortunately seeing it fall into the hands of what was once our enemy.
VAUSE: Yeah, that's the interesting part. I guess if you are a military presence is over but the evacuations will continue, at least that's the plan. Listen to this. Here he is.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN KIRBY, PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY: For Americans, and other individuals that want to be able to leave Afghanistan after our withdrawal is complete, the State Department is going to continue to work across many different levers to facilitate that transportation. And as I said earlier, right now we do not anticipate a military role in that effort.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: So the civilian flights leaving Kabul airport at some point, a steady stream of targets of opportunity for terror group like ISIS?
HERTLING: Well, it certainly could be, and you're talking about the security of an airfield or multiple airfields were civilian flights are going on. And that doesn't even address the capability of reestablishing an air transportation route, commercial aircraft.
I know when I was in Iraq. It was one of the things we were attempting to start up with the Iraqi government. They now have a very good airline service throughout Iraq an internationally, but it took a lot. It took a while to get people in the towers, to do the air traffic control. And it's got to be certified by an international body.
So, you're probably not going to see international carriers coming into envy of the air fields in Afghanistan soon. I want to find soon, whether it's weeks, months or years. But you're probably not going to probably see a whole lot of Taliban supported airline travel. So, it certainly is going to be a challenging problem set for our State Department and others to continue the airlifted people.
VAUSE: Yeah, we also had a situation at Kabul airport, it was the focus of the rocket attack Monday. Five rockets which were intercepted by SeaRAM, which is this automated defense system, which basically shoots over a basically rapid fire, the intercept.
So, that now leads the situation, that SeaRAM isn't going to be working and left in place I assume. So, now, security for not just the airport, but for Kabul, for the entire country, is now up to the Taliban.
You know, this is a group that was being hit with bombs 20 years ago to try to flush out Osama bin Laden. They're not, what, partners in security? Are they able to secure the country? Do they even want to?
HERTLING: Well, you know, it was interesting John. I heard our colleague Clarissa Ward talking again about exactly that in an earlier CNN program tonight. And it just reminded me that great line from the musical Hamilton, where Washington turns to Hamilton and says, "Combat is easy, young man, governing is harder."
So what you have now is the Taliban evolving into a government's role, and the question is, are they prepared for that? Are they going to have the funding for it? Is the economy going to say -- are they going to have the support of the people? How much terror groups -- in many ways are the terror group's going to affect their capability of wanting and having to govern? So, all of those are factors.
VAUSE: Yeah, it's not a great place to have a power vacuum right now, given the different groups that are now. We'll see what happens.
As always, Lieutenant General Mark Hertling, thank you so much, sir.
HERTLING: Pleasure, John. Thank you.
VAUSE: And still to come, a former Afghan interpreter who worked with U.S. recounts his family's harrowing escape from Afghanistan.
Also ahead, Katrina was bad and Ida is looking worse in terms of catastrophic flooding and damage to Louisiana.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My whole childhood is gone now. It's gone.
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VAUSE: Flash flooding from Hurricane Ida in Louisiana is so severe, a dolphin was spotted swimming in a neighborhood in one coastal city. A woman saw the dolphins fin, when she went to check on the damage from the storm. A dolphin.
Hurricane Ida is now tropical depression north from the U.S. Gulf Coast, but the storm has left untold devastation. More than a million homes and businesses in Louisiana are facing another night of power, along with tens of thousands more in Mississippi. And officials in St. John's Parish, Louisiana, say it's likely another month before powers restored.
So far, Ida's death toll stands at two. But the state government says that number is certain to rise. The National Guard is continuing with search and efforts and federal aid is on the way.
CNN's Jason Carroll spoke to some of the victims of this incredibly powerful storm.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JASON CARROLL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Throughout much of downtown Houma, Louisiana, one can see the damage from Hurricane Ida in nearly every direction.
This was once a childhood home of Harrison Short. His great grandmother lived here, now it's all gone.
HARRISON SHORT, HOUMA, LOUISIANA RESIDENT: My whole childhood is just gone now. All the memories left in one storm.
CARROLL: Across the street, the barbershop destroyed, the home next door is still standing barely.
Lionel Hawkins says part of the roof is damaged, his carport gone. He waited out the storm with his wife at home and at one moment, he says the wind was so bad they thought they would not survive.
LIONEL HAWKINS, HOUMA, LOUISIANA RESIDENT: We was scared, you know. Me and my old lady pried and went on our knees and asked the Lord to take care of this house and protect us, you know what I mean? Give us the opportunity to breathe.
CARROLL: You got down on your knees and prayed?
HAWKINS: Yes, sir.
CARROLL: Lionel, what do you think, next time a category 4 comes, will you evacuate?
HAWKINS: I'm getting out of here.
CARROLL: Winds topping 100 miles an hour swirled around Houma for hours as idea crawled around the southwestern section of the state. Portions of Houma, Terrebonne Airport destroyed, countless homes damaged under Ida's crashing wind gust.
Tim Fakier came out and found someone else's roof had landed on his car crushing it. Thankfully, it missed most of his home.
TIM FAKIER, HOUMA, LOUISIANA RESIDENT: I heard a big thump on top of my house and that really scared me.
CARROLL: You're trying to figure out who's roof --
FAKIER: Whose roof it is.
CARROLL: I mean, it could be from this building here or that one there.
FAKIER: It could be. I mean, the restaurant in the backyard, so we're not sure where the roof came from.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: Todd Terrell is president of the United Cajun Navy, a volunteer group of boat owners and others who came together during Hurricane Katrina to help with search and rescue, and a regular presence in natural disasters across the U.S.
Todd, thank you for your time. I know you must be very busy right now. So, thanks for being with us.
TODD TERRELL, PRESIDENT, UNITED CAJUN NAVY (via telephone): Yeah. Thank you for having me.
VAUSE: Ida made landfall 16 years to the day of Hurricane Katrina. Back then, the levees failed and that didn't prevent the massive flooding of this New Orleans. This time, the levees work better, even so there are growing concerns that property damage caused by Ida might end up being a lot worse than Katrina.
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So, is that squaring up with what you've already seen? What you're hearing from people who are out and about?
TERRELL: Oh, yeah, this is definitely worse than Katrina. You know, this is reminiscent of Harvey as well. I think it's more powerful of a storm than Harvey was as well.
This was a very powerful storm. It scared us a few days ahead of time, and it definitely lived up to its expectations.
VAUSE: You know, some areas have been left isolated by the storm. What is actually making those areas difficult to reach? How much longer will be before they're accessible?
TERRELL: One of the main things right now is the flood flooding. It was hard to get vehicles into the area, and was just such a remote area. The other thing is, is we were limited on where we could bring volunteers to get into pick up these people. This storm was a category 4 for 6 hours, so when we started getting
reports of people who were flooded in their homes, we couldn't get in because the weather was too bad. It was just a long, long night of waiting. We waited for the weather to come down and it never did.
VAUSE: And looking ahead for the next couple of weeks at least. Some say up to a month, that parts of Louisiana could be without electricity.
How are you going to cope with that?
TERRELL: Well, that's an interesting story right there. I'm not sure how we're going to cope with that. You know, a lot of people who've left New Orleans. You know, the issue is with COVID, that's a whole other animal that we haven't discussed yet overall, you know? And then, with the way the economy is, the way people are struggling right now, a lot of them don't have family to go, they don't have a lot of places to go.
I know, even in Baton Rouge, the power is out. A lot of the hotels are booked. So, it's going to be an interesting few weeks into the next few months, as to where people are going to go.
VAUSE: Yeah. Do you have an idea how many people are looking for, you know, some kind of shelter, some kind of accommodation after the storm?
TERRELL: That's another interesting conversation. With COVID, you know, I mean, there's only so much you can do with shelters, you know? Actually, we were asking for the people are. There's a lot of people in hotels just sitting in parking lots in their cars trying to wait around for relatives come get them or make calls.
And in today, there were some serious cellphones issues where nobody could get in touch with relatives or anything. So, I think the next 3 or 4 days are going to be really, really a test about what these people are going to do.
VAUSE: Yeah, every storm is unique in its own way. Is there anything about Ida which stanza compared to other hurricanes?
TERRELL: Well you know, 16 years to the day, Katrina was downgraded from a category 5 to a 3 supposedly. Well, this one was upgraded, you know? It was only supposed to be a 4, supposed to be a one once it really quick once it hit land.
One thing we're going to take away from this is the power of the category 4 for 6 hours. That is something that we'll never forget. And, you know, it almost like it makes Katrina go away.
VAUSE: Yeah. Well, Todd, thank you for being with us. And thank you for what you're doing and we wish you all to the best of luck. Stay safe.
TERRELL: Yeah, thank you all.
VAUSE: Making all of this war, so heat advisory has been issued for parts of Louisiana and Mississippi.
Meteorologist Pedram Javaheri joins us now with the very latest conditions.
So, you know, this is awful at this time of year with no AC, no way of cooling down. So, how bad will it get?
PEDRAM JAVAHERI, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yeah. You know, it's going to be very challenging. We're talking about the heat indices that are about 40 degree Celsius, close to 104 degrees Fahrenheit. That's when it will feel like in these areas.
And, you know it, over a million customers without power, so generally, you can give a factor of two or three for each customer and the household that includes. So, about three, maybe four million people that are in the dark dealing with this, and in fact, the energy company across the state of Louisiana, one of the energy companies, calculated the amount of power lines that are down across the state itself.
They're estimating about 2,000 miles, about 3,200 kilometers of power lines that would span from New York City, all the way to Salt Lake City, Utah, to kind of give you a sense of scale, 3,200 kilometers again of power lines that are down.
So, this is as challenging as it gets. We do have a heat advisory in place across the southern part of Louisiana, really the hardest hit regions. So, this is the concern moving forward. We know that power could be out for several days, maybe even up to a week or more in some of these communities.
So, rainfall now just as impressive, as much as 18 to 20 inches, some areas approaching a half a meter, incredible amounts of rainfall, on top of what is already been one of the wettest years on record. And then you notice, it's not just for Louisiana. The system is still on the move.
It is a tropical depression, facing out of tropical characteristics, but the incredible amount of moisture still with it that it is transported from the Gulf of Mexico. It's going to be deposited right over parts of the Tennessee Valley and the Ohio Valley and eventually into the northeastern U.S. It's 1,200-mile stretch of land where we have these advisories that are in place.
And notice again those pink contours that we saw in Louisiana, we can see them once again highlighted across eastern Pennsylvania, very close to Philadelphia, very close to places such as New York City and Boston, where another 4 to 6 inches possible in this region.
[01:25:08]
And the reason that gets more serious, John, that when you look how it works on top of national ground, about 10 percent of what falls from the sky closes runoff typically speaking. Ninety percent of it absorbed into the soil. Of course, Louisiana it's been very saturated. So, less than that was absorbed. But you look at a metro environment, if it falls out of the sky, about
55 percent of it turns into runoff because of the concrete than it interacts with. So, this is going to be a major story for a lot more people into the eastern U.S. as the system moves in that direction -- John.
VAUSE: Pedram, thank you. Pedram Javaheri with the very latest, appreciate it.
Meanwhile, parts of Mexico are cleaning up from Hurricane Nora.
That house collapsed into a river after Nora hit the resort city of Puerto Vallarta over the weekend. It was reportedly evacuated before the collapse.
Meantime, two people now confirmed dead from Hurricane Nora. Officials say a teenager was killed when a hotel in Puerto Vallarta partially collapsed in the flooding, which is caused by the storm. Second victim died in a landslide.
Just ahead, left behind, as the last U.S. military planes fly out of Afghanistan, we'll hear from one American woman who is still desperate to leave.
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VAUSE: Welcome back, everyone. I'm John Vause. You're watching CNN NEWSROOM.
U.S. President Joe Biden will address the nation in the day ahead now that the last American troops have withdrawn from Afghanistan. The last U.S. soldier to board a plane out of the country was Major General Christopher Donahue, commanding general of the 82nd Airborne.
The U.S. says it's working with allies to reopen Kabul's airport as soon as possible, pledging a relentless effort to get to remaining 100 to 200 Americans and countless Afghans out of the country.
CNN spoke with one American woman who wanted to leave but could not.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SARA, AMERICAN LIVING IN AFGHANISTAN: I just found out about the lift, and I just silent for a little while, and it just when walk around the rooms and I saw the kids sleeping and they have no clue what happened this morning, that the last flight is gone and we are left behind. It's heartbreaking to see all of this is going on, no one heard us, that we are in danger, and that we need to be saved. It's just heartbreaking. I don't know -- I just don't even know what to say to you.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: The U.N. Security Council is urging the Taliban to allow humanitarian aid in, and safe passage for those trying to leave. More than 120,000 people were evacuated from Afghanistan in 17 days,
the biggest civilian airlift in U.S. history. And to those Americans and Afghan allies who are still in Afghanistan and want to leave, the U.S. secretary of state says the U.S. military maybe over with their mission but the diplomatic mission continues.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANTONY BLINKEN, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: We've worked intensely to evacuate and relocate Afghans who worked alongside us and are at particular risk of reprisal. We've gotten many out but many are still there. We will keep working to help them. Our commitment to them has no deadline.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: CNN's Anna Coren spent weeks in Afghanistan earlier this month. She reports now on the interpreter who she worked with and the harrowing journey for him and his family to freedom.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANNA COREN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): His family piled into a taxi with just a bag of belongings. Abdul Rashid Shirzad hopes this was farewell to Kabul's dust-covered streets.
ABDUL RASHID SHIRZAD, AFGHAN INTERPRETER: We are heading to the airport, hope to make it and survive.
COREN: The 34-year-old former Afghan interpreter knew their chance for escape was slim.
SHIRZAD: That is a Taliban vehicle right there with the white flag.
COREN: But as the father of three young boys, the alternative was not an option.
SHIRZAD: That's Ali Akbar, that's wife right there. This is me and this Ali Abbas. And that's Ali Omid right there.
COREN: Once at the airport, Rashid realized that he had made a mistake. His eldest child, nearly trampled, in a chaotic sea of humanity, also desperate for a way out.
SHIRZAD: That's the marine gate right there. There is nowhere to get inside.
COREN: This was the family's second attempt at the airport within days. And as darkness fell, reality set in.
SHIRZAD: With this crowd, it's impossible.
COREN: We met Rashid last month in Kabul while doing a story on Afghan interpreters who had worked with the U.S. military only to be left behind. A number of them had recently been executed by the Taliban. And Rashid among others, feared they would also be killed. Rashid had spent five years working for the U.S. Special Forces. Seal Commanders describing him as a valuable and necessary asset, who braved enemy fire, and undoubtedly saved the lives of Americans and Afghans alike.
COREN (on camera): These guys were your American brothers.
SHIRZAD: American brothers, yes.
COREN (voice over): But at the end of 2013, his contract was terminated after he failed a polygraph test. So when he later applied for an SIV to the United States, his application was automatically denied.
Rashid and I kept in touch after I left Afghanistan. And in a matter of weeks, the country had collapsed and was now under Taliban rule.
SHIRZAD: I don't want to be killed by the Taliban. They're going to cut our heads off if they find my location. Please help.
COREN: CNN evacuated staff from Kabul with the help of a security team on the ground working with British paratroopers inside the airport. The channel established was now an opportunity for Rashid.
SHIRZAD: CNN, sir.
COREN: Before dawn on Sunday 22nd of August Rashid, his family, and another nine people were picked up at a location near the airport. They were driven close to a Taliban checkpoint, near the Baron Hotel back gate manned by the British.
SHIRZAD: We are at the back gate of Camp Baron. We are so close to the gate. If they just come to that gate, they can see us. They can see us from the tower.
COREN: In less than an hour, British paratroopers let them in.
SHIRZAD: Hey Anna, we're good. We are inside now. Thank you so much.
COREN: But celebrations were short lived. U.S. Marines, would not allow Rashid and his family, past the checkpoint because they did not have a visa.
SHIRZAD: The Americans asked just for U.S. visa and U.S. passport. That's it.
COREN: A frantic seven hours ensued as messages and phone calls between London, Hong Kong, Atlanta, Virginia, and Kabul were made, coordinating with security on the ground. Once his identity was confirmed, they were through.
SHIRZAD: We are at the airport terminal. We made it. We are really excited.
COREN: For almost two days, they waited patiently at the airport as thousands of fellow Afghans were airlifted to a new life. SHIRZAD: Another aircraft, about to take off. Lots of Marines there.
COREN: Then it was their turn. Exhausted but happy. Aboard a C-130 to the U.S. base in Bahrain.
SHIRZAD: We are in Bahrain, Bahrain.
COREN: Less than 24 hours later they were on the move again.
[01:34:53]
SHIRZAD: Somebody knocked on our door, and they said pack your stuff up. You've got a flight now.
We are so excited. We still don't know where we are heading to. So hopefully, it's the U.S.
COREN: And sure enough, their wish had come true.
SHIRZAD: Our aircraft is landing in D.C. That's Washington. We are this close. Everybody is excited.
COREN: In the space of four days, they were on U.S. soil.
COREN (on camera): How does it feel to be in America?
SHIRZAD: We are so lucky that we are saved. It's beautiful to be here. We are the luckiest people you know.
COREN (voice over): Housed at Fort Lee Military Base, Virginia while his SIV is processed, Rashid was reunited with a Seal team member, who he had not seen for nine years. A second chance at life, for an eternally grateful family whose hearts may remain in Afghanistan, but whose future now lies a world away.
Anna Coren, CNN -- Hong Kong.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: Kiyana Hayeri is a photographer who was based in Kabul for the past seven years. She is with us now from Mexico City. Thank you for taking the time to talk with us. How are you? How are you doing with all this?
KIYANA HAYERI, PHOTOGRAPHER ONCE BASED IN KABUL: Hi (INAUDIBLE) there. Thanks, John. Thanks for asking.
VAUSE: Yes. You know, the U.S. military the airlift is over and I understand you've been trying to get some Afghans out as well. Are you continuing with that effort? Do you expected to be a lot harder from this point on?
HAYERI: Yes and no. I think in one sense it's going to be -- it's going to be easier because it's one system that we are dealing with, whereas before was the Taliban and the Americans at the same time. So in that sense it's going to be easier. There are a lot of uncertainty. As we speak right now, I have somebody
who is on her way out, so I will be up all night watching out for her.
VAUSE: Good luck with that. You know, you boarded a flight out the same day that Kabul fell. Can you describe what those final hours were like? What was happening? And just how hard was it to get to the airport?
HAYERI: I was among the lucky ones to get to the airport. I think I just -- I got to the airport and three hours after I reach the airport, it got very difficult.
I was on assignment that day. I left the house around 4:00 a.m., had a couple of shoots, and I think around 10:30 I was trying to get back to my apartment to start filing, and there was -- traffic was insane. We couldn't -- at some point, we got out of the car and started walking.
And there was a -- there was a strange vibe in the city so we did some shopping knowing that things are changing. Bought some groceries and went home. And then I went out to photograph the banks which was -- we heard there were lineups like hundreds of people trying to withdraw money.
And while I was going to the bank, there was a lot of traffic. And then after I finished my shoot which was probably like half an hour or 45 minutes, on the way back same route the streets were deserted like no cars. There were just armored vehicles. There were (INAUDIBLE) people zipping through the streets.
Hundreds of people on each side of the street going back and forth. And as I was going to the apartment, I saw people were ripping off posters of women sort of at the beauty salons. And that -- that is like one image that has -- to this day has stuck with me.
And then I got to my apartment, when I got upstairs I heard from my house maids that the Taliban has marched into the city. And within like half an hour, I got a phone call from "The New York Times" that I only have half an hour to leave, like to pack and leave.
So I left with one of my neighbors to the airport. Getting there was ok. There was some traffic but then -- the road leading up to the (INAUDIBLE) street was completely blocked.
So we eventually got out of the car and walked with our bags to the gates. But people who arrived three hours after I did, they never got into the airport.
VAUSE: Yes. there seem to be hanging over the capital days before it fell, this sort of dark cloud mix of fear and terror and desperation. I think you documented a family selling everything they own for just a few hundred dollars, destroying anything that might link them to the west. It seemed like a state of desperation.
HAYERI: They didn't sell it because of anything that would link them up to the west. They sold because they wanted to leave. Everyone was so desperate to get out. And usually these dealers -- it's very easy to sell them, but they had reached a point where they bought so many things and nobody was buying off of them that they stopped buying from people. So it was actually very difficult to find a case like that.
VAUSE: You also spent a lot of time with young Afghans in the weeks before Kabul fell. And these are the ones who've grown up under what is, you know, sort of the relative freedoms offered by U.S. protection. They've lived their lives in social media. They've seen American movies. They have a certain degree of expectations and freedoms. What are their expectations now?
[01:39:47]
HAYERI: I am in touch with many of them. Sadly, a lot of them have left. Some of them are stuck behind, filled with fears. They don't know what future stands for them. A few of them have seen death and destruction around them.
They were at the -- one of them was at the explosion scene when it happened on Thursday. Yes. I mean I don't know, the future is very dark.
VAUSE: And one of the things that the Taliban has said is that women will be allowed to work. And I understand a lot of them, from what you have been told and from a lot of women have told you, that yes they will be allowed to work because there's no one else left who knows how to run the country.
HAYERI: I shouldn't make any comments on that. Yes I really don't know what to answer to that question.
VAUSE: ok. Well, I will leave it there. And I'm glad you are out. Do you plan on going back at any point?
HAYERI: Yes, soon.
VAUSE: Ok. Well, I wish you all the best of luck. Kiyana, thank you.
HAYERI: Thank you. Thank you for having me.
VAUSE: Take care.
HAYERI: Thanks.
VAUSE: Pleasure.
HAYERI: Bye.
VAUSE: Afghanistan has a long history of turning back invaders, earning a reputation as the graveyard of empires. In the 1800s and early 1900s, Britain tried to gain control of Afghanistan from a base in India. Three conflicts for control of the country were called the Anglo-Afghan wars.
In 1979, the Soviet Union invaded, but after 10 years mujahideen fighters armed with U.S. -- by the U.S. rather with shoulder-launched Stinger missiles drove out the Soviets.
Fast forward to 1996, the Taliban took over forging ties with al-Qaeda and engaging in a civil war against the northern alliance.
In 2001, the U.S. and its allies invaded following the 9/11 attacks working with the Northern Alliance to topple the Taliban.
Two decades later, the Taliban has returned to power. Kabul falling August 15th, the last U.S. troops leaving on Monday.
To find out how you can help Afghan refugees or if you are veteran troubled by events in Afghanistan, please go to our Web site, CNN.com/impact. You'll find the resources which can help.
A lot more of our coverage from Afghanistan in a few moments. But first the E.U. is moving to restrict foreign arrivals from countries with high infection rates. And the message to the unvaccinated is blunt: don't come, stay away.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VAUSE: After a yearlong pandemic pause, the U.S. Open welcomes tennis fans back on Monday. And a sign of the times: spectators 12 years and older need to show proof of vaccination, a move welcomed by many.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's incredible. It's really great to see the excitement and the energy back. I am so thrilled that you needed a vaccine card to get in, and we will be wearing our mask when it's crowded.
And yes, I think it's what we should be doing.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[01:44:44]
VAUSE: The E.U. is sending a clear message to unvaccinated Americans: don't come. With COVID infection surging in the U.S., as well as Israel, Kosovo, Lebanon, Montenegro and the Republic of Northern Macedonia -- all have been now removed from an E.U. safe list, with a recommendation to member states to refuse entry to unvaccinated travelers from those countries.
CNN's Melissa Bell has details now reporting from Paris.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MELISSA BELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Bad news for American tourists hoping to travel to the American union, a new recommendation from the E.U. that the United States with five other countries should be removed from the list that allows people to go about unessential travel.
Essentially the United States and other countries had been put on that list in June which meant that those who could prove they were vaccinated were in some countries. Those who could show a negative PCR test were able to come to the European Union.
Now, there have been some frustration within European countries and amongst European leaders that the principle of reciprocity hadn't been applied. That is, American tourists have been able to come to most parts of Europe these last few weeks, the same has not been true even for vaccinated Europeans heading to the United States.
And yet Europe says this is all about infection rates and the situation regarding the COVID pandemic in various countries with the average infection rate in the United States now above that of the European Union.
Important to note that this is only advice that the E.U. is giving to member states although it has so far set the tone for how European member states go about deciding who they do and who they do not let in.
Melissa Bell, CNN -- Paris.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: Juliette Kayyem is a CNN national security analyst who served as the former assistant secretary at Homeland Security during the Obama administration.
It's been a while, so it's good to see you.
JULIETTE KAYYEM, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Thanks for having me.
VAUSE: Ok. You have a piece in "The Atlantic" this with the headline "Vaccine refusers don't get to dictate terms anymore". And it seems the world is beginning to turn here. We had this recommendation now coming from the E.U. that members states, you know, basically put these restrictions on travelers coming from the United States.
The White House press secretary Jen Psaki picks up on more details. Here she is.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JEN PSAKI, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: Today's announcement by the E.U. impacts people who are unvaccinated and not people who are vaccinated. We continue to encourage people to get vaccinated and the fastest path to reopening travel is for people to get vaccinated, to mask up and slow the spread of the deadly virus.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: You know, are we at that final realization that freedom to refuse a vaccine is not without cost? You know, freedom is not free?
KAYYEM: That's exactly right. That is exactly right. And it's not right to call it a mandate because that always conjures up like someone grabbing you from the street corner sticking a needle in your arm.
Basically what you're seeing is adults of society waking up and saying we are done with the critics, we are done with the vaccine deniers, we are done with the vaccine hesitant, we are down with the anti- vaxxer's. You can believe what you want but we are moving forward without you.
And you see the E.U. decision really does target non-vaccinated Americans, allows member nations to exclude them or have greater restrictions on it.
And you're seeing across the United States with employers and schools and others, basically the moment the FDA gave the final approval, you saw what had been a trickle turn into a tidal wave.
And the goal is get more people vaccinated. Then people start to see there are consequences for them waiting.
VAUSE: You know, there was one paragraph in particular which stood out to me. I want to read it.
"The vaccinated has for too long carried the burden of the pandemic. In theory, unvaccinated people should be taking greater precautions. A recent poll conducted for the Associated Press found that vaccinated adults have been more likely than unvaccinated ones to wear masks in public settings, refrain from unnecessary travel, and avoid large group settings.
It is a good point but it seems to be that this is all about the politicization of the pandemic, if you like. Many of those who are not vaccinated are essentially COVID deniers. So how do you get them back to reality?
KAYYEM So -- the data is actually really interesting. It is the -- the largest pool in the United States of the unvaccinated or what they call vaccine-hesitancy. They're just putting up lots of barriers.
They're not stuck to their positions. About 20 percent are anti- vaxxers, and we can do without them. In other words, we don't need them in terms of herd immunity.
But we definitely need more adults, in particular because our children are not vaccinated at this stage.
And so the goal is with any of these rules that are coming into a place, whether they're employer rules, whether they're institutional rules, rules about whether you can go to certain concerts and it is essentially -- we are going to try to get you to understand what the cost is.
And I think what's important is we finally start to have some time pressure on the vaccine hesitant. I think that they are not seeing the need to get this done essentially by winter. And while there are partisan or political divisions, I do know there are some interesting changes in many states, universities would not be considered conservative. Nashville and country music has been remarkable in terms of having vaccinated-only concerts.
[01:49:58]
KAYYEM: So I think a lot of people who lost people are beginning to realize we need to put these vaccination mandates in place.
VAUSE: The big picture here. You make the point that this is a global crisis. It's a global emergency.
KAYYEM: Right.
VAUSE: Get a grip. You know, when the ship is sinking, you don't get to choose the color of your lifejacket. You know, sometimes one size fits all just has to be reality.
KAYYEM: I think that's right. I think it's helpful to have people who are not doctors in the stage. You know, I come from Homeland Security and planning, so I've been hearing doctors and public health people who might be, you know, nicer than people like me, you know, try to urge people and try to convince them, can't they just listen to the science.
You know, we have been doing that for eight months, and I think what we need is a course correction, which is essentially that we see this as the crisis that it is. Like the ship is sinking. And you either put the life vest on, or you are going down, but you're not bringing those who put the life vests on down.
And I think that is when I talk about we've got to shift the burden of this pandemic onto the unvaccinated because the vaccinated are as you said, you know, behaving in ways that reflect their fear that we are never going to control this pandemic. And that's not -- that's neither fair nor accurate.
VAUSE: I think you are nice enough Juliette. So thank you for --
(CROSSTALK)
KAYYEM: I worry sometimes, it's been a long two years. Thanks.
VAUSE: You're welcome. Good to see you. Thanks.
KAYYEM: Good to see you.
VAUSE: Well, Brazil has seen a string of incredibly violent bank robberies recently. And the latest on Monday seems to top the lot.
(INAUDIBLE) were used as human shields strapped to the top of getaway cars by the heavily armed bank robbers.
Officials said a trail of explosives were left across the city after a number of banks were hit. At least one suspect died during a shootout with police, which also claimed the lives of two locals.
Well coming up, a hobby to some, what Beijing is calling an. The Chinese government cracking down on the time kids can spend playing video games.
We'll explain all the details after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VAUSE: Well, across China, kids may soon have their video games time greatly reduce, not by mom and dad, but by the Chinese government. Anyone under 18 is now limited to just an hour of online gaming per day on weekends and holidays, between 8:00 and 9:00 pm. All part of Beijing's crackdown on gaming addiction.
CNN senior producer Steven Jiang is in Beijing with more on this. This is pretty tough and begs the question, how are they going to enforce it?
STEVEN JIANG, CNN SENIOR PRODUCER: That's right, but also John, remember, we kind of saw it coming. Remember a few weeks ago, a major state media outlet here described video games a spiritual opium, and as a result wiping out billions of dollars in market value for some of the country's biggest gaming companies.
And now of course, these new rules, almost like the other shoe dropping. And this is not even their first attempt to limit playtime for minors.
Back in 2019, they already limited playtime for people under 18 to 90 minutes each day and 3 hours at most doing public holidays. And they, of course, have also law called real name registration and log in for all video games.
[01:54:51]
JIANG: But apparently, these restrictions are not enough according to officials, because they have received so many complaints from parents who say gaming addiction has severely affected their kids' ability to learn and study and their mental and physical health, not to mention causing societal (ph) problems.
So they again are trying to frame their rules as addressing people's concerns and protecting children's welfare. Now, enforcement will come from the companies but as of now though, it is a decision cheered and supported by many people on line. And even from parents outside of China say this is long overdue.
But this kind of approaches still controversial because, for example, South Korea is now in the process of abolishing it's gaming curfew from teenagers because of its lack of effectiveness.
And the other thing of course this is according to many people, is another example of the ruling communist party trying to reinsert itself into every aspect of peoples private lives, especially young people.
Remember, in the past few weeks, they have banned after school private tutoring. They banned LGBTQ groups on university campus. Now they're cracking down on celebrity worshiping culture especially among the young people. Leaving many people asking sarcastically, so what are young Chinese people supposed to do during their spare time?
Some people say there is a hint. They have also just mandated the study of Xi Jinping's thoughts for all students starting in elementary school, John.
VAUSE: You're not going to get a whole lot of kids willingly give up their video games for, you know-- for the president's manifesto, but Steven it's a good suggestion, thank you. Steven jiang live for us in Beijing.
And thank you for watching CNN NEWSROOM. I'm John Vause.
Please stay with us. CNN NEWSROOM continues with Robyn Curnow after a short break.
[01:56:37]
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