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Taliban destroy statue of foe, stoking fears after moderation claims
The Taliban, who are desperately trying to present a moderate face after sweeping into power in Afghanistan, have blown up the statue of a Shiite militia leader who had fought against them during the civil war in the 1990s.
When the Islamic militants seized power from rival warlords in 1996, they killed the militia leader, Abdul Ali Mazari — a champion of the country’s ethnic Hazara minority, Shiites who were persecuted under the Sunni Taliban’s earlier rule.
The statue stood in the central Bamyan province, where the Taliban infamously blew up two huge 1,500-year-old statues of Buddha carved into a mountain in 2001, claiming they violated Islam’s prohibition on idolatry.
The Taliban have been on a PR campaign since their quicksilver campaign to retake Afghanistan ended when they toppled the government in Kabul on Sunday.
They claim they have changed and won’t impose the same draconian restrictions they did when they last ruled with an iron first, all but eliminating women’s rights, carrying out public executions and banning television and music.
Notably, the insurgents also promised not to seek revenge against those who have opposed them, though many Afghans remain deeply skeptical.
Thousands have been racing to the airport and borders to flee the war-torn country, while others hunker down in their homes, fearful after prisons and armories were emptied during the extremists’ blitz across the country.
On Wednesday, groups of armed fighters patrolled an upscale neighborhood of the capital that is home to many embassies as well as mansions of the Afghan elite. The Taliban have promised to maintain security, but many citizens are as afraid of them as they are of potential chaos.
In a rare show of dissent, dozens of people gathered in the eastern city of Jalalabad and raised the national flag in an anti-Taliban demonstration, according to Salim Ahmad, a local resident.
He said the insurgents, who have raised their own flag, a white banner with Islamic inscriptions, fired in the air to disperse the crowd. There were no immediate reports of any casualties.
Another Taliban promise being eyed warily is their vow to prevent Afghanistan from again being used as a base for planning terrorist attacks.
That was enshrined in a 2020 peace deal with the Trump administration that paved the way for the drawdown of US troops, the last of whom are supposed to pull out by the end of the month.
When the Taliban were last in power they sheltered Osama bin Laden and Al-Qaeda while they planned the 9/11 attacks. American officials fear Al-Qaeda and other groups could reconstitute themselves in Afghanistan now that the Taliban are back in power.
The Taliban have vowed to form an “inclusive, Islamic government” and have been holding talks with former President Hamid Karzai and Abdullah Abdullah, a senior official in the fallen government.
Images circulating online Wednesday showed the two men meeting with Anas Haqqani, a senior leader in a powerful Taliban faction. In 2012, the US branded the Haqqani network a terrorist group — and its involvement in a future government could prompt international sanctions.
With Post wires
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The season finale of Riverdale aired in late July on The CW. Notice we said season finale? Thankfully, the beloved series will return for a seventh season, but, unfortunately, Season 7 will be the final installment of Riverdale.
If you already streamed the current season, make sure to read Alex Zalben’s interview with Riverdale showrunner Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa on Decider. If you’re waiting to binge Season 6 on Netflix, well, you better clear your calendar because all 22 episodes are about to drop on the streamer. What time will the sixth season of Riverdale debut on Netflix? What time does Netflix release shows? Here’s everything you need to know.
WHEN IS THE RIVERDALE SEASON 6 NETFLIX RELEASE DATE?
Riverdale Season 6 premieres Sunday, August 7 on Netflix.
HOW MANY EPISODES ARE IN RIVERDALE SEASON 6?
The sixth season of Riverdale consists of 22 episodes.
WHAT TIME DOES NETFLIX RELEASE NEW SHOWS?
Netflix releases new episodes at 3:00 a.m. ET/12:00 a.m. PT.
WHAT TIME WILL RIVERDALE SEASON 6 BE ON NETFLIX?
Netflix is based out of California, so Riverdale Season 6 will be available to stream at 12:00 a.m. Pacific Standard Time (3:00 a.m. Eastern Standard Time) beginning Sunday, August 7. If the clock strikes 12:00 (or 3:00 a.m. for folks on the East Coast) and you don’t see the new episodes, give it a moment, hit refresh, and then enjoy the show!
WILL THERE BE A SEASON 7 OF RIVERDALE?
Yes! Decider recently covered that very topic.
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Actress Anne Heche, known for her roles in such films as Donnie Brasco, Volcano and I Know What You Did Last Summer, was involved in a fiery car crash in the Mar Vista area of Los Angeles on Friday.
According to TMZ, Heche was driving a blue Mini Cooper and had first crashed into the garage of an apartment complex. Residents of the apartment complex tried to get her out of the vehicle but she backed up and sped off.
Footage of Heche speeding down the streets of her neighborhood had been obtained by TMZ as well as her initial encounter at the apartment complex.
In the first clip, you can hear her car crash towards the end. It has been reported that the actress crashed into someone’s home, causing her vehicle and the house to erupt into flames. Heche suffered severe burns and was resisting being taken away in a stretcher. You can also view footage of this via the TMZ article.
It has not been confirmed whether alcohol has been involved in the incident since her condition prevents doctors from performing any tests to determine if she was driving under the influence. She is currently intubated in the hospital but expected to live.
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Stay CL4SSY, New York!
The state Department of Motor Vehicles nixed 3,752 requests for vanity license plates in the last three years because it deemed them too raunchy, radical or simply ridiculous.
New York’s personalized plates go for $60 initially, and then $31.25 annually for renewal. You can get any plate as long as no one else has it and it’s not offensive.
Odds are a request for a plate that marks a wedding anniversary or shows your allegiance to a team — like METS86 — will pass muster with the DMV gatekeepers.
Vulgarity won’t get you to first base.
So plates with the phrase LFGM — the acronym for Pete Alonso’s “Let’s F–king Go Mets” rallying cry — did not make the cut.
And you won’t see anyone driving around with the custom plates MILFDAD, AS5M4N and WLHUNG.
The DMV also put NICEBUNS, FATFANNY, GOTAPOOP and BENDOVER in the rear-view mirror.
One player unsuccessfully tried to score the plate YESDADDY, to no avail.
The DMV also shot down such dark requests as DEADGIRL, GENOC1DE, S8TAN, DETONATE and MURDERM3.
Getting political is a dead end too — FJOEBIDN, FDTRUMP and CNNLIES were nixed.
LUDEDUDE, NARCO, GOT METH and BLUNT also went up in smoke.
Staten Island attorney Bill Dertinger said his blue 1995 Jaguar SJS was tagged with ESQLTD after his company and his 2014 Porsche had the plate GHOSTGTS because the sleek sportscar was white.
“The plates can make you stand out — which can be a curse or a blessing,” the 54-year-old Dertinger said. “Make sure you don’t cut anybody off.”
There must be a New York Jets fan playing referee at the DMV because a request for the seemingly innocent plate GASE was sidelined. Ex-Jets head coach Adam Gase had an offensive 9-23 win-loss record during his forgettable two-year tenure.
The DMV would not reveal who gives the final yea or nay.
“The DMV reviews all custom license plate requests and works hard to ensure that any combinations that may be considered objectionable are rejected,” said agency spokesman Tim O’Brien.
He said guidelines on what plate combinations are restricted can be found on the DMV website: https://dmv.ny.gov/learn-about-personalized-plates. Approximately 50,000 personalized and custom plates are sold per year, O’Brien said.
Bagged Tags
The state DMV has rejected 3,752 requests for custom license plates in the last three years because it deemed them potentially offensive. Here are some:
YESDADDY
FJOEBIDN
FDTRUMP
GLOCKS
FLYMOFO
BOOBIE
AS5M4N
BUDLIGHT
DEADGIRL
SUM8ITCH
GENOC1DE
S8TAN
CNNLIES
DETONATE
MURDERM3
MILFDAD
WLHUNG
Source: NYS DMV
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