Three things for August 27
1. Afghan athlete falls from U.S. military aircraft
Zaki Anwari, a 17-year-old soccer player from Kabul, Afghanistan, fell to his death from a U.S. military aircraft as he attempted to flee the country.
Anwari was among those who fell from the plane as it took off from the airport.
Anwari grew up playing soccer, which was a vital part of the country’s post-Taliban culture, according to The Washington Post.
“Mr. Anwari earned a spot on the national team, playing midfield in the same stadium where the black-turbaned Taliban had once performed public executions: beheading, stoning and shooting victims, and hanging the amputated limbs of thieves from the goal posts,” said The Washington Post.
Anwari, along with many of his teammates, attempted to flee the country as he feared he would never play soccer again under the Taliban’s rule. Anwari’s desire to continue playing soccer led him to the U.S. evacuation plane on the military side of Hamid Karzai International Airport.
As Afghan civilians crowded the runway, the pilot of the C-17 aircraft left the airport without the Afghan passengers.
Desperate to escape the Taliban’s rule, some Afghan civilians attempted to cling to the aircraft as it left the runway. Anwari was among those who fell from the plane as it took off from the airport.
2. COVID-19 cases in South Dakota increase by 1500% following Sturgis Motorcycle Rally
The annual Sturgis Motorcycle Rally took place as usual in Sturgis, South Dakota, during the second week of August, and COVID-19 cases have been on the rise ever since.
South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem has attempted to keep the state open and mask-free since the start of the pandemic in 2020.
“South Dakota counted 3,819 new cases in the past two weeks, including seven deaths, up from 644 cases in the 14 days preceding it. That makes it the state with the largest percent increase in Covid cases in the past two weeks,” said Ben Kesslen of NBC News.
3. Woman aspiring to be the youngest woman to fly solo around the world successfully lands in Labrador
By the age of 19, Belgium native Zara Rutherford had already begun her flight around the world. Rutherford first took off from Belgium on Aug. 18 and hopes to return to the same spot in November after completing a trip around the circumference of the Earth.
She intended to cross the Atlantic Ocean during the first leg of her journey as she suspected the many hours above the water would help build her confidence.
“When you’re in the air like that for three, four hours, you start thinking you’re seeing land . . . and then you start struggling to differentiate between the water and the sky, or the water and the clouds,” Rutherford said in an interview.
On her way to Labrador, Rutherford touched down in the United Kingdom, Greenland, and Iceland.
Rutherford seeks to inspire other young girls to pursue careers in aviation and other STEM fields.
“Flying around the world is the ultimate thing you can do,” said Rutherford.
