Scott Neuman

In a scene repeated across Afghanistan, retreating government forces ditched billions of dollars' worth of U.S.-supplied military hardware, from assault rifles to Black Hawk helicopters.

Two men — a reclusive 60-year-old mullah who is the Taliban's top commander and a high-profile, battle-hardened lieutenant — are the odds-on picks to form the new regime.

People will be eligible for a booster shot eight months after their second dose of their vaccines from Pfizer or Moderna, according to U.S. health officials.

A journalist based in Afghanistan's capital said Tuesday is better than the day before, with some signs of normalcy, even as the future of the country and many of its citizens is in limbo.

"Everything was moving — houses, cars — and everyone was crying," said one Haitian from an area close to the earthquake's epicenter. More than 1,400 people are confirmed dead.

In a sudden, final offensive, the Taliban pushed into Kabul, as Afghanistan's U.S.-backed president left the country and U.S. diplomatic personnel beat a quick retreat from the embassy compound.

The prospect of the Taliban once again in control of Afghanistan has many worried about a return to a harsh brand of Islamic justice seen during the five years the group was previously in power.

Entomologists confirm the report of the world's largest hornet — a worrisome invasive species that originates from East Asia and Japan — by a person in a rural area near the Canadian border.

Tropical Depression Fred is expected to regain strength slowly before making landfall as a tropical storm in the Florida Keys on Saturday.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's leading infectious disease expert, tells NPR's Morning Edition "it is so imminent to make sure that we get them boosted so that they would be in a protected zone."

The country's Ministry of Culture and Tourism says it is creating a blacklist of banned songs containing "illegal content" that it deems "subversive" at karaoke establishments starting Oct. 1.

West Virginia Wesleyan College won't require students to be vaccinated against COVID-19 — at least not yet. But the small Christian liberal arts school says it will charge students who aren't.

Among the states hardest-hit by a new wave of coronavirus cases linked to the highly contagious delta variant, Arkansas has "startling numbers" of new COVID-19 cases, Gov. Asa Hutchison says.

A tiny satellite made by startup Geometric Energy Corp. will display advertising on its side that will then be livestreamed back to Earth.

Alvarez won silver in the speedskating relay at the Winter Games in Sochi and is hoping for gold on Saturday when the U.S. baseball team faces off against Japan.

Citing "incredibly compelling" evidence that COVID-19 vaccines are safe and effective, United CEO Scott Kirby announced the policy change on Friday. It will affect the carrier's 67,000 U.S. employees.

The two coaches had their credentials revoked by the International Olympic Committee four days after they ordered sprinter Kristina Timanovskaya back home for publicly criticizing them.

In announcing the move, the White House cited "strong support for people in Hong Kong in the face of ongoing repression by the People's Republic of China."

The FDA could outline steps for full approval in a bid to be more transparent and to reassure those hesitant to get the vaccine, says Dr. Leana Wen of George Washington University.

The prospect of a Taliban takeover has people inside and outside Afghanistan worried about a return to an oppressive past. As the U.S. nears a full withdrawal, those fears are rapidly growing.