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(NEW YORK) — Claude Joseph, the interim prime minister of Haiti, said in an interview with ABC News that former President Jovenel Moise was tortured before he was killed and vowed to bring the perpetrators of the assassination to justice.

“Mercenaries came to the president’s house, they tortured him and they killed him,” Joseph said. “We captured about 20 of them. They are currently in custody. And we believe, we staunchly believe, that justice will be provided to the President Jovenel Moise… We do have the right people [in custody].”

At around 1 a.m. local time on Wednesday, an armed group stormed Moise’s residence and shot and killed the head of state. The group claimed to be U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration agents during the raid, according to Haitian Ambassador to the U.S. Bocchit Edmond, which both the Haitian and U.S. governments have denied.

In the interview on Friday, Joseph said his main focus was to bring justice to Moise’s family as the leadership crisis threatens to bring more hardship and chaos to one of the poorest countries in the world.

Joseph, who appeared emotional in the interview, said he was “shocked” at the manner of Moise’s death.

On Saturday, an audio message from Martine Moise, the first lady of Haiti, who was wounded in the attack and airlifted to Florida to receive treatment, was released from her official Twitter account. A Haitian official told ABC News that it was authentic.

“This great act of murder makes me and my children cry, and I know you are crying too,” she said. “This act has no name, because it must be a crime out of bounds to assassinate a president like Jovenel Moise without giving him the opportunity to utter a word.”

At least 17 suspects have been arrested in connection with the assassination, including two U.S. citizens, identified by the authorities as James Solages, 35, and Joseph Vincent, 55.

Haitian Judge Clement Noel, who is close to the case and said he had interviewed the pair, told ABC News they claimed to be working as translators for the group and denied being mercenaries. According to Noel, Solages said he found the job on the internet and that they were supposed to arrest Moise rather than kill him.

“We are certainly aware of the arrest of the two U.S. citizens who are in Haiti and continue to closely monitor the situation,” U.S. State Department deputy spokesperson Jalina Porter said.

Fifteen of those arrested were Colombian nationals, some of whom are believed to have military backgrounds, according to the Colombian authorities. Two Colombian nationals were killed in a shootout in Port-au-Prince on Wednesday, Noel confirmed.

Letters viewed by ABC News show the Haitian government asking both Secretary of State Antony Blinken and the United Nations to send troops to help stabilize the the turbulent Caribbean nation and support national police. The troops were also requested to protect key infrastructure, including the airport, ports and gas terminals, as well as to help maintain electoral security.

On Saturday, a senior administration official told ABC News that “there are currently no plans to send U.S. military assistance to Haiti.”

The White House said Friday that FBI and Department of Homeland Security officials would be sent to Haiti to assist with the investigation into the assassination.

While Haiti’s streets remain relatively quiet, Joseph’s authority has been contested by another candidate for the position of prime minister, Ariel Henry, who was scheduled to take over before the assassination this week. Henry and his supporters have questioned Joseph’s legitimacy.

Prior to the assassination, Moise’s opponents claimed the former president had overstayed his time in power, while the U.S. and U.N. both backed his claim that his term was scheduled to end in February 2022.

State Department spokesperson Ned Price said that the U.S. would continue to work with Joseph since he is the incumbent, saying that U.S. officials had also been in contact with Henry, urging calm.

Joseph Lambert, the president of Haiti’s Senate, has positioned himself as the next interim president, though it remains to be seen who he would back him. Eight sitting senators have so far signed a memorandum in support of Lambert’s appointment, but the situation is constitutionally unclear.

Asked about the political power struggle, Joseph said that his main focus was on the investigation into Moise’s assassination.

“I don’t know if there is a power struggle. I’m not paying attention to whether or not there is a power struggle. I’m paying attention to giving justice to President Jovenel Moise… but I was interim prime minister. After the tragic death of Jovenel Moise I had to take charge and I did.”

ABC News’ Marcus Moore, Conor Finnegan, Sarah Kolinovsky and Kirit Radia contributed to this report.

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(LONDON) — As the coronavirus pandemic rages on in some parts of the world, the upcoming Summer Olympic Games are set to be unlike any others.

The 2020 Summer Olympics were supposed to kick off in Japan’s capital last year on July 24. But the games were postponed due to COVID-19 and are now scheduled to take place from July 23 to Aug. 8. The Summer Paralympics will follow, beginning Aug. 24 and ending Sept. 5.

Over the past few months, organizers have unveiled a series of “playbooks” with new rules and guidelines for how they plan to hold safe and successful games in Tokyo this summer amid the pandemic. The playbooks warn that failure to comply with these rules — such as refusing to get tested for COVID-19 or intentionally disrespecting mask wearing or physical distancing measures — may result in disciplinary consequences. The Japanese government has also announced some restrictions that apply to those partaking in the Tokyo Olympics.

Here’s a look at some of the COVID-19 measures in place for the games.

Testing and screening

All games participants — from athletes to fans — will be required to take two COVID-19 tests on two separate days within 96 hours of their flight to Japan. Both tests must use one of the methods approved by Japanese health authorities, and at least one of the two tests have to be taken within 72 hours of departure.

Individuals must obtain negative COVID-19 test results certificates to bring with them to Japan and be prepared to show them before boarding their flight. If a test is positive or individuals experience any symptoms of COVID-19 in the 14 days prior to their trip, they have to immediately self-isolate in line with local rules.

Upon arrival in Japan, individuals must take a quantitative saliva antigen COVID-19 test at the airport. Those who test positive must isolate or receive medical treatment in a hospital in accordance with the instructions of the Japanese health authorities.

Athletes and officials who test positive at the airport will be taken by dedicated transport to the COVID-19 clinic at the Olympic and Paralympic Village for a confirmatory nasopharyngeal PCR test. If that test is also positive, they must isolate or receive medical treatment in a hospital, in accordance with the instructions of the Japanese health authorities.

Meanwhile, games participants who live in Japan must continue to follow the local COVID-19 countermeasures already in place. They have to take a COVID-19 test 72 hours prior to arriving at the Olympic and Paralympic Village or participating in the games events, including official training.

During the games, athletes and all those in close proximity will have to undergo daily testing. All other participants will be tested daily for a period of three days after their arrival in Japan. Residents of Japan, as well as those from overseas who have been in the country for more than 14 days, may be asked to take a COVID-19 test before their role at the games begins.

Individuals will also have their temperatures checked every time they enter the Olympic and Paralympic Village or a games venue. Those who have COVID-19 symptoms or recently tested positive for the virus will be refused entry.

In addition to undertaking all such countermeasures, games participants who are traveling from a country identified by the Japanese government as presenting a higher level of COVID-19 risk must follow an additional set of rules before their arrival and during their stay in Japan. The list of such countries is divided into two groups, which are determined by the Japanese government and are subject to change.

Athletes, officials and other stakeholders, including journalists, who are traveling from countries listed in group No. 1 must be tested for COVID-19 every day for seven days prior to their flight to Japan and keep their physical interaction with others to an absolute minimum. Those coming from countries listed in group No. 2 must be tested every day for three days prior to their departure and keep their physical interaction with others to an absolute minimum.

Upon arrival in Japan, athletes and officials from countries in both groups will be tested every day, as is the case for all athletes and officials, and they will not be allowed to physically interact with anyone from another team, delegation or country for the next three days.

Other stakeholders coming from countries listed in group No. 1 will be tested every day for seven days after their arrival in Japan. Those from countries listed in group No. 2 will be tested for the first three days after arrival. Their testing regime thereafter will be defined based on the nature of their role. Stakeholders from countries in both groups will not be allowed to physically interact with anyone from another delegation or country for three days after arrival.

Quarantining

All games participants who are not living in Japan must quarantine at their accommodation upon arrival for the next three days.

During that period, individuals — except for those who traveled from countries listed in group No. 1 and 2 — will be permitted to perform essential games-related activities if they test negative for COVID-19 every day.

Vaccination

Although organizers encourage everyone to get vaccinated against COVID-19, the playbooks state that immunization will not be a requirement to participate in the games.

All of the rules and guidelines outlined in the playbooks will apply regardless of whether someone has received the vaccine.

Spectators

All spectators — domestic and foreign — have been banned from Olympic venues in Tokyo during the games, in an effort to reduce the risk of COVID-19 infection. Seiko Hashimoto, president of the Tokyo 2020 organizing committee, said it was a difficult decision but that they had “no other choice.”

The move followed an announcement from Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga, who declared another state of emergency in Tokyo due to rising COVID-19 cases. The declaration takes effect July 12 and lasts through Aug. 22, meaning the Olympics will be held entirely under emergency measures.

A decision on spectators at venues in areas where emergency measures are not in force will be determined by the local government authorities. Fans have already been banned from lining the route of the Olympic marathon and race walk events, the location of which was moved hundreds of miles away from Tokyo to Hokkaido prefecture.

Meanwhile, a decision on spectators at Paralympic venues will be made when the Olympic Games end.

Where fans are allowed, the playbooks state that they will be barred from cheering, shouting, singing or whistling while watching competitions in order to prevent transmission through exposure to respiratory droplets. They also must maintain as much distance as possible from others to avoid physical contact.

Face masks, hand washing and social distancing

All games participants must wear a face mask at all times, except when eating, drinking, training, competing or sleeping. They are also urged to wash and sanitize their hands regularly, disinfect surfaces, minimize social interaction with others and avoid enclosed spaces and crowds where possible.

Individuals must maintain a 2-meter distance from athletes and at least 1 meter from others at all times, including in operational spaces. They should avoid unnecessary forms of physical contact, including hugs, high-fives and handshakes, and should spend time only with the people identified as their regular contacts.

Individuals should also eat their meals alone or while keeping 2 meters away from others, unless instructed otherwise.

Public transport

All games participants — except for those living in Japan — are banned from using public transport for the first 14 days of their stay in the country, unless it is the only option to reach certain locations, such as a venue in a remote city. They must otherwise use dedicated games vehicles or the Transport by Chartered Taxi service when traveling to permitted destinations.

Residents of Japan have to adhere to counter-measures when using public transport.

All participants must only leave their accommodation to go to official games venues and limited additional locations that are outlined in their respective “activity plan.”

ABC News’ Rachel Katz, Drew Millhon and Anthony Trotter contributed to this report.

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(WASHINGTON) — Senior officials from the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security will be deployed to Haiti to assist the government’s investigation of the assassination of President Jovenel Moise, the White House announced Friday.

The assistance comes after two U.S. citizens were among the 17 men arrested by Haitian authorities for the head of state’s shocking murder, which threatens to plunge Haiti further into chaos amid competing claims to power.

The political and security crises afflicting the Caribbean country are rivaled only by the coronavirus pandemic. Haiti is one of only a handful of countries in the world that has yet to distribute a single dose of COVID-19 vaccine, and that will once again be delayed because of the deep insecurity, according to a source familiar with the matter.

The Haitian National Police have requested U.S. assistance, according to the Biden administration, which is deploying senior FBI and DHS officials to assess the situation. But the limits of American power — and interest — in Haiti are clear, as its government grapples to maintain control of several growing challenges.

Seventeen suspects have been detained, according to interim Prime Minister Claude Joseph’s office, including two Americans and 15 Colombians.

Four other suspects were killed by police in a shootout late Wednesday, according to Haitian officials. Leon Charles, chief of Haiti’s National Police, said Thursday that eight other suspects were on the run, according to the Associated Press.

Four members of Moise’s security detail are also wanted for questioning, according to Haitian government commissioner Bed-Ford Claude, including the head of his security detail.

It’s unclear how the assailants were able to access the private presidential residence. The group said they were agents from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, according to Haitian Ambassador to the U.S. Bocchit Edmond, a claim that the Haitian and U.S. governments have denied. It may have gotten them past some security, although Edmond told ABC News it’s “obvious” that the group of “international mercenaries,” as he called them, had “some internal help,” too.

One of the detained Americans has been identified as 35-year old James Solanges, according to Mathias Pierre, Haiti’s elections minister who declined to name the other American.

On a website for his charity, Solanges, a Florida resident, described himself as a “certified diplomatic agent” and said he previously worked as a bodyguard at the Canadian embassy in Haiti — claims that ABC News could not independently verify.

“We are certainly aware of the arrest of the two U.S. citizens who are in Haiti and continue to closely monitor the situation,” State Department deputy spokesperson Jalina Porter said Friday, declining to comment further because of “privacy considerations” and referring questions to Haitian authorities leading the investigation.

The White House announced it would deploy senior officials from the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security to assess the situation and provide assistance to Haitian authorities.

The Haitian government had requested assistance from the FBI, saying it “can play a critical role in rendering justice,” and called for sanctions on “all perpetrators who are directly responsible or aided and abetted in the execution of the assassination of the President,” according to a letter from Ambassador Edmond to Secretary of State Antony Blinken and obtained by ABC News.

The U.S. is also being called upon to help calm the political turmoil, especially amid competing claims to power and the threat of gang violence erupting again on the streets.

Haiti’s line of succession had already been blurred by its political turmoil. Political opponents argued Moise’s five-year term ended in February, while he said the term ended in February 2022, five years after his 2017 inauguration — a claim backed by the U.S. and United Nations.

But who is in charge is further confused because Moise selected Ariel Henry, a surgeon and former minister, to serve as his new interim prime minister just days before his assassination. While Henry has told some local media outlets that he is the rightful leader, the U.S. is backing Joseph in his claim of legitimacy.

Because “Claude Joseph was the incumbent in the position… we continue to work with Claude Joseph as such,” Price said Thursday, adding that U.S. officials have been in touch with him and Henry and urging calm.

Joseph and Blinken spoke by phone Wednesday night — another boost of support — and the U.S. has backed his messages of stability and his calls for free and fair elections and national dialogue.

The transfer of power to Joseph is not in line with Haiti’s constitution, which says the president should be replaced by the head of the Supreme Court who is “invested temporarily with the duties of the president” by the National Assembly. But the country’s chief justice died from COVID-19 just two weeks ago, and the legislature has been disbanded since January 2020 after the country failed to hold legislative elections in October 2019.

Elections for the National Assembly and president have already been scheduled for late September, but many critics and political opposition leaders have said the country is not in position to hold them freely or fairly. It’s unclear if Joseph will push to move ahead with them, or even be able to, but the State Department said Thursday those elections should go ahead as planned.

One major hurdle to holding those contests is the COVID-19 pandemic, which continues to rage in Haiti. Cases last month were as high as they were one year prior, and the country has yet to receive any doses from COVAX, the international program to provide vaccines to low- and middle-income countries.

UNICEF was preparing to ship vaccines to Haiti as soon as this week but because of the assassination and ensuing turmoil that no longer looks likely, a source familiar with the shipments told ABC News.

“Rising gang criminality and increased insecurity has hindered humanitarian operations in the outskirts of Port-au-Prince,” UNICEF said in a statement Friday, adding it has “stepped up its efforts to use more sophisticated logistics and consider alternative routes to bring assistance more effectively to children in need.”

U.S. ambassador to Haiti Michele Sison was able to return to the capital yesterday from Washington, where she was attending previously scheduled meetings — a sign, perhaps, that the embassy has no plans to evacuate American personnel. Price declined to comment on security there, except to say the embassy is “constantly evaluating” the situation and would remain closed to the public through Monday.

ABC News’s Aicha El Hammar, Sarah Kolinovsky, Victor Ordonez, and Kirit Radia contributed to this report.

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(WASHINGTON) — Haiti’s government has requested the U.S. send troops to help stabilize the country and secure critical infrastructure like oil reserves and its port and airport in the wake of the assassination of its president earlier this week, Haitian Elections Minister Mathias Pierre told ABC News Friday. The deployment of U.S. forces would mark a major escalation of U.S. involvement, one that it’s unclear President Joe Biden is interested in making.

The U.S. has agreed to send senior officials from the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security to Haiti to assist the government’s investigation of the assassination of President Jovenel Moise, the White House announced Friday.

The assistance comes after two U.S. citizens were among the 17 men arrested by Haitian authorities for the head of state’s shocking murder, which threatens to plunge Haiti further into chaos amid competing claims to power.

The political and security crises afflicting the Caribbean country are rivaled only by the coronavirus pandemic. Haiti is one of only a handful of countries in the world that has yet to distribute a single dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, and that will once again be delayed because of the deep insecurity, according to a source familiar with the matter.

Seventeen suspects have been detained, according to interim Prime Minister Claude Joseph’s office, including two Americans and 15 Colombians.

Four other suspects were killed by police in a shootout late Wednesday, according to Haitian officials. Leon Charles, chief of Haiti’s National Police, said Thursday that eight other suspects were on the run, according to The Associated Press.

Four members of Moise’s security detail are also wanted for questioning, according to Haitian government commissioner Bed-Ford Claude, including the head of his security detail.

It’s unclear how the assailants were able to access the private presidential residence. The group said they were agents from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, according to Haitian Ambassador to the U.S. Bocchit Edmond, a claim that the Haitian and U.S. governments have denied. It may have gotten them past some security, although Edmond told ABC News it’s “obvious” that the group of “international mercenaries,” as he called them, had “some internal help,” too.

One of the detained Americans has been identified as 35-year old James Solanges, according to Mathias Pierre, Haiti’s elections minister, who declined to name the other American.

On a website for his charity, Solanges, a Florida resident, described himself as a “certified diplomatic agent” and said he previously worked as a bodyguard at the Canadian Embassy in Haiti — claims that ABC News could not independently verify.

“We are certainly aware of the arrest of the two U.S. citizens who are in Haiti and continue to closely monitor the situation,” State Department deputy spokesperson Jalina Porter said Friday, declining to comment further because of “privacy considerations” and referring questions to Haitian authorities leading the investigation.

The White House announced it would deploy senior officials from the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security to assess the situation and provide assistance to Haitian authorities.

The Haitian government had requested assistance from the FBI, saying it “can play a critical role in rendering justice,” and called for sanctions on “all perpetrators who are directly responsible or aided and abetted in the execution of the assassination of the President,” according to a letter from Edmond to Secretary of State Antony Blinken that was obtained by ABC News.

In addition, the government has asked for U.S. troops, according to Pierre, although it’s unclear whether that request has been made through formal channels. The State Department declined to address a question about Pierre’s comments during a press briefing Friday afternoon.

The U.S. is also being called upon to help calm the political turmoil, especially amid competing claims to power and the threat of gang violence erupting again on the streets.

Haiti’s line of succession had already been blurred by its political turmoil. Political opponents argued Moise’s five-year term ended in February, while he said the term ended in February 2022, five years after his 2017 inauguration — a claim backed by the U.S. and United Nations.

But who is in charge is further confused because Moise selected Ariel Henry, a surgeon and former minister, to serve as his new interim prime minister just days before his assassination. While Henry has told some local media outlets that he is the rightful leader, the U.S. is backing Joseph in his claim of legitimacy.

Because “Claude Joseph was the incumbent in the position … we continue to work with Claude Joseph as such,” State Department spokesperson Ned Price said Thursday, adding that U.S. officials have been in touch with him and Henry and urging calm.

Joseph and Blinken spoke by phone Wednesday night — another boost of support — and the U.S. has backed his messages of stability and his calls for free and fair elections and national dialogue.

The transfer of power to Joseph is not in line with Haiti’s constitution, which says the president should be replaced by the head of the Supreme Court who is “invested temporarily with the duties of the president” by the National Assembly. But the country’s chief justice died from COVID-19 just two weeks ago, and the legislature has been disbanded since January 2020 after the country failed to hold legislative elections in October 2019.

Elections for the National Assembly and president have already been scheduled for late September, but many critics and political opposition leaders have said the country is not in position to hold them freely or fairly. It’s unclear if Joseph will push to move ahead with them, or even be able to, but the State Department said Thursday those elections should go ahead as planned.

One major hurdle to holding those contests is the COVID-19 pandemic, which continues to rage in Haiti. Cases last month were as high as they were one year prior, and the country has yet to receive any doses from COVAX, the international program to provide vaccines to low- and middle-income countries.

UNICEF was preparing to ship vaccines to Haiti as soon as this week, but because of the assassination and ensuing turmoil that no longer looks likely, a source familiar with the shipments told ABC News.

“Rising gang criminality and increased insecurity has hindered humanitarian operations in the outskirts of Port-au-Prince,” UNICEF said in a statement Friday, adding it has “stepped up its efforts to use more sophisticated logistics and consider alternative routes to bring assistance more effectively to children in need.”

U.S. Ambassador to Haiti Michele Sison was able to return to the capital yesterday from Washington, where she was attending previously scheduled meetings — a sign, perhaps, that the embassy has no plans to evacuate American personnel. Price declined to comment on security there, except to say the embassy is “constantly evaluating” the situation and would remain closed to the public through Monday.

ABC News’ Sarah Kolinovsky, Victor Ordonez and Kirit Radia contributed to this report.

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(NEW YORK) — The Taliban has claimed it now controls most of Afghanistan as the United States military withdrawal from the country looms and a day after U.S. President Joe Biden defended his decision to bring home American forces following two decades of war.

A Taliban delegation gave a press conference in Moscow on Friday following a week where rapid advances by the militant group in northern Afghanistan unsettled neighboring Central Asian countries and heightened concerns over the U.S.-backed Kabul government to retain control after the final American exit.

The three Taliban officials at the press conference, though, sought to counter those concerns, presenting the group as ready to share power with. At the same time, they claimed the group now controls 85% of Afghanistan — a figure that is likely a substantial exaggeration.

“We don’t want to fight. We want to find a political solution through political negotiations. Negotiations of the kind are ongoing in Doha,” Suhail Shaheen, a Taliban spokesman told reporters in remarks quoted by the Russian news agency Interfax.

The officials said the Taliban was not seeking total control of power and wanted to include all members of Afghan society in government.

Taliban forces have surged in regions across Afghanistan, estimated to have captured more than a quarter of the country’s districts since the U.S. began the withdrawal of its troops in May. This week, Russia said the group now controls two-thirds of Afghanistan’s border with Tajikistan — and videos have emerged appearing to show Taliban officials now manning customs posts there.

It is difficult to assess how much territory the Taliban now controls and estimating it has long been highly contested. But an assessment by the U.S. Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction in 2018 found that the Afghan government controlled just over half of Afghanistan’s districts.

That control has drastically shrunk again in recent weeks, with the Taliban succeeding in taking over dozens of districts.

Biden in a press conference on Thursday bluntly defended his decision to withdraw American troops and rejected that a Taliban takeover of the country is “inevitable.”

“The Afghan troops have 300,000 well-equipped — as well-equipped as any army in the world — and an air force against something like 75,000 Taliban. It is not inevitable,” Biden said.

Asked by reporters about Biden’s comment on Friday in Moscow, the Taliban officials said it was his personal opinion.

“We should declare that this is Mr. Biden’s personal opinion. You can see for yourselves that up to 14 districts have joined the Islamic emirates in a week,” Taliban official Shahabuddin Delawar said.

The rapid advances have deepened worries about the Kabul government’s ability to withstand a Taliban offensive after the U.S. exit, and the threat that could pose to human rights, in particular for those of women.

The Taliban gains have also added renewed urgency to the issue of thousands of former Afghan interpreters and their families whose safety could be at risk and who the Biden administration has promised to help leave amid accusations it has abandoned them.

The Pentagon has said it is looking at evacuating thousands of the interpreters and the families to U.S. territories, military installations and countries outside Afghanistan.

The Taliban delegation in Moscow pledged that the interpreters would not be harmed if they stayed in Afghanistan.

“We guarantee that they can be in Afghanistan, live normal lives, they will not be harmed,” Shaheen said.

There are approximately 18,000 Afghans seeking a Special Immigrant Visa, which gives those who worked for the U.S. military or diplomatic mission in Afghanistan and Iraq the chance to move themselves and their families to the U.S.

The U.S. has said the group may be moved to Afghanistan’s three northern neighbors: Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan. But a U.S. official told ABC News this week the planning is still in the early stages.

The Taliban’s appearance in Moscow came as its advances in the north have disturbed Russia by unsettling its neighbor Tajikistan. Over 1,000 Afghan troops and other refugees fled into Tajikistan this week as the Taliban also took control of much of Afghanistan’s border with the country.

The moves alarmed Tajikistan which mobilized 20,000 troops in response. The tensions presage the possible regional upheaval that may follow the U.S. exit and have worried Russia, which has a military base in Tajikistan and sees the former Soviet countries of Central Asia as vital to its security.

Following talks on Thursday in Moscow, Russia’s foreign ministry said it had received assurances from the Taliban that the group would not allow its forces to violate the borders of Central Asian countries.

Russia has maintained relations with both the Taliban and Afghanistan’s government, hosting several rounds of Afghan talks in recent years. Moscow wants to prevent the conflict from destabilizing its Central Asian neighbors and stopping Islamic extremists, in particular the Islamic State, from infiltrating them from Afghanistan.

Delawar said the Taliban would not allow the Islamic State to exist in Afghanistan or for the country to be used to launch attacks on its neighbors.

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(TOKYO) — In the latest blow to a delayed and beleaguered Tokyo Olympics, officials on Thursday said a state of emergency had been declared due to COVID-19 and spectators would not be allowed in venues to watch the games in the city’s new stadiums.

While international spectators had already been barred, the latest announcement bans locals hosting the games from attending the events in their city. The decision also means that organizers will likely lose much of the $800 million collected through ticket sales. Local opposition to holding the games was already high.

Many of Japan’s peers across the globe are easing coronavirus restrictions at a time when it is reinstating them. While data on cases and deaths indicate the world’s third-largest economy by gross domestic product has managed comparatively well over the course of the pandemic, Japan’s present vaccination rates lag far behind other developed nations as increased threats lurk from new variants.

With the opening ceremony now just two weeks away, here is how Japan and its capital city are faring with the coronavirus.

Tokyo

The Tokyo Metropolitan Government on Thursday reported 896 new cases, and on Wednesday reported 920 new cases — a major jump from Tuesday’s tally of 593 new cases and Monday’s 342 new cases.

The cumulative number of COVID-19 cases in Tokyo — which has a population of 13.96 million — since the start of the pandemic is 179,252 and the number of deaths from the virus is 2,246. The data indicates Tokyo has fared relatively well so far compared to the devastation the virus wrought on major cities elsewhere. New York City, with a population of 8.33 million, has reported 957,148 cumulative cases and 33,444 deaths. London, with a population just shy of 9 million, has suffered 783,437 cumulative cases and 14,966 deaths.

Meanwhile, London on Wednesday reported 3,314 new positive cases, according to its most-recent data. New York City on Wednesday had 452 new cases. ​

Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga attributed the recent uptick in infections in Tokyo in part to the highly transmissible delta variant.

Japan

National data similarly shows Japan’s case count has comparatively remained low, but its lagging vaccination rates are hampering its pandemic recovery.

Japan has reported a total of 2,180 new cases over the past day, according to data collected by Johns Hopkins University. Its record high was 7,914 new cases in a single day on April 29. Some 15.16% of the population of Japan has been fully vaccinated.

The U.S., which has three times the population of Japan, reported 22,931 new cases over the past day, Johns Hopkins data indicates. The U.S. saw a record high of 300,462 new cases in a single day on Jan. 2. Meanwhile, 48.11% of the population has been fully vaccinated.
​
The U.K., which has a little over half the population of Japan, had 32,061 new cases over the past day. Its record high was 68,192 new cases in a single day on Jan. 8. Some 50.91% of the population is fully vaccinated, according to Johns Hopkins.

Meanwhile, data compiled by The New York Times indicates that the U.S. had an average of five cases per 100,000 residents in the last seven days. The U.K.’s average is 41 per 100,000 people. Japan’s average is one case per 100,000 residents, according to the same data set.

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(WASHINGTON) — President Joe Biden announced Thursday the drawdown of the U.S. military presence in Afghanistan will be completed by Aug. 31, as instability and violence ratchet up in the region.

“Our military mission in Afghanistan will conclude on Aug. 31. The drawdown is proceeding in a secure and orderly way, prioritizing the safety of our troops as they depart,” he said.

“We did not go to Afghanistan to nation-build. And it’s the right and the responsibility of Afghan people, alone, to decide their future and how they want to run their country,” the president continued.

Biden said it was time to end the nation’s longest war, noting “2,448 Americans killed, 20,722 more wounded and untold thousands coming home with unseen trauma to their mental health,” adding, “I will not send another generation of Americans to war in Afghanistan with no reasonable expectation of achieving a different outcome.”

Asked if a Taliban takeover of Afghanistan is now inevitable, Biden said it isn’t because “the Afghan troops have 300,000 well-equipped, as well-equipped as any army in the world, and an air force, against something like 75,000 Taliban.”

“It is not inevitable,” he repeated.

“That job had been over for some time.” pic.twitter.com/IPgAepjTya

— ABC News (@ABC) July 8, 2021

Prior to delivering the speech, Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris received a briefing on the drawdown from their national security team.

The White House has stood firm in defense of Biden’s decision to pull out, citing internal analysis concluding that a military solution to the conflict in Afghanistan is unlikely.

But the Taliban are continuing to gain ground, with an aggressive summer offensive through northern provinces in recent weeks that has seized control of dozens of districts.

Biden administration officials have also defended the military withdrawal by saying that U.S. intelligence indicated the threat to U.S. forces from Taliban militants would have significantly increased throughout summer.

“When he announced our drawdown, he made clear that the Taliban would have been shooting at U.S. troops again after May 1. And the withdrawal deadline negotiated by the previous administration kind of set that timeline,” Psaki said July 2, adding that an administration review of options to advance U.S. interests in Afghanistan “did not sugarcoat what the likely outcomes would be” with continued engagement in the region.

The withdrawal, which Biden had said would wrap up by Sept. 11, unfolded ahead of schedule. Bagram Air Base, the main hub of military operations in Afghanistan for the past two decades, was handed over to Afghan forces July 2. In a statement on Monday, U.S. Central Command indicated the withdrawal was about 90% complete. A small force of about 650 will remain in Afghanistan after the withdrawal to protect the U.S. Embassy and, for now, the Kabul airport.

“Our presence is small, both materially and physically,” Pentagon press secretary John Kirby said Tuesday.

But since U.S. troops began pulling out of Afghanistan, security has rapidly deteriorated. Taliban militants have swept through dozens of districts, seizing control and either slaughtering Afghan troops or winning their surrender. Hundreds of Afghan forces also fled across the northern Afghan border into Tajikstan when faced with the growing Taliban threat, although they are now expected to return to the country. Some have already been flown back into Afghanistan.

Amid the recent clashes, the Biden administration is still emphasizing a negotiated settlement between the Taliban and the Afghan government. Those talks, hosted in Doha, Qatar, have been all but dead since they began last September and reached an agenda in November.

The two sides met again Wednesday in Tehran and agreed that “war is not the solution to Afghanistan’s problems,” according to the Taliban spokesperson in Doha.

In those districts retaken by the Taliban last month, militants have evicted families and looted and torched their homes, according to Human Rights Watch, allegedly in retaliation for working with the Afghan government.

There is also concern for the safety of thousands of translators, drivers and other Afghans who assisted U.S. forces and diplomats during the war and are now targets of Taliban militants. In his remarks Thursday, Biden spoke directly to that population to assure them of U.S. support.

“Starting this month…we’re going to begin relocation flights for Afghanistan SIV applicants and their families who choose to leave. We have a point-person in the White House and at the State Department-led task force coordinating all these efforts,” Biden said.

“Our message to those women and men is clear: There is a home for you in the United States, if you so choose, and we will stand with you just as you stood with us,” he added.

While the Biden administration has confirmed it is working to move some of the affected Afghans out of the country to safe locations to await special immigrant visas that would allow them to move to the U.S., the administration has not specified how many will be moved, how quickly or where.

A U.S. official confirmed to ABC News on Friday that the group may be moved to Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan — three of Afghanistan’s northern neighbors in Central Asia — but stressed the planning was still early and no decisions had been made. A second U.S. official confirmed Thursday the list also includes Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.

Biden hosted his Afghan counterpart, President Ashraf Ghani, and High Council for National Reconciliation Chairman Abdullah Abdullah at the White House June 25.

Sitting down with the pair of Afghan leaders, Biden shared an optimistic message.

“The partnership between Afghanistan and the United States is not ending. It’s going to be sustained. And, you know, our troops may be leaving, but support for Afghanistan is not ending, in terms of support and maintenance of their — helping maintain their military, as well as economic and political support,” Biden said.

But Biden grew visibly agitated Friday when reporters peppered him with questions about the future of Afghanistan.

“Look, we were in that war for 20 years, 20 years. And I think — I met with the Afghan government here in the White House, in the Oval. I think they have the capacity to be able to sustain the government. There are going to have to be, down the road, more negotiations, I suspect,” Biden said. “But I am — I am concerned that they deal with the internal issues that they have to be able to generate the kind of support they need nationwide to maintain the government.”

Prior to the Fourth of July weekend, Biden groused about continued questions on the deteriorating situation in Afghanistan.

“I want to talk about happy things, man,” Biden said.

ABC News’s Luis Martinez contributed reporting.

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(WASHINGTON) — President Joe Biden is expected to deliver remarks on the drawdown of the U.S. military presence in Afghanistan Thursday, providing an update as the withdrawal nears completion, and as instability and violence ratchet up in the region.

Prior to delivering the speech, Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris will receive a briefing on the drawdown from their national security team.

The White House has stood firm in defense of Biden’s decision to pull out, citing internal analysis concluding that a military solution to the conflict in Afghanistan is unlikely.

But the Taliban are coming closer to achieving one, with an aggressive summer offensive through northern provinces in recent weeks that has seized control of dozens of districts.

Biden administration officials have also defended the military withdrawal by saying that U.S. intelligence indicated the threat to U.S. forces from Taliban militants would have significantly increased throughout summer.

“When he announced our drawdown, he made clear that the Taliban would have been shooting at U.S. troops again after May 1. And the withdrawal deadline negotiated by the previous administration kind of set that timeline,” Psaki said July 2, adding that an administration review of options to advance U.S. interests in Afghanistan “did not sugarcoat what the likely outcomes would be” with continued engagement in the region.

The withdrawal, which Biden said would wrap up by Sept. 11, unfolded ahead of schedule. Bagram Air Base, the main hub of military operations in Afghanistan for the past two decades, was handed over to Afghan forces July 2. In a July 5 statement, U.S. Central Command indicated the withdrawal is about 90% complete. A small force of about 650 will remain in Afghanistan after the withdrawal to protect the U.S. Embassy and, for now, the Kabul airport.

“Our presence is small, both materially and physically,” Pentagon press secretary John Kirby said Tuesday.

But since U.S. troops began pulling out of Afghanistan, security has rapidly deteriorated. Taliban militants have swept through dozens of districts, seizing control and either slaughtering Afghan troops or winning their surrender. Hundreds of Afghan forces also fled across the northern Afghan border into Tajikstan when faced with the growing Taliban threat, although they are now expected to return to the country. Some have already been flown back into Afghanistan.

Amid the recent clashes, the Biden administration is still emphasizing a negotiated settlement between the Taliban and the Afghan government. Those talks, hosted in Doha, Qatar, have been all but dead since they launched last September and reached an agenda in November.

The two sides met again Wednesday in Tehran and agreed that “war is not the solution to Afghanistan’s problems,” according to the Taliban spokesperson in Doha.

In those districts retaken by the Taliban last month, militants have evicted families and looted and torched their homes, according to Human Rights Watch, allegedly in retaliation for working with the Afghan government.

There is also concern for the safety of thousands of translators, drivers and other Afghans who assisted U.S. forces and diplomats during the war, and are now targets of Taliban militants. While the Biden administration has confirmed it is working to move some of the affected Afghans out of the country to safe locations to await special immigrant visas that would allow them to move to the U.S., the administration has not specified how many will be moved, how quickly or where.

A U.S. official confirmed to ABC News on Friday that the group may be moved to Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan — three of Afghanistan’s northern neighbors in Central Asia — but stressed the planning was still early and no decisions had been made. A second U.S. official confirmed Thursday the list also includes Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.

President Biden hosted his Afghan counterpart, President Ashraf Ghani, and High Council for National Reconciliation Chairman Abdullah Abdullah at the White House June 25.

Sitting down with the pair of Afghan leaders, Biden shared an optimistic message.

“The partnership between Afghanistan and the United States is not ending. It’s going to be sustained. And, you know, our troops may be leaving, but support for Afghanistan is not ending, in terms of support and maintenance of their — helping maintain their military, as well as economic and political support,” Biden said.

But Biden grew visibly agitated Friday when reporters peppered him with questions about the future of Afghanistan.

“Look, we were in that war for 20 years, 20 years. And I think — I met with the Afghan government here in the White House, in the Oval. I think they have the capacity to be able to sustain the government. There are going to have to be, down the road, more negotiations, I suspect,” Biden said. “But I am — I am concerned that they deal with the internal issues that they have to be able to generate the kind of support they need nationwide to maintain the government.”

Prior to the Fourth of July weekend, Biden groused about continued questions on the deteriorating situation in Afghanistan.

“I want to talk about happy things, man,” Biden complained.

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(NEW YORK) — A giant container ship that blocked traffic in Suez Canal for six days earlier this year was finally set free on Wednesday after its owners and insurers reached a settlement agreement with the vital waterway’s authority.

The agreement was signed in the coastal Egyptian city of Ismailia, with Ever Given — the skyscraper-sized vessel — sailing for the first time since it was dislodged on March 29, having brought global maritime trade to a standstill after being stranded near the southern end of the canal for nearly a week.

The terms of the deal, which came after more than three months of legal wrangling, were not disclosed by either side.

Egypt had initially demanded $916 million in compensation, which was deemed excessive by the vessel’s Japanese owner. The figure was later lowered to $550 million, with an Egyptian economic court ordering the seizure of the ship until a settlement was reached.

The Suez Canal Authority (SCA) estimated its losses at around $1 billion during the six days in which the waterway was blocked, pointing to lost transit fees and the costs of its salvage operation.

Local media footage showed Ever Given, which is 400 meters long and 59 meters wide (over 1,300 feet long and about 194 feet wide), transiting out of the Bitter Lake, where it has been held between two sections of the canal since it was re-floated.

The SCA and the vessel’s owners exchanged words of praise after the settlement agreement was struck.

“We are a regular and committed customer of the Suez Canal, and we would like to place on record our thanks to the Suez Canal Authority and others who worked tirelessly to release the ship as swiftly as possible when she ran aground over three months ago,” Shoei Kisen Kaisha Ltd, the owners of the ship, said in a statement.

The ship will first head to Port Said, Egypt, for a dive survey of the vessel, the company said, and after approval from the American Bureau of Shipping, the Ever Given “will then complete her voyage to the next port where her cargo will be discharged.”

Egypt’s massive salvage operation involved a flotilla of tugboats and dredgers that eventually managed to free the Panama-flagged ship, with stories of rescue crews working day and night to re-float it making local headlines and becoming a source of national pride.

“Today, I stand tall among the heroes of the Suez Canal … to announce to the world that an agreement has been reached regarding the ship crisis,” SCA head Osama Rabie said at a news conference.

Egypt announced in May plans to expand the southern part of the Suez Canal to include a parallel waterway so that ships can move in both directions at the same time.

In 2015, Egypt inaugurated a 35-km (nearly 22 miles) parallel waterway in the canal’s northern section in a project that cost the country $8 billion.

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(LONDON) — Haitian President Jovenel Moise was killed in an attack at his home before dawn on Wednesday, the country’s interim premier said.

A group of unidentified individuals raided Moise’s private residence in Haiti’s capital, Port-au-Prince, at around 1 a.m. local time. They gunned down the 53-year-old head of state and wounded his wife, Martine Moise, who remains hospitalized, according to a statement from Haitian interim Prime Minister Claude Joseph.

Joseph, who condemned what he called a “hateful, inhumane and barbaric act,” said that the Caribbean country’s national police force and military had the situation under control and declared a state of emergency.

Late Wednesday, Haiti’s communications secretary said in a tweet that police have arrested the “presumed assassins,” but Frantz Exantus did not provide further details about Wednesday’s slaying or say how many suspects had been arrested. He said more information was forthcoming.

Reaction has been pouring in from around the world condemning the assassination, including from U.S. President Joe Biden, who called the situation “very worrisome.”

Reeling from the coronavirus pandemic, Haiti has also been in the midst of a constitutional crisis as Moise and opposition leaders disputed the end of his five-year presidential term and legislative elections remained interminably delayed.

Addressing the nation in a televised speech, Joseph called on the people of Haiti to “stay calm.” He chaired a meeting of the government’s ministers Wednesday morning, although the country’s line of succession is unclear, especially given its recent political turmoil.

“All the ministers and I have been working since the news broke and we want to assure you we will bring the killers of the president to justice,” he said. “Please stay calm and let the authorities do their work. We don’t want the country to plunge into chaos. This is a very sad day for our nation and for our people.”

The assailants, who remain at large, were “well-trained commandos” who were speaking Spanish and most likely came from outside Haiti, according to Bocchit Edmond, Haiti’s ambassador to the U.S. The group was “highly trained and heavily armed,” according to Joseph, who called for an urgent United Nations Security Council meeting and an international investigation into the attack.

Edmond said the Haitian government had video evidence of the group speaking Spanish. He also said they claimed to be agents from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, which Edmond rejected. He urged the U.S. to provide security assistance not just for the immediate investigation, but also to boost Haitian security forces against armed gangs and a porous border.

First lady Martine Moise is in stable but critical condition, according to Edmond, and she was to be moved to a Miami hospital for treatment at some point Wednesday.

The streets of Haiti’s capital Port-au-Prince were largely deserted Wednesday and Toussaint Louverture International Airport has been closed in the wake of the assassination.

The U.S. Embassy in Port-au-Prince was also closed Wednesday, including for consular services, “due to an ongoing security situation,” it said in a security alert. The embassy also said it is restricting its American staff to its compounds “until further notice” and urged members of the public to avoid unnecessary travel to the area.

U.S. officials are “still gathering information” on the deadly attack, according to White House press secretary Jen Psaki, offering U.S. assistance “if there’s an investigation.”

“We’re still assessing, still gathering information, and the president of course will be briefed by his national security team this morning,” she said.

Hours later, the White House issued a statement from Biden condemning “this heinous act.”

“I am sending my sincere wishes for First Lady Moïse’s recovery. The United States offers condolences to the people of Haiti, and we stand ready to assist as we continue to work for a safe and secure Haiti,” the statement said.

Haiti has been in a state of chaos for months now, with frequent gunfire and street skirmishes between armed groups, political demonstrations and strikes, and a coronavirus wave never brought under control. Cases of the virus were as high last month as they were one year ago, and the country has yet to distribute a single vaccine dose or receive any shipments from COVAX, the international program to provide vaccines to low- and middle-income countries.

That’s in part because of the governing crisis roiling Haiti. The country’s political opposition had argued that Moise’s five-year presidential term ended this February — five years after his election victory, but four years after he took office — while he said he had one more year left because the disputed 2016 election delayed his inauguration until 2017.

Moise had been governing by decree since January 2020, after the country failed to hold legislative elections and the legislature’s mandate expired. Opposition leaders accused him of wanting to return Haiti to a dictatorship.

Earlier this year, Moise ordered the retirement of three Supreme Court judges and the arrest of nearly two dozen people, including prominent officials, who he alleged were plotting a coup. Violent protests against Moise erupted, prompting the president to declare a state of emergency in parts of the country in March.

The political instability in addition to economic woes and escalating gang violence have undermined efforts to rebuild Haiti from a devastating earthquake in 2010 and Hurricane Matthew in 2016.

While the Biden administration backed Moise’s claim to have one more year in office, it had grown increasingly vocal in its opposition to his “one-man rule,” in the words of the top U.S. diplomat for the Western Hemisphere, including governing by decrees and refusing to hold those legislative elections.

While the White House has said it will provide Haiti some of the initial 80 million COVID-19 vaccines it has promised to share overseas, it has yet to announce when it will do so — with the worsening security situation now making it that much harder.

ABC News’s Christine Theodorou, Molly Nagle, and Sarah Kolinovsky contributed to this report.

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