Taliban say government formation is in final stages

The Taliban say they will announce a new government for Afghanistan in the next few days. A senior Taliban official, Shir Mohammad Abas Stanakzai, told the BBC the administration would be inclusive but there would not be top positions for women.

Also in the programme: The double challenge of Hurricane Ida and rising Covid cases facing hospitals in the US state of Louisiana; and after 16 years in power, what does Angela Merkel mean to Germans?

(Image: Taliban forces rally to celebrate the withdrawal of US forces in Kandahar. Credit: Epa/Stringer)