CIVILIANS prepare to board a plane during an evacuation at Hamid Karzai International Airport, Kabul, Afghanistan, (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Staff Sgt. Victor Mancilla)

Just a few days after the Taliban insurgents overthrew the Afghan national government and assumed power, it appears that ruling is going to be more complicated than rebelling.

Protests against the gunmen of the radical Islamic regime have broken out across the nation, demonstrations that have sometimes been suppressed violently.

The Associated Press is reporting those incidents as U.S. forces continue to evacuate Americans and their Afghan allies by plane out of the Kabul airport.

According to The New York Times, another problem is the financial stability of the new Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan. The International Monetary Fund – under pressure from the Biden Administration – has stated it would keep the new regime from an estimated $460 million in emergency reserves. Also at stake is $12 billion promised to the nation over the next four years.

COVID-19 strikes three U.S. Senators

The coronavirus is proving to be non-partisan, as three United States Senators announced on Thursday that they has tested positive for the disease.

THREE U.S. SENATORS have announced testing positive for coronavirus (Shutterstock).

USA Today is reporting that Senators Roger Wicker (Republican from Mississippi), Angus King (Independent from Maine) and John Hickenlooper (Democrat from Colorado) all tested positive for COVID-19 despite all having been vaccinated.

They are experiencing mild symptoms and are in self-isolation.

Such “breakthrough” cases are still considered rare, according to public health officials.

In other coronavirus news:

• A survey published Thursday revealed that about one-fifth of adults would avoid hospital emergency rooms even if experiencing symptoms like those associated with heart attacks, according to United Press International. The reason? Fear of contracting COVID-19.
• A study on the effects of vaccination reported that the inoculations probably saved nearly 140,000 lives and prevented over 3 million infections, reports UPI.

“Bomber” is arrested near U.S. Capitol

U.S. CAPITOL building, the seat of Congress, in Washington, D.C. (Wikipedia photo).

Police have arrested a man a short distance from the Capitol building in Washington, D.C. after a five-hour standoff on Thursday. The man – identified as Floyd Ray Roseberry, 49 – had claimed to have a bomb in his pickup truck.

According to Reuters.com, police found bomb-making materials in the vehicle but no bomb. The suspect livestreamed the incident from his truck, saying, “The revolution’s on, it’s here. I’m ready to die for the cause.”

Reuters reported that his ex-wife said he had been diagnosed with schizophrenia.