Apple has agreed to let developers of iPhone apps email their users about cheaper ways to pay for digital subscriptions and media by circumventing a commission system that generates billions of dollars annually for the iPhone maker.
The concession announced late Thursday, which covers emailed notifications but does not allow in-app notifications, is part of a preliminary settlement of a nearly 2-year-old lawsuit filed on behalf of iPhone app developers in the U.S. It also addresses an issue raised by a federal court judge who is expected to soon rule on a separate case brought by Epic Games, maker of the popular video game Fortnite.

An official says at least 95 Afghans were killed in Thursday's suicide bombings outside Kabul's international airport.
The official spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media. The official said the actual death toll is even higher because others were involved in evacuating bodies.

Tropical Storm Ida prompted a hurricane warning for New Orleans and an emergency declaration for the state of Louisiana as it pushed across the Caribbean toward an anticipated strike on Cuba Friday.
Ida could be near major hurricane strength by the time it reaches the northern Gulf Coast, which forecasters predict may happen sometime late Sunday or early Monday.

Nashville-based helicopter pilot Joel Boyers had just finished helping his fiancee earn her pilot's license on Saturday morning, and they were heading home to celebrate, when he received a frantic call from a woman in Pennsylvania. Her brother's home in Waverly, Tennessee, was underwater and he was trapped on a roof with his daughters. Could Boyers help?
"I thought, 'How would I feel if I told her I'm not even going to try?'" he said in a Thursday interview. "She just so happened to call the right person, because I'm the only person crazy enough to even try to do that."

The rapid takeover of Afghanistan by the Taliban left many surprised. To Ali Olomi, a historian of the Middle East and Islam at Penn State University, a key to understanding what is happening now – and what might take place next – is looking at the past and how the Taliban came to prominence. Below is an edited version of a conversation he had with editor Gemma Ware for our podcast, The Conversation Weekly.
How far back do you trace the Taliban's origins?

Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett is aiming to dissuade President Joe Biden from returning to the Iran nuclear deal when the two leaders meet at the White House Friday.
The meeting, originally scheduled for Thursday, was postponed for one day as Biden focused his attention on dealing with the aftermath of a suicide bomb attack at the Kabul airport that killed at least 13 U.S. troops.

Evacuation flights from Afghanistan resumed with new urgency on Friday, a day after two suicide bombings targeted the thousands of desperate people fleeing the Taliban takeover. The U.S. says further attempted attacks are expected ahead of the Tuesday deadline for foreign troops to leave, ending America's longest war.
Kabul residents said several flights took off Friday morning.

Islamic State suicide bombers attacked crowds of people gathered Thursday outside Kabul airport hoping to flee Taliban-controlled Afghanistan, killing dozens including 13 U.S. troops, as President Joe Biden vowed to hunt down those responsible.
Ten of those killed and several wounded were U.S. Marines, Marine Corps spokesman Major Jim Stenger said in a statement.

The lead investigative judge into the port blast, Tarek Bitar, on Thursday issued a subpoena ordering security forces to bring caretaker PM Hassan Diab to an interrogation session on September 20.

Hong Kong said Thursday that domestic workers from Indonesia and the Philippines will be allowed to fly into the city starting Aug. 30, a move expected to ease a shortage of helpers in the city.
Hong Kong has approximately 370,000 domestic workers from Indonesia and the Philippines. Flights have been banned from both countries because they were considered high-risk for the coronavirus; under current arrangements, only fully-vaccinated Hong Kong residents from high-risk countries are allowed to enter the city.
