Kabul (AFP) – The Taliban warned on Monday there would be “consequences” if the United States and its allies extend their presence in Afghanistan beyond next week, as chaos continued to overwhelm Kabul airport with tens of thousands of people still desperate to flee.

To oversee a chaotic airlift of foreigners and Afghans desperate to escape the return of the hardline Islamic regime, thousands of troops have poured back into Afghanistan and pressure is growing on Washington to extend an August 31 withdrawal deadline.

But the Taliban Monday showed no willingness to compromise, with spokesman Suhail Shaheen telling Sky News that staying beyond the agreed deadline would be “extending occupation”.

“If the US or UK were to seek additional time to continue evacuations — the answer is no… there would be consequences,” he said.

Two Taliban sources, meanwhile, told AFP the group would not announce the makeup of its government or cabinet until the last US soldier has left the country. 

Harrowing scenes

The rush to leave Kabul has sparked harrowing scenes and killed at least eight people, some crushed to death and at least one person after falling off a plane.

The German defence ministry said Monday an Afghan man was killed and three others injured in a dawn firefight between local guards and unknown assailants.

German and American troops “participated in a further exchange of fire”, it said in a statement.

The Taliban, infamous for an ultra-strict interpretation of sharia law during their initial 1996-2001 rule, have repeatedly claimed to be different this time and declared an amnesty for government forces and officials.

But an intelligence document for the United Nations said militants were going door-to-door hunting former government officials and those who worked with US and NATO forces.

‘Pain and loss’

President Joe Biden has insisted he wants to end the US military presence and airlifts by the end of the month. 

But with the European Union and Britain saying it would be impossible to get everyone out by then, Biden is under pressure to extend the deadline.

Germany said on Monday it was in talks with NATO allies and the Taliban to keep Kabul airport open for evacuations beyond August 31, while France voiced “concern” over the deadline, saying “additional time is needed to complete ongoing operations”.

Speaking at the White House on Sunday, Biden said negotiations were under way to explore the possibility of extending the deadline.

He also acknowledged the tragic scenes at the airport, which have included babies and children being passed to soldiers over razor-wire fences and men clinging to the outside of departing planes.

He said, however, they were part of the cost of departure.

“There is no way to evacuate this many people without pain and loss and heartbreaking images you see,” he said.

The Pentagon on Monday said about 16,000 people were evacuated over the past 24 hours from Kabul airport, taking to 37,000 the number relocated since the intense airlift operations started on August 14.

‘Peace and calm’

In the capital, the Taliban have enforced some sense of calm in a city long marred by violent crime, with their armed forces patrolling the streets and manning checkpoints.

Visually, they have also been looking to stamp their authority, ensuring the tri-coloured national flag is replaced with their white banner.

At a roadside in Kabul on the weekend, young men sold Taliban flags, which bear in black text the Muslim proclamation of faith and the regime’s formal name: “Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan”.

“Our goal is to spread the flag of the Islamic Emirate throughout Afghanistan,” said seller Ahmad Shakib, who studies economics at university.

Outside of Kabul, there have been flickers of resistance against the Taliban.

Some ex-government troops have gathered in the Panjshir Valley, north of the capital — long known as an anti-Taliban bastion.

The Taliban said Monday their fighters had surrounded resistance forces holed up in the valley, but were looking to negotiate rather than take the fight to them.

Taliban fighters “are stationed near Panjshir”, spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid tweeted, adding the group was trying to resolve this issue peacefully”. 

The announcement follows scattered reports of clashes overnight, with pro-Taliban social media accounts claiming gunmen were massing, and Afghanistan’s former vice president Amrullah Saleh saying resistance forces were holding strong.

One of the leaders of the movement in Panjshir, named the National Resistance Front, is the son of famed anti-Taliban commander Ahmad Shah Massoud.

The NRF is prepared for a “long-term conflict” but is also still seeking to negotiate with the Taliban about an inclusive government, its spokesman Ali Maisam Nazary told AFP in an interview on the weekend.

With government offices still mostly closed, many Afghans are worried about being paid — but the Taliban announced the appointment of a central bank governor Monday to keep the wheels of finance moving.

Civil servants were told at the weekend, however, that they wouldn’t get their salaries until a new government was formed.

JERUSALEM (Reuters) – A third dose of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine has significantly improved protection from infection and serious illness among people aged 60 and older in Israel compared with those who received two shots, findings published by the Health Ministry showed on Sunday.

The data were presented at a meeting of a ministry panel of vaccination experts on Thursday and uploaded to its website on Sunday, though the full details of the study were not released.

The findings were on par with separate statistics reported last week by Israel’s Maccabi healthcare provider, one of several organisations administering booster shots to try to curb the Delta coronavirus variant.

Breaking down statistics from Israel’s Gertner Institute and KI Institute, ministry officials said that among people aged 60 and over, the protection against infection provided from 10 days after a third dose was four times higher than after two doses.

A third jab for over 60-year-olds offered five to six times greater protection after 10 days with regard to serious illness and hospitalisation.

That age group is particularly vulnerable to COVID-19 and in Israel was the first to be inoculated when the vaccine drive began in late December.

In recent weeks, the health ministry has said immunity has diminished over time for seniors and younger people as well. Most vaccinated people who fell severely ill in Israel were over 60 and with underlying health conditions.

Israel started administering third jabs to over 60-year-olds on July 30. On Thursday it dropped the age of eligibility for a booster to 40, and included pregnant women, teachers and health care workers below that age. Third doses are given only to those who received their second shot at least five months ago.

The United States has announced plans to offer booster shots to all Americans, citing data showing diminishing protection. Canada, France and Germany have announced booster campaigns.

Fighting an outbreak of the Delta variant since June, Israel presently has one of the world’s highest infection rates per capita. Close to 1.5 million people out of the country’s 9.3 million population have taken a third jab.

(Reporting by Jeffrey Heller and Maayan Lubell; Editing by Hugh Lawson)

By Carl O’Donnell and Manas Mishra

(Reuters) -The U.S. drug regulator on Monday granted full approval to the Pfizer Inc/BioNTech SE COVID-19 vaccine, making it the first to secure such Food and Drug Administration validation as health authorities struggle to win over vaccine skeptics during a relentless pandemic.

The FDA, which gave the two-dose vaccine emergency-use authorization in December, went a step further based on updated data from the company’s clinical trial and fully approved it for use in people age 16 and older. Public health officials hope the action will convince unvaccinated Americans that Pfizer’s shot is safe and effective.

There is entrenched vaccine skepticism among some Americans, particularly conservatives. COVID-19 cases, driven by the highly infectious Delta variant, have surged in parts of the United States with lower vaccination levels.

“This FDA approval should give added confidence that this vaccine is safe and effective,” President Joe Biden, who has sought to increase vaccination levels, wrote on Twitter.

Shortly after the FDA’s announcement, the Pentagon said it is preparing to make the vaccine mandatory for U.S. military personnel. U.S. health officials expect that the FDA’s full approval also will prompt more state and local governments, as well as private employers, to impose vaccine mandates.

“While millions of people have already safely received COVID-19 vaccines, we recognize that for some, the FDA approval of a vaccine may now instill additional confidence to get vaccinated,” said Janet Woodcock, the FDA’s acting commissioner.

The approval also makes it easier for physicians to prescribe a third dose of Pfizer’s vaccine off-label for people who may benefit from additional protection against COVID-19.

Pfizer shares were up nearly 4% and BioNTech shares were up nearly 10%.

The FDA gave emergency-use authorization to the vaccine for people age 16 and older in December – making it the first shot to gain such backing in the United States – and then gave further emergency-use authorization for people age 12 and up in May. The FDA is awaiting additional data before deciding on fully approving Pfizer’s vaccine in children ages 12 to 15.

Woodcock said the FDA was not recommending children below 12 years of age get the vaccine at this time, with more data needed to ensure it is safe for them.

The two other COVID-19 vaccines given emergency-use authorization – made by Moderna Inc and Johnson & Johnson – have not yet received full FDA approval.

More than 204 million people in the United States already have received the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine.

U.S. HIT HARD

The United States leads the world in reported COVID-19 cases and deaths. More than 625,000 Americans have died from the disease, including an average of more than 600 daily in recent weeks.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 71% of Americans age 12 and older – the population eligible to receive COVID-19 vaccines – have gotten at least one dose and 60.2% are fully vaccinated. For the entire population, including children up to age 11 for whom no vaccines are yet approved, 60.7% of Americans have received at least one dose and 51.5% of them are fully vaccinated.

The FDA’s approval should signal that the vaccine is “safe, effective, and has been manufactured consistently,” said Dr. Paul Offit of the University of Pennsylvania, a member of the FDA’s vaccine advisory panel.

“We’re going to move forward making that vaccine mandatory,” Pentagon spokesman John Kirby told reporters, adding that the timetable was still being worked out. “We’re preparing the guidance to the force right now.”

The FDA’s approval extends the shelf life of Pfizer shots from six months to nine months. It also confirms that the shot increases risk of heart inflammation, particularly among young men in the week following their second shot.

In Pfizer’s clinical trial, approximately 12,000 recipients of the vaccine have been followed for at least six months.

“Based on the longer-term follow-up data that we submitted, today’s approval for those aged 16 and over affirms the efficacy and safety profile of our vaccine at a time when it is urgently needed,” Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla said in a statement.

The vaccine will now be marketed under the name Comirnaty.

The FDA on Aug. 13 authorized a third dose of the Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna vaccines for people with compromised immune systems who are likely to have weaker protection from the two-dose regimens. Pfizer’s shot has not yet been authorized for more widespread use as a booster.

A third dose of Pfizer’s vaccine has significantly improved protection from infection and serious illness among people age 60 and older in Israel compared with those who received two shots, a study published https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/israel-finds-covid-19-vaccine-booster-significantly-lowers-infection-risk-2021-08-22 on Sunday showed.

(Reporting by Carl O’Donnell in New York and Manas Mishra in Bangalore; Additional reporting by Julie Steenhuysen in Chicago and Michael Erman in New Jersey; Editing by Will Dunham and Sriraj Kalluvila)

Dave Grohl has vowed to stay out of politics in the future.

The 52-year-old star – who recently announced plans to return to the UK with the Foo Fighters in 2022 – has joked that he’s “the last person” who should be giving advice on political issues.

He explained: “I never wanted to be seen as somebody political or someone who is always handing out opinions – but I get asked what I think about all sorts of stuff.

“We’re not really a political band – we try to do what we think is right but we’re not preaching to people. Sometimes, though, it can seem as though I’m always talking about the big issues because when people ask me for an opinion I tend to give one.

“But I am the very last person who should be telling anyone else what to do – I get things wrong all the time. There are way better people to turn to than me.”

Earlier this month, the band appeared in a video teasing members of the Westboro Baptist Church who were seen picketing at a roadside with homophobic signs.

However, Dave insisted the stunt was just a bit of “fun” on his part.

He told The Sun newspaper’s Bizarre column: “I don’t think they were very happy about it – a group of guys telling them we love them is the last thing they want to hear.

“For us, it’s just about having some fun and doing what we believe is right.”

The band recently announced four UK stadium shows for summer 2022, and Dave insisted he already can’t wait to return.

Speaking after the tour dates were confirmed, he said: “We can’t f****** wait to get back to the UK!”

Patti LaBelle’s greatest achievement in life is her son.

The 77-year-old soul legend and her ex-husband, Temptations singer Otis Williams, had one child together, Zuri Kye Edwards, and she admits regardless all of all her hits and music success having him was the best thing she’s ever done.

In an interview with America’s Closer magazine, she said: “The memory of having my son was amazing. I was the oldest lady in the maternity ward! the girls were teenagers and I was 29. I said, ‘Lord, will I ever walk again?’ It was a scary moment, giving birth, but such a wonderful outcome.”

Zuri now works as Patti’s manager and she admits he can be difficult to work for, but despite their fights she knows that he always has her best interested at heart because they are family.

The ‘Lady Marmalade’ hitmaker said: “Sometimes he hurts me because he’s so honest and we fight – but that’s healthy.

“At the end of the day, I realise he gives me the best advice ever. He is so honest, and he is never going to lead me wrong because he is my baby.”

Although she is approaching her 80th birthday, Patti has no intention of retiring because she still loves performing and making music.

She said: “Why would people lie and say they want to retire? Never would I want to retire!”

And the ‘You Are My Friend’ singer still has an interest in modern pop, and is a big fan of Billie Eilish and Pink, although Jennifer Hudson is her favourite artist.

When asked which singers she likes now, she answered: “Jennifer Hudson. She is doing it now with the Aretha [Franklin] movie. I love Pink. Billie Eilish.”

Washington (AFP) – Walking the equivalent of twice around the world during a life lasting 28 years, one wooly mammoth whose steps have been traced by researchers has proven the huge beast was a long-distance wanderer.

The findings, published Thursday in the prestigious journal Science, could shed light on theories about why the mammoth, whose teeth were bigger than the human fist, became extinct.

“In all popular culture — for example if you watch (the cartoon) ‘Ice Age’ — there are always mammoths who move around a lot,” said Clement Bataille, assistant professor at the University of Ottawa and one of the lead authors of the study.

But there is no clear reason why mammoths should have trekked great distances “because it is such an enormous animal that moving around uses a lot of energy,” he told AFP.

The researchers were amazed by the results: the mammoth they studied probably walked around 70,000 kilometers (43,500 miles), and did not stay just on the plains of Alaska as they expected.

“We see that it traveled throughout Alaska, so an immense territory,” said Bataille. “It was really a surprise.”

Readings on a tusk

For their study, the researchers selected the tusks of a male woolly mammoth who lived at the end of the last ice age.

The animal — named “Kik” after a local river — lived relatively close to the time of the extinction of the species, around 13,000 years ago.

One of the two tusks was cut in half to take readings of strontium isotope ratios.

Strontium is a chemical element similar to limestone and is present in soil. It is transmitted to vegetation and, when eaten, is deposited in bones, teeth… or tusks.

The tusks grow throughout a mammal’s life, with the tip reflecting the first years of life, and the base representing the final years.

Isotope ratios are different depending on geology, and Bataille developed an isotopic map of the region.

By comparing it with the data from the tusks, it was possible to track when and where the mammoth had been.

At the time, glaciers covered all of the Brooks Range of mountains in the north and the Alaska Range in the south, with the plain of the Yukon River in the center.

The animal returned regularly to some areas, where it could stay for several years. But his movements also changed greatly depending on his age, before he eventually died of hunger.

During the first two years of his life, researchers were even able to observe signs of breastfeeding.

“What was really surprising was that after the teenage years, the isotopic variations start to be much more important,” said Bataille.

The mammoth has “three or four times in its life, made an immense journey of 500, 600 even 700 kilometers, in a few months.”

Scientists say the male may have been solitary, and moving from herd to herd to reproduce. Or he could have been facing a drought or a harsh winter, forcing him to seek a new area where food was more plentiful.

Lessons for today?

Whether for genetic diversity, or due to scarce resources, it is “clear that this species needed an extremely large area” to live,” said Bataille.

But, at the time of the transition from the ice age to the interglacial period — when they were extinct — “the area shrank because more forests grew” and “humans put quite a lot of pressure on southern Alaska, where mammoths probably moved much less.”

Understanding factors that led to the disappearance of mammoths may help protect other threatened megafauna species, such as caribou or elephants.

With today’s climate changing, and humans often restricting big species to parks and reserves, Bataille said, “do we want our children 1,000 years from now to view elephants the same way we view mammoths today?”

By Jonathan Landay

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The United States spent more than $8 billion over 15 years on efforts to deprive the Taliban of their profits from Afghanistan’s opium and heroin trade, from poppy eradication to airstrikes and raids on suspected labs.

That strategy failed.

As the United States wraps up its longest war, Afghanistan remains the world’s biggest illicit opiate supplier and looks certain to remain so as the Taliban is on the brink of taking power in Kabul, said current and former U.S. and U.N. officials and experts.

Widespread destruction during the war, millions uprooted from their homes, foreign aid cuts, and losses of local spending by departed U.S.-led foreign troops are fueling an economic and humanitarian crisis that is likely to leave many destitute Afghans dependent on the narcotics trade for survival.

That dependence threatens to bring more instability as the Taliban, other armed groups, ethnic warlords, and corrupt public officials vie for drug profits and power.

Some U.N. and U.S. officials worry Afghanistan’s slide into chaos is creating conditions for even higher illicit opiate production, a potential boon to the Taliban.

“The Taliban have counted on the Afghan opium trade as one of their main sources of income,” Cesar Gudes, the head of the Kabul office of the U.N. Office of Drugs and Crime (UNODC), told Reuters. “More production brings drugs with a cheaper and more attractive price, and therefore a wider accessibility.”

With the insurgents entering Kabul on Sunday, “these are the best moments in which these illicit groups tend to position themselves” to expand their business, Gudes said.

The Taliban banned poppy growing in 2000 as they sought international legitimacy, but faced a popular backlash and later mostly changed their stance, according to experts.

Despite the threats posed by Afghanistan’s illicit drug business, experts noted, the United States and other nations rarely mention in public the need to address the trade – estimated by the UNODC at more than 80% of global opium and heroin supplies.

“We’ve stood by on the sidelines and, unfortunately, allowed the Taliban to become probably the largest funded non-designated terrorist organization on the globe,” said a U.S. official with knowledge of Afghanistan’s drug trade.

“The U.S. and international partners have continued to pull out and not addressed poppy cultivation,” the official said on condition of anonymity. “What you’re going to find is that it has exploded.”

Asked for comment, a State Department official said the United States would continue to support the Afghan people, “including our ongoing counternarcotics efforts,” but declined to say how aid would continue should U.S. assistance stop if the Taliban seize power.

POPPY CULTIVATION SOARS

Afghan farmers weigh myriad factors in deciding how much poppy to plant. These range from annual precipitation and the price of wheat, the main alternative crop to poppy, to world opium and heroin prices.

Yet even during droughts and wheat shortages, when wheat prices rocket, Afghan farmers have grown poppy and extracted opium gum that is refined into morphine and heroin. In recent years, many have installed Chinese-made solar panels to power deep water wells.

Three of the last four years have seen some of Afghanistan’s highest levels of opium production, according to the UNODC. Even as the COVID-19 pandemic raged, poppy cultivation soared 37% last year, it reported in May.

Illicit narcotics are “the country’s largest industry except for war,” said Barnett Rubin, a former State Department adviser on Afghanistan.

The estimated all-time high for opium production was set in 2017 at 9,900 tons worth some $1.4 billion in sales by farmers or roughly 7% of Afghanistan’s GDP, the UNODC reported.

When the value of drugs for export and local consumption are taken into account, along with imported precursor chemicals, the UNODC estimated the country’s overall illicit opiate economy that year at as much as $6.6 billion.

The Taliban and public officials have long been involved in the narcotics trade, experts said, although some dispute the extent of the insurgents’ role and profits.

The United Nations and Washington contend the Taliban are involved in all facets, from poppy planting, opium extraction, and trafficking to exacting “taxes” from cultivators and drug labs to charging smugglers fees for shipments bound for Africa, Europe, Canada, Russia, the Middle East, and other parts of Asia.

Some of those shipments are hurled across the heavily patrolled border to traffickers in Iran with rudimentary catapults, reported David Mansfield, a leading researcher into Afghanistan’s illicit drug trade.

U.N. officials reported that the Taliban likely earned more than $400 million between 2018 and 2019 from the drug trade. A May 2021 U.S. Special Inspector General for Afghanistan (SIGAR) report quoted a U.S. official as estimating they derive up to 60% of their annual revenue from illicit narcotics.

Some experts dispute that data.

Mansfield says his field studies show the most the Taliban can earn from illicit opiates is about $40 million annually, predominantly from levies on opium production, heroin labs and drug shipments.

The insurgents, he said, make more money exacting fees on legal imports and exports at roadside checkpoints.

Washington spent an estimated $8.6 billion between 2002 and 2017 to throttle Afghanistan’s drug trade in order to deny the Taliban funds, according to a 2018 SIGAR report. Apart from poppy eradication, the United States and allies backed interdiction raids and alternative crop programs, airstrikes on suspected heroin labs and other measures.

Those efforts “didn’t really have much success,” retired U.S. Army General Joseph Votel, who commanded U.S. Central Command from 2016-2019, told Reuters.

Instead, experts said, they stoked anger against the government in Kabul and its foreign backers – and sympathy for the Taliban – among farmers and laborers who depend on opium production to feed their families.

The Taliban learned that lesson from their ban on poppy growing in 2000, said Brookings Institution scholar Vanda Felbab-Brown.

Despite a steep decline in production, the ban ignited “a huge political storm against the Taliban and it was one reason why there were such dramatic defections after the U.S. invasion,” she said.

Therefore, experts said, it is unlikely the Taliban will prohibit poppy cultivation should they gain power.

“A future government,” said Mansfield, “will need to tread carefully to avoid alienating its rural constituency and provoking resistance and violent rebellion.”

(Reporting by Jonathan Landay; Editing by Arshad Mohammed, Mary Milliken and Daniel Wallis)

Sinéad O’Connor has written an open letter to Prince Harry.

The 54-year-old singer was moved by Harry’s recent Apple TV documentary on mental health, ‘The Me You Can’t See’, with Oprah Winfrey and believes his late mother, Princess Diana, would be very proud of him.

Writing in Ireland’s Sunday Independent newspaper, Sinéad said: “As someone who has trauma-related mental health struggles, I wanted to let you know how bowled over I am by your Apple TV series. You’re slammin’ it, to use a musical term. You just keep shining on through.”

Sinéad revealed that she identifies with Harry’s grief over the death of his mother Princess Diana in a car crash in 1997 when he was just 12, as she lost her own mother in similar circumstances when she was 18.

She explained: “I’m writing this because you and I have something in common Harry. I also lost my mother in a car crash… I do know something of the grief you’ve been brave enough to share in the public arena. It’s a shock that takes years to come out of, when someone dies so violently and suddenly. It’s a lifetime’s recovery.

“I really identified with you when you shared the rage and anger you felt at the time of your mother’s passing. I was the same. I’m sure we all were, any of us who ever lost someone in that sudden way. Transcending that grief as you’ve done by sharing it, cuts through a lot of garbage. And a lot of us appreciate what you’re doing.”

And Sinéad went on to tell Harry, 36, that his mother would be very proud of him.

She wrote: “When so many of us see the work you’re doing for people who experience mental health struggles, we see you stomping on stigma. And we’re all delighted for you. Most importantly, we know how proud your mama is of the incredible young man you are.”

By Julio-Cesar Chavez and Mark Hosenball

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Law enforcement officials surrounded a man with possible explosives sitting in a vehicle near the U.S. Capitol on Thursday, as nearby buildings were evacuated and emergency vehicles rushed to the scene about a mile from the White House.

“This is an active bomb threat investigation,” the U.S. Capitol Police said on Twitter.

The man was in a vehicle outside the Library of Congress, across the street from the Capitol, a U.S. law enforcement source said.

The law enforcement source said the presence of explosives had not been confirmed.

But people in Congress were notified that the vehicle’s occupant had said that he possessed a bomb and that authorities were crafting their responses with that threat in mind, an official told Reuters.

Several nearby buildings were evacuated, including the U.S. Supreme Court. People in the Madison office building were told to bar themselves in their offices. A nearby subway station was closed.

Police blocked off roads surrounding the Capitol complex as fire and rescue trucks headed to the area. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives said it was sending a bomb technician to support police. The Federal Bureau of Investigation also responded.

The ordinarily crowded Capitol Hill area was relatively deserted, with the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate out of session.

“The USCP is responding to a suspicious vehicle near the Library of Congress,” the Capitol Police wrote on Twitter. “Please stay away from this area.”

(Reporting by Lisa Lambert, Lawrence Hurley, Sarah N. Lynch, Mark Hosenball and Julio-Cesar ChavezWriting by David Morgan Editing by Andy Sullivan, Chizu Nomiyama and Sonya Hepinstall)

Britney Spears has fired back at critics of her topless photos and revealed she’s feeling more body confident.

The 39-year-old star – who joked food is the cause of her bigger bust rather than a “boob job” or being pregnant – has opened up on the number of racy pictures she’s been sharing on social media lately.

She wrote on Instagram: “No guys … I didn’t get a boob job in just a week … nor am I pregnant … I have boobs in these pics cause I devoured food!!!!

“Before I show you more pics of my body … I want you to understand my thoughts on exposing my skin !!!! In my opinion it’s quite twisted the immediate response of when any woman is hot and they want to shed a layer … no … I’m not talking in a strip club or a performance … just on a practical scale of being in your car and realizing you’re wearing a stupid long sleeve shirt in the summer !!!!

“The immediate reaction to any woman who does this after shedding a layer is DAMN I FEEL BETTER … therefore you think you look better !!! (sic)”

In a lengthy post – which was shared alongside a number of new topless snaps – Britney admitted in the past she had moments on stage where she felt she “didn’t look so great” and finds it “embarrassing as f***”.

She continued: “I mean I don’t want anybody to see the big dimple on my ass but I feel like performing made me too self conscious about my body and that’s not attractive …..

“Anyways I bet you’re wondering why I’d expose my body NOW … well it’s because I was born into this world naked and I honestly feel like the weight of the would has been on my shoulders and it’s made me view myself that way !!!!

“I wanted to see myself in a lighter way … naked … like the way I was born and to me looking back at my pictures when I shoot it’s insane the psychology in seeing myself in my purest form gives evidence that pain … hurt … tears … and heavy burdens aren’t who I am. I am a woman …. a beautiful … sensitive woman who needs to look at myself in my purest form !!! (sic)”

Meanwhile, the ‘Toxic’ hitmaker – whose father Jamie will step down as her conservator after a legal battle – admitted she couldn’t help but laugh when people responded to her revealing pictures with jokes about the “Free Britney” movement.

She added: “No … I’m not going to do topless pics f or the rest of my life cause that would get boring but it sure as hell helps when you need to be enlightened!!!!

“And I will admit the FREE BRITNEY comments after I took my shirt off were actually really f****** funny !!! (sic)”

Andy Cohen looks for “good stepfather” qualities in anyone he dates.

The 53-year-old radio and television host became a father to two-year-old son Benjamin Allen in 2019, and has said being a dad has completely changed the way he views dating, as he now wants to make sure his future partner has the right qualities to be a stepfather to his son.

He explained: “Now there’s an endgame. Are you going to be a good stepfather? It’s changed everything.”

And when the ‘Watch What Happens Live’ host does find his special someone, he wants them to be “independent” and have their own interests.

He added: “I like very independent people who have their own things going with their own lives, who are very strong in their belief systems. That’s very attractive to me.”

Andy is currently the host of Peacock’s new series ‘Ex-Rated’, in which contestants face candid feedback from their former partners.

And while the TV star is still on the hunt for “the one”, he would be curious to know what his exes would score him in the different relationship categories.

He told People magazine: “You get to hear straight from contestants’ exes, and they use the information to make themselves better at dating – and in bed. I love how sex-positive the show is. You can’t turn away!

“I’m dying for my exes to fill out the survey to see how I scored! The show makes you want to put yourself in other people’s positions and say, ‘What would people say about me?’ It’s really made me wonder how I would be rated in certain categories.”

Meanwhile, Andy previously revealed having a son has encouraged him to travel the world, as he wants to take his tot “everywhere”.

He said: “I’m excited to take him to theme parks and to take him to London when that is meaningful for him. I’m kind of excited to take him everywhere, frankly. I’m building a house on Long Island, [and] I’m excited to live there with him.

“I used to not lean into tourist things, but I think with a child, you do it with glee … What happens is, you’re too cool until you’re not. Everybody winds up there.”

Lily Cole has come out as queer.

The 33-year-old model – who has five-year-old daughter Wylde with her entrepreneur husband Kwame Ferreira – spoke out about her sexuality in her new book ‘Who Cares Wins: How to Protect the Planet You Love’.

Lily wrote: “Just as we do not choose the circumstances and ancestral patterns we are born into, none of us choose the cultural norms and laws we inherit.

“Had my mixed-race daughter been born in a different country, she would have been a crime.

“If I were living in another country today, my queerness would be a crime.”

And Lily – who tied the knot with Ferreira in 2012 – went on to explain that she felt the need to “acknowledge” that she is not straight.

Speaking about the word queer, she told The Sunday Times Style magazine: “I like that world because of its openness, because I think all those boundaries are quite rigid.

“I have lots of friends who identify as bisexual, lesbian or whatever, who also identify as queer. I’ve always been quite private about my private life, consciously, and I want to continue to be, so I don’t feel the need to be explicit. At the same time I feel the need to acknowledge that I am not straight.”

Lily was previously linked to Jude Law, David Gandy Bryan Ferry and Twitter founder Jack Dorsey before she fell for Ferreira.

Stella McCartney’s parents introduced “genderless” fashion to her.

The 49-year-old designer can recall her parents, Beatles icon Sir Paul McCartney and late photographer Linda McCartney, sharing their clothes when she was growing up and that idea of having sexless clothes never left and has always inspired her creations.

In an interview with OK! magazine, she said: “Mum and dad would share a wardrobe. So I saw this kind of genderless relationship between clothing. I think I was just really drawn to that.

“My earliest memories are of sitting in my mum and dad’s wardrobe and looking at all their clothes. I would watch films too, and I just knew that I wanted to do something that was creative. And, you know, I had parents that were in entertainment, so I would watch them work with costumes. But then we grew up on a farm, so it would be very contrasting worlds.

“One minute it was bareback on a horse and the next minute it was thigh-high boots and rock ‘n’ roll! So I got this incredible insight into costumes and wardrobes.”

Stella – who has just released her first-ever range made from Mylo, laboratory grown mushroom leather – says another major inspiration behind her designs is the psychology of clothes, how certain garments can make you “feel good” whereas other items can make you “feel bad”.

She said: “As I got older, I knew fashion was my choice of career. I went to be an intern in Paris and I was just sold. But the thing that also made me really want to pursue it wasn’t the glamour. It was the psychological side to it, that what you wear is a reflection of who you are and how you feel.

“Some things can make you feel good and other things can make you feel bad. I found that really fascinating.”

Eminem’s adopted child has come out as non-binary.

The ‘Real Slim Shady’ hitmaker’s 19 year old has changed their name from Whitney to Stevie Laine and though the rapper – who adopted the teenager in 2005 when he reconciled with their biological mother, his ex-wife, Kim Scott – has yet to comment on the news, other members of the family have shown their support.

In one post, they wrote out their pronouns, telling fans:”call me Stevie (they/she/he)”

The social media post was liked by Stevie’s sister Hailie, who is Eminem and Kim’s biological child.

Stevie also shared a video on TikTok of their transformation over the years, including recently cropping their hair short, along with the words: “Watch me become more comfortable with myself.”

They added: “Forever growing and changing.”

Stevie – who has wiped all old Instagram posts from their account since coming out – used hashtags including #genderfluid #bi and #nonbinary in several posts.

The teenager’s new name was mentioned in an obituary for their grandmother Kathleen Sluck last month.

It stated: “Kathleen was a exceptional mom to her two daughters; Kim and Dawn; and was overjoyed to become a grandmother to her grandchildren; Alaina, Adam, Hailie, Stevie, P.J., and Parker.”

Stevie’s biological dad, Eric Hartter, died last year aged 40 after reportedly battling drug addiction.

As well as Stevie and Hailie, 25, Eminem also has adopted daughter Alaina, whose mother was Kim’s late twin sister Dawn, who died from an overdose in 2016.

A day after Kathy’s funeral, Kim was taken to hospital following a reported suicide attempt.

Police attended her home in Michigan on 30 July after receiving reports of a suicidal person and allegedly found the 46 year old to be “combative” and had to be restrained.

She was found with cuts on the back of her leg and was transported to hospital for medical and psychological evaluation before returning home to recover.