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Biden's Afghanistan remarks, Minneapolis ballot, Aaliyah's music: 5 things to know Friday

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Biden to deliver remarks on the evacuations out of Afghanistan

President Joe Biden will deliver remarks on "the evacuation of American citizens and their families, SIV applicants and their families, and vulnerable Afghans" on Friday, according to his official schedule. Biden has been skewered by multiple groups, including Republicans and a variety of experts, since the Taliban completed its seizure of Afghanistan much faster than expected. The U.S. was forced to rapidly evacuate tens of thousands of people from the nation quickly and the subsequent images and videos detailed stunning chaos. Biden has remained firm and said he still stands by his decision to pull the troops out. Complicating matters, the U.S. has been struggling to pick up the pace of evacuations at Kabul airport, constrained by a range of obstacles, the Associated Press says. But in a hopeful sign, the State Department said 6,000 people were cleared for evacuation Thursday. That would mark a major increase from recent days.

Ballot question due for Minneapolis vote on replacing police

Minneapolis is again considering sweeping changes to the city's police department more than a year after the failed push to disband the department in the wake of George Floyd’s murder. Residents will vote in November on a ballot question that would change the city's charter and create a department of public safety, a proposal that has attracted thousands of local supporters but also fierce community opposition as well as national attention and money. City officials must finalize the ballot question and submit it by Friday. The department would use a "comprehensive public health approach" and include licensed peace officers "if necessary." It would also no longer be under the sole control of the mayor’s office, giving greater oversight to the city council.

Old Navy overhauls its sizing strategy for more inclusivity

Old Navy on Friday is redefining the sizes of its women's clothes to make shopping more inclusive. With its "BODEQUALITY" effort, Old Navy said it will be "the first value retailer to offer sizes 0-30 and XS-4X for all women's styles" with no price difference. As part of the transformation, Old Navy's 1,200 stores are doing away with special plus-size sections, and mannequins will display clothes in sizes four, 12 and 18. Other changes include updating the waistband pitch so jeans won't gap and adjusting sleeve openings so bras won't show.

Aaliyah's music headed to streaming after long wait for fans

Nearly 20 years after her tragic death, the Princess of R&B's catalog will be available on streaming starting Friday. Aaliyah's music will be rolling out in near chronological order, starting with the release of her platinum-selling album "One in a Million." Albums "ΛΛLIYΛH," and "I Care 4 U" will follow on Sept. 10 and Oct. 8, respectively. So what took so long? The delay, according to Barry Hankerson, her uncle and founder of label Blackground Records, stemmed from disagreements with Aaliyah's estate, which he said had previously expressed a desire to take her catalog off the market. Aaliyah's estate responded to the deal in a statement through an attorney and said it was "not made aware" of the streaming release of the late singer's catalog.

Madden 22 arrives ahead of the NFL, holiday video game seasons

Are you ready for some (video game) football? On Friday, National Football League fans can hit the digital gridiron with the launch of Madden NFL 22 ($69.99, for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S; $59.99, for PS4, Xbox One, PCs and Google Stadia). The release of Madden from Electronic Arts not only drums up excitement for the upcoming NFL season, but the annual launch has served as an unofficial marker for the start of the important holiday video game season. Two players are on the game's cover as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' Tom Brady and the Kansas City Chiefs' Patrick Mahomes, the starting quarterbacks from Super Bowl 55, each appear for the second time. This new edition will incorporate more stats, including team-level behaviors. Quarterbacks' passing choices and ball carrier moves will be more realistic, for instance. Players will also be able to make halftime adjustments and adapt a game plan based on an opponent's first half strategy.

Contributing: The Associated Press

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Biden on Afghanistan, Minneapolis ballot: 5 things to know Friday

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