News Wrap: Taliban frees American in prisoner swap, judge orders release of Adnan Syed

Judy Woodruff:

In the day's other news: Afghanistan's ruling Taliban today freed American engineer Mark Frerichs in a prisoner swap. He was exchanged for convicted drug lord Bashir Noorzai, who arrived in Kabul after 17 years in U.S. custody.

Noorzai praised the Taliban for his release.

Bashir Noorzai, Released Prisoner (through translator):

My exchange, I think, with God willing, can lead to peace between Afghanistan and America. An American was released. And I am also free with the help of the Taliban and their holy fighters.

Judy Woodruff:

Mark Frerichs had worked on development projects before he was kidnapped by a Taliban-allied group in January 2020.

A judge in Maryland has ordered the release of Adnan Syed, whose murder conviction was featured in the podcast "Serial." He had been jailed since 2000 for the killing of his ex-girlfriend. But prosecutors in Baltimore now say that new evidence could undermine the conviction. They have 30 days to decide whether to try Syed again.

In Ukraine, Russian missile fire hit close today to another nuclear power station. Late-night footage showed explosions erupting at the plant in the Mykolaiv region 300 yards from the reactors, Ukraine accused the Russians of — quote — "nuclear terrorism."

China weighed in today after President Biden said again that U.S. forces would defend Taiwan against any invasion. The president spoke in an interview with CBS News' "60 Minutes." In Beijing, a Foreign Ministry spokeswoman denounced the comments at a briefing.

Mao Ning, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman (through translator):

The U.S. remarks seriously violate the one China principle, breach the U.S. commitment to not support Taiwan independence, and send a severely wrong signal to the separatist forces of Taiwan independence. China strongly deplores and rejects it.

Judy Woodruff:

President Biden has made similar comments about defending Taiwan in the past, but the White House maintains, U.S. policy toward Taiwan has not changed.

A typhoon smashed ashore overnight in Japan, killing at least two people. Tens of thousands were forced to evacuate and hundreds of thousands lost power. The storm tore through Japan's southwestern coast, flooding roads and suspending travel. By today, it had reached the main island of Honshu, with heavy rain lashing Tokyo.

Back in this country, new federal data shows more than 20,000 people died in traffic accidents in the first half of this year. That is the most since 2006. And it continues a trend that began with the pandemic. Last year alone, nearly 43,000 people were killed on the nation's highways.

U.S. immigration officials say migrants were stopped at the Southern border more than 200,000 times in August. That takes the count for the fiscal year above two million. Stops involving Venezuelans, Cubans and Nicaraguans rose to 56,000 in August, but fewer migrants from Mexico and several Central American states were involved.

On Wall Street today, stocks closed higher ahead of the Federal Reserve next move on interest rates later this week. The Dow Jones industrial average gained 197 points to finish at 31019. The Nasdaq rose 86 points. The S&P 500 added 26.

And the Las Vegas Aces are the new champions of women's professional basketball. They scored their first WNBA title on Sunday, finishing off the Connecticut Sun. The team celebrated by storming the court and pulling on championship shirts before the ceremony. It is the first major title for a Las Vegas pro sports team.

Congratulations.