OLYMPICS: Big debut on deck for skateboarding Page 48 MOVIES Summer preview: GAMES: Biomutant has After a year at home, combat flaws Page 27 the big screen is back Pages 15-19 MUSIC: Olivia Rodrigo’s Gen Z pop perfection Page 30 stripes.com Volume 80 Edition 30 ©SS 2021 FRIDAY,MAY 28, 2021 $1.00 Tough battle ahead Afghan forces hurt by low morale, corruption BY KATHY GANNON Associated Press KABUL, Afghanistan — Abdullah Mo- hammadi lost his two legs and an arm below the elbow in a ferocious battle with the Tali- ban. As a young Afghan soldier, he had been eager to fight for his country, but now he’s furious at a government he says ignores him and hasn’t paid his veteran’s pension for nearly a year. Afghanistan’s National Defense and Se- curity Forces, meant to be the bulwark against advancing Taliban insurgents, are rife with corruption, demoralized and struggling to keep territory. The govern- ment says the army can hold its own, but SEE BATTLE ON PAGE 4 RELATED Taliban warn US against RAHMAT GUL/AP setting up bases in region Afghan army veteran Abdullah Mohammadi gives an interview to The Associated Press at his home on the outskirts of Kabul, Afghanistan, on May 5. Once eager to fight for his country, Mohammadi is now furious at his government. Page 5 Ex-spouse reveals cracks in military’s response to domestic abuse incidents BY SARAH CAMMARATA are isolated and unaware of resources cuss how her husband spoke down to ing on domestic violence in the military Stars and Stripes available to them. their child for crying. A few days after held by the personnel subpanel of the WASHINGTON — Amy Logan first Several months after the move, her the assault, Logan went with her child House Armed Services Committee. experienced physical abuse three marriage turned violent, Logan told to a women’s safe shelter and eventu- Incidents of spouse abuse in the mil- years into her marriage to a sergeant House lawmakers Tuesday. ally filed for a divorce, she said. itary are at about 1.1%, according to De- major in the Army. One night, Logan’s husband at the “He told me, ‘I would rather go to fense Department data from 2019. That Logan was away from friends and time charged at her, grabbed her prison than let you leave with our rate is more than twice that of the na- family once she moved to a new base, shoulders and his knee struck her in child.’ I took this as a verbal threat to similar to many military spouses who Logan the leg after Logan attempted to dis- my life,” Logan testified during a hear- SEE SPOUSE ON PAGE 7 PAGE 2 • STARS AND STRIPES • Friday, May 28, 2021 BUSINESS/WEATHER EUROPE GAS PRICES EXCHANGE RATES Military rates South Korea (Won) 1119.19 Switzerland (Franc) .9000 Euro costs (May 28) $1.19 Thailand (Baht) 31.29 Europe's gas prices were Dollar buys (May 28) 0.7985 Turkey (NewLira) 8.4532 British pound (May 28) $1.38 unavailable before press time Japanese yen (May 28) 106.00 (Military exchange rates are those available South Korean won (May 28) 1090.00 to customers at military banking facilities in the Commercial rates country of issuance for Japan, South Korea, Ger­ many, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Bahrain(Dinar) .3770 For nonlocal currency exchange rates (i.e., pur­ Britain (Pound) 1.4172 chasing British pounds in Germany), check with Canada (Dollar) 1.2084 your local military banking facility. Commercial China(Yuan) 6.3833 rates are interbank rates provided for reference PACIFIC GAS PRICES Denmark (Krone) 6.0972 Egypt (Pound) 15.6704 when buying currency. All figures are foreign Country Super E10 Super unleaded Super plus Diesel Euro .8200 currencies to one dollar, except for the British Japan .. $3.759 .. $3.319 South Korea $3.099 .. $3.769 $3.329 Hong Kong (Dollar) 7.7623 pound, which is represented in dollars­to­ pound, and the euro, which is dollars­to­euro.) Change in price .. +1.0 cents .. No change Change in price +1.0 cents .. No change No change Hungary (Forint) 285.39 Israel (Shekel) 3.2457 Okinawa $3.089 .. .. $3.319 Guam $3.099 $3.519 $3.769 .. Japan (Yen) 107.50 INTEREST RATES Kuwait(Dinar) .3008 Change in price No change .. .. No change Change in price No change No change +1.0 cents .. Norway (Krone) 8.3566 Prime rate 3.25 Philippines (Peso) 48.03 Interest Rates Discount rate 0.75 *DieselEFD **Midgrade Poland (Zloty) 3.68 Federal funds market rate 0.09 Saudi Arabia (Riyal) 3.7505 3­month bill 0.02 For the week of May 28 ­ June 3 Singapore (Dollar) 1.3240 30­year bond 2.27 WEATHER OUTLOOK FRIDAY IN THE MIDDLE EAST FRIDAY IN EUROPE SATURDAY IN THE PACIFIC Misawa 64/54 Kabul Seoul 84/59 70/55 Baghdad 109/73 Tokyo Drawsko Osan Kandahar Mildenhall/ 66/55 78/59 100/64 Pomorskie Busan Lakenheath 56/47 68/59 64/48 Iwakuni Kuwait City Bahrain 67/62 Brussels Zagan Sasebo Guam 107/83 93/88 Ramstein 53/49 67/62 63/42 57/46 87/81 Riyadh Lajes, 107/76 Doha Azores Stuttgart 107/80 62/60 58/44 Pápa Aviano/ 62/50 Vicenza 67/48 Naples 75/57 Okinawa Morón 80/78 88/60 Sigonella Rota 71/57 The weather is provided by the Djibouti 75/55 Souda Bay American Forces Network Weather Center, 95/79 73/66 2nd Weather Squadron at Offutt Air Force Base, Neb. TODAY IN STRIPES American Roundup ...... 10 Classified .................... 46 Comics ................... 38-39 Crossword ............. 38-39 Faces .......................... 35 Opinion ....................... 40 Sports .................... 41-48 Friday, May 28, 2021 • STARS AND STRIPES • PAGE 3 MILITARY Air Force adopts new fitness test scoring BY SARAH CAMMARATA The service announced in one-size-fits-all model,” Gen. Stars and Stripes early March that it would further Charles “CQ” Brown, the Air WASHINGTON — The Air delay testing until July due to Force chief of staff, said in a pre- Force will require only pushups, concerns about the coronavirus pared statement. “More testing situps and a 1.5-mile run when pandemic. Testing had been pre- options will put flexibility in the physical fitness testing resumes viously pushed back until April. hands of our airmen — where it July 1 using a new scoring break- The age brackets used for as- belongs.” down, the service announced sessment and grading from 10- While the waist measurement Wednesday. year age categories are now is no longer required as part of Pushups and situps will now changed to five-year age groups. the test, a separate assessment of be worth 20 points each, up 10 For example, the grading cate- body composition will continue points, and the 1.5-mile run will gory for ages 30-39 has been re- starting in October, according to remain worth 60 points. The placed with age groups of 30-34 the service. Body composition boost in points is to make up for and 35-39, according to an Air assessments will not be a part of those points that were lost when Force news release. the physical fitness test. More the service did away with waist In the coming weeks, the ser- details could be announced later, circumference measurements in vice also plans to announce alter- but the service did not say when. December. native strength and cardiovascu- The Space Force will follow An overall score of at least 75 lar testing exercise options. At the Air Force policies until its is required to pass and anyone that point, members will have leadership develops a service- taking the test must also achieve about six months to practice the specific plan. the minimum score in each com- exercises, and they will be avail- ponent. Minimum scores for able options by the start of next CHRISTOPHER PARR/U.S. Air Force each component vary based on year, according to the service. [email protected] The Air Force will require only pushups, situps and a 1.5­mile run age and gender. “We are moving away from a Twitter: @sarahjcamm when physical fitness testing resumes July 1. Onboard Navy counselors help sailors cope with stress BY WYATT OLSON ing that skill set and quickly form- Stars and Stripes ing part of a team that would then The Navy is assessing how best go out and embark with the ships,” to employ specially trained teams he said. placed aboard large ships as they It meant cutting short holiday head to sea to help sailors with time normally spent with friends shore-to-sea transition, a program and family because team mem- tested earlier this year. bers had to join the required two- The “proof of concept” for the week restriction of movement that Departure and Separation Pro- began only a few days after Christ- gram kicked off in December on mas. six cruisers and destroyers from Laboon Cmdr. Charles Spivey Norfolk, Va., and ended in mid- described the program as “invalu- February. Their crews were deal- able” in the Navy news release, ing with the usual stressors of saying “the curriculum gave our heading to sea for many months crew new skills and appropriate but also with family issues and re- resources to be successful while strictions related to COVID-19, we are gone.” the coronavirus respiratory dis- Cannon said the data is not yet ease. available to see how effective the “I would say some of [the pro- teams were in easing problems gram’s launch] was directly attri- due to separation.