GAMES: Skyward Sword sharper on Switch Page 19 MOVIES: ‘Jungle Cruise’ shallow but lively Page 16 OLYMPICS US gymnast Lee TRAVEL: Robot Café in wins all-around Tokyo has purpose Page 25 Page 48 stripes.com Volume 80 Edition 75 ©SS 2021 FRIDAY,JULY 30, 2021 $1.00 VIRUS OUTBREAK Active-duty doctor among 2 sailors to die from COVID-19 BY CAITLIN DOORNBOS Stars and Stripes WASHINGTON — Two sailors — including an active-duty doctor — have died within the last week of complications from the corona- virus, the Navy announced in a statement Wednesday. Capt. Corby Ropp, 48, died Fri- day due to coronavirus-related complications at Duke University Hospital in Durham, N.C., accord- ing to the Navy. Ropp served as the department leader of ophthalmology and re- fractive surgery at the Navy Med- icine Readiness and Training Command at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune in Jacksonville, N.C. “We are deeply saddened by the loss of our shipmate and ophthal- mologist, Capt. Ropp,” said Capt. Reginald Ewing III, commander JOSE RODRIGUEZ/U.S. Army of NMRTC Camp Lejeune. “Our A soldier looks out of the loading ramp of a C-27 aircraft while he and his fellow soldiers wear face masks and maintain social distance. The thoughts and prayers are with Pentagon on Wednesday reversed its May guidance that allowed fully vaccinated service members to go without masks at DOD facilities. Capt. Ropp’s family, coworkers and friends during this extremely difficult time.” On Monday, Petty Officer 1st Class Allen Hillman, a master-at- arms assigned to Navy Reserve Volunteer Training Unit in Boise, Idaho, died while hospitalized Walking back on masks with the coronavirus. Cmdr. Megan Fine, commander of the Navy Operational Support Pentagon returns to required face coverings at many RELATED Center in Boise, said in the state- Tokyo again breaks 1-day ment that Hillman “was a big part DOD locations as Biden mulls new vaccination plan of our community.” record for COVID cases “We are deeply saddened by the BY COREY DICKSTEIN The directive from Deputy Defense Secre- Page 8 loss of our friend and shipmate Stars and Stripes tary Kathleen Hicks on Wednesday walks back MA1 Hillman,” Fine said. “We will The Pentagon on Wednesday announced it guidance issued in May that allowed service continue to support his family and would once again require all individuals to members and others who had been fully vacci- DODEA students will be shipmates during this difficult wear face coverings when indoors at Defense nated against the virus to forgo mask-wearing offered free meals through time.” Department facilities in locations deemed high at DOD facilities worldwide. It comes one day risk by federal health officials for the spread of new school year SEE SAILORS ON PAGE 5 coronavirus. SEE MASKS ON PAGE 6 Page 9 PAGE 2 • STARS AND STRIPES • Friday, July 30, 2021 BUSINESS/WEATHER EUROPE GAS PRICES EXCHANGE RATES Military rates South Korea (Won) 1144.82 Switzerland (Franc) .9069 Euro costs (July 30) $1.16 Thailand (Baht) 32.87 Europe gas prices weren’t available before press time Dollar buys (July 30) 0.8210 Turkey (NewLira) 8.4938 British pound (July 30) $1.36 Japanese yen (July 30) 107.00 (Military exchange rates are those available South Korean won (July 30) 1121.00 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) 1.3978 chasing British pounds in Germany), check with Canada (Dollar) 1.2474 your local military banking facility. Commercial China(Yuan) 6.4596 rates are interbank rates provided for reference PACIFIC GAS PRICES Denmark (Krone) 6.2583 Egypt (Pound) 15.6798 when buying currency. All figures are foreign Country Super E10 Super unleaded Super plus Diesel Euro .8414 currencies to one dollar, except for the British Japan .. $3.899 .. $3.409 South Korea $3.219 .. $3.909 $3.419 Hong Kong (Dollar) 7.7710 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 .. ­1.0 cents No change Hungary (Forint) 301.39 Israel (Shekel) 3.2445 Okinawa $3.199 .. .. $3.409 Guam $3.209 $3.659 $3.909 .. Japan (Yen) 109.76 INTEREST RATES Kuwait(Dinar) .3004 Change in price ­2.0 cents .. .. No change Change in price ­2.0 cents ­1.0 cents ­1.0 cents .. Norway (Krone) 8.5609 Prime rate 3.25 Philippines (Peso) 50.29 Interest Rates Discount rate 0.75 *DieselEFD **Midgrade Poland (Zloty) 3.85 Federal funds market rate 0.10 Saudi Arabia (Riyal) 3.7503 3­month bill 0.05 For the week of July 30 ­ Aug. 5 Singapore (Dollar) 1.3533 30­year bond 1.91 WEATHER OUTLOOK FRIDAY IN THE MIDDLE EAST FRIDAY IN EUROPE SATURDAY IN THE PACIFIC Misawa 74/71 Kabul Seoul 92/57 84/76 Baghdad 110/80 Osan Tokyo Drawsko Kandahar Mildenhall/ 85/76 83/71 101/71 Pomorskie Busan Lakenheath 71/55 80/77 62/55 Iwakuni Kuwait City 80/77 Bahrain Zagan Sasebo Guam 109/87 97/93 Brussels Ramstein 74/58 81/76 69/58 74/55 84/81 Riyadh Lajes, 111/83 Doha Azores Stuttgart 110/91 70/67 79/55 Pápa Aviano/ 88/65 Vicenza 83/66 Naples 90/74 Okinawa Morón 82/79 96/69 Sigonella Rota 104/71 The weather is provided by the Djibouti 80/69 Souda Bay American Forces Network Weather Center, 97/84 84/77 2nd Weather Squadron at Offutt Air Force Base, Neb. TODAY IN STRIPES Classified .................... 46 Comics ................... 38-39 Crossword ............. 38-39 Faces .......................... 35 Opinion ....................... 36 Sports ................... 40-48 Friday, July 30, 2021 • STARS AND STRIPES • PAGE 3 WAR/MILITARY SIGAR: Afghanistan faces grim future BY PHILLIP WALTER ty forces as they fight the Taliban. WELLMAN Most Afghan army units refuse Stars and Stripes to conduct missions without sup- KABUL, Afghanistan — Af- port from Afghan special oper- ghanistan faces an “existential cri- ations forces, SIGAR said. When sis” after a continuing rise in Tali- special operations forces do ar- ban attacks that began well ahead rive, they’re often misused to per- of the withdrawal of U.S. troops form tasks intended for conven- from the country, a government tional forces, like route clearance watchdog agency said Thursday. and checkpoint security, the re- Each quarter since the U.S. and port said. Taliban signed a peace deal in All Afghan aircraft have also be- February 2020 has shown a come strained since the departure marked increase in enemy attacks of most international troops be- compared to the same periods in cause of increased requests for previous years, a report by the close air support, intelligence, re- Special Inspector General for Af- connaissance missions and aerial ghanistan Reconstruction said. J.P. LAWRENCE/Stars and Stripes resupply, SIGAR said. The air- NATO data on the increases had Zalmay Khalilzad, U.S. special envoy for Afghan reconciliation, signs a peace deal with the Taliban, along withcraft are flying at least 25% over been kept from the public since Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, the militant group’s top political leader, in Doha, Qatar, on Feb. 29,2020. their recommended maintenance December 2019, the report said. intervals, which could have dire Between March and May, ene- Last year, the U.S. said the Tali- airstrikes against the Taliban and ment, which could face an existen- consequences, the report added. my forces conducted nearly 10,400 ban verbally agreed to curb vio- could continue doing so, at least tial crisis if it isn’t addressed and The report came after the Unit- attacks, over 1,000 more than were lence, and warned the insurgents until the U.S. combat mission in reversed,” SIGAR inspector gen- ed Nations said earlier this week recorded during that time last would face consequences if they Afghanistan ends Aug. 31. The an- eral John Sopko said in a letter ac- that May and June saw the highest year, and 3,000 more than the didn’t. But the relentless attacks nouncement came just days be- companying Thursday’s report. number of civilian war deaths and same time in 2019, the report said. did nothing to stop the drawdown fore chairman of the Joint Chiefs Since the Taliban launched its injuries in Afghanistan for those Each of the last four quarters of international forces, which is of Staff, Army Gen. Mark Milley, most recent offensive in May, the two months since systematic doc- saw more than 10,000 enemy at- nearly complete. said the Taliban had taken control Afghan army has “appeared sur- umentation began in 2009. tacks, according to the data, which On Sunday, U.S. Central Com- of about half of Afghanistan’s prised and unready, and is now on NATO said was based on reporting mand leader Marine Gen. Frank roughly 400 districts. its back foot,” Sopko said. by Afghan forces and could be McKenzie told reporters in Kabul “The overall trend is clearly un- The report pointed to several [email protected] higher. that the military had stepped up favorable to the Afghan govern- problems plaguing Afghan securi- Twitter: @pwwellman Blinken talks of relocating Afghan allies in Kuwait BY ISABEL DEBRE Kuwait, U.S. Secretary of State terpreters, drivers and other that process and notably in relo- a United Nations report. Associated Press Antony Blinken did not an- workers who helped U.S. forces cation planning for those brave Afghan allies have complained DUBAI, United Arab Emir- nounce any deal or disclose crit- during the two-decade war and Afghans and their families.” of a bureaucratic nightmare as ates — The United States is nego- ical details about the process, now find themselves at risk of The evacuation planning, they try to obtain the special im- tiating with Kuwait and other such as who would be eligible for retribution by the Taliban.