New Delhi: US President Joe Biden on Sunday (August 22, 2021) spoke on the evacuation operation in Afghanistan and expressed that there is no way to evacuate people without pain and loss. Biden said that the evacuation of thousands of people from Kabul is going to be hard and painful no matter when it started and when the process began.
“There is no way to evacuate this many people without pain and loss, of heartbreaking images you see on television. It’s just a fact. My heart aches for those people you see,” he said while briefing on the Afghanistan situation.
Tune in as I provide an update on my Administration’s response to Tropical Storm Henri, as well as an update on the evacuation of American citizens, SIV applicants and their families, and other vulnerable Afghans. https://t.co/82f8s2zi0h
— President Biden (@POTUS) August 22, 2021
Biden said that his administration is working hard and as fast as they can to get people out.
“That’s our mission. That’s our goal. And our determination to get every American citizen home and to evacuate our Afghan allies is unwavering,” he said.
Evacuated nearly 28,000 people
Biden informed that they have so far evacuated nearly 28,000 people since August 14 on the US and coalition aircraft, including civilian charters. He informed that the total number of people they have evacuated since July has now increased to approximately 33,000. “Altogether, we lifted approximately 11,000 people out of Kabul in less than 36 hours. It’s an incredible operation,” he said.
Security environment is changing rapidly.
The US President stated that the security environment in Afghanistan is changing rapidly. “There are civilians crowded at the airport, although we have cleared thousands of them. We know that terrorists may seek to exploit this situation and target innocent Afghans or American troops,” he said.
He added that the US is maintaining the constant vigilance to monitor and disrupt threats from any source, including the likely source being ISIS-K.
“I said on Friday, ISIS-K is a sworn enemy of the Taliban, and they have a history of fighting one another. But every day we have troops on the ground, these troops and innocent civilians at the airport face the risk of attack from ISIS-K from a distance, even though we’re moving back the perimeter significantly,” Biden said.
August 31 evacuation operation deadline likely to be extended
On being asked about being nine days away from the August 31 deadline for the evacuation operations, the US President said that there are discussions going on among them and the military about extending. “Our hope is we will not have to extend, but there are going to be discussions, I suspect, on how far along we are in the process,” he said.
Joe Biden to meet G7 leaders
US President Joe Biden is scheduled to hold a virtual meet with G7 leaders on August 24 to discuss the Afghanistan policy and evacuation process. They will also discuss plans to provide humanitarian assistance and support for Afghan refugees.
This is to be noted that the Taliban captured the Afghan capital Kabul on August 15, a development that sent civilians and Afghan military allies fleeing for safety. Now, many fear a return to the austere interpretation of Islamic law imposed during the previous Taliban rule that ended 20 years ago after the US troops landed there.
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