Chaos hampers Afghan evacuation efforts; Biden’s critique is being built

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Violence on the Kabul airport road and chaos at the gates are hampering evacuation efforts for vulnerable Americans and Afghans who seek to flee the country after the Taliban took control.

Adding to the chaos are the mixed messages from the State Department, which urges Americans and travel document holders to get to Hamid Karzai International Airport as soon as possible, even though the US Embassy has alerted people that she could not guarantee a safe passage.

Those passing through the gauntlet of Taliban checkpoints say they have been turned back amid growing crowds that US forces are trying to disperse.

The number of Americans in Afghanistan is estimated to be between 10,000 and 15,000, with more than 80,000 Afghans likely to be evacuated because of their work with the US military and government.

The United States has so far evacuated only a fraction of these people.

Government officials from the National Security Council and the Department of Defense (DOD) told congressional staff on Thursday that they had evacuated 6,741 people since Saturday, of whom 1,792 are US citizens or lawful permanent residents.

Which of course is absurd because we’ve heard from DOD that they could do up to 9,000 a day, said a congressman who spoke to The Hill after the call.

The US military pledged this week to begin evacuating 5,000 to 9,000 people per day.

The last report we heard was that there were 10,000 to 15,000 US citizens in the country, so less than 20 percent are absent, roughly speaking, the aide said.

The staff member said administration officials have expressed concern over deteriorating conditions, with one administration official saying conditions are appalling and we are not blind to this.

Another congressional aide said the Biden administration was doing its best, but had been overwhelmed by people in need of help.

You have seen the announcement that they sent to US citizens and green card holders that they should go to Kabul airport, but as you know getting to that airport is a major challenge, the Taliban controlling the entrance, said the second aide.

Speaking at the State Department press conference Thursday, spokesman Ned Price said there were 6,000 people “processed at the airport,” a figure roughly matching the number of soldiers at the Kanbul airport while 20 planes are expected to take off between today and tomorrow.

Photos and videos on social media show massive crowds outside the airport. Video showed a child walking through the crowd and handing a security wall to a US soldier.

WATCH: A small Afghan child was shot over a wall in front of US soldiers as large crowds gathered outside Kabul airport. pic.twitter.com/sOsfhm6End

Catherine Herridge (@CBS_Herridge) August 19, 2021

A US citizen who reached the airport on Wednesday night provided The Hill with a photo of the massive crowd.

Photo shared with me by an American at Kabul airport trying to get an evacuation flight. The person had to leave his family in town because they do not have the documents to evacuate. Said it took hours to reach the airport pic.twitter.com/unSfp4QHzw

Laura Kelly (@HelloLauraKelly) August 18, 2021

Another video showed Afghans on the road to the airport curling up in a roadside trench amid an eruption of massive gunfire.

An Afghan sent me this video which he said was shot outside the Kabul airport today. How are Americans and Afghans supposed to get by? pic.twitter.com/PjRTvof5p5

Jeff Schogol (@JeffSchogol) August 19, 2021

Situation reports from various non-governmental organizations obtained by The Hill describe havoc at the airport, with entrance gates opening and closing inconsistently.

There are so many people left at the airport entrances that soldiers have been ordered to keep the doors closed, and practically not to let anyone in, according to a National Endowment for Democracy memo. Some checkpoints on the perimeter of the airport currently have no communications with the airport, so no means of verifying those requesting entry should be allowed.

Sunil Varghese, of the International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP), said the government needs to quickly take control and streamline the process.

The DOD and the state are pointing the finger at each other and someone has to step in, he said.

And it all depends on the Taliban letting people wait at the airport, so I really hope the USG is working on some sort of plan so that an evacuation doesn’t turn into a massacre.

People have to run a gauntlet from Taliban checkpoints to get to the airport, with reports of beatings, lashes and intimidation. Those who flee must hide the essential documents needed to board a flight to bypass the Taliban.

Senator Tom CottonTom Bryant CottonMcCarthy, Ducey speaks at Pence fundraiser: report Adam Laxalt jumps in race for Nevada Senate, Trump ally Adam Laxalt files to challenge Cortez Masto in Nevada MORE (R -Ark.), A member of the Senate Armed Services Committee whose staff are assisting in the evacuation efforts, said the situation outside the airport was getting worse by the day.

My office has received numerous reports of American citizens and Afghan allies being harassed, beaten and abused by Taliban thugs. These reports add to the televised scenes of chaos around the airport perimeter, he said in a statement.

He called out President BidenJoe BidenBriahna Joy Gray: Democrats are playing ‘chicken game’ with infrastructure bills Night Defense: High-level general admits news missed the speed of collapse Afghanistan Biden to Require COVID-19 Vaccination of All Nursing Home Staff | Democrats adopt COVID mandates in governor races PLUS to expand the security perimeter around the airport to save Americans trapped behind enemy lines.

Anything less amounts to an abandonment of our fellow Americans and a shameful abdication of their duties in times of crisis. “

Unsanitary conditions add to the chaos, with toilets and garbage turned back. People were told to bring their own water and be prepared to erase their phone data when meeting with the Taliban.

Melissa Keaney, a senior lawyer also at IRAP, said there was no real strategy to get through Taliban checkpoints.

Some of the tips are to actually have your [U.S.] documents, as the Taliban won’t let you through unless you prove you’re a U.S. citizen or have the right to take an evacuation flight. Other tips I’ve seen have indicated the exact opposite, that you shouldn’t have any of these types of documents with you, she said.

The State Department said it was increasing resources at the airport to evacuate vulnerable Americans and Afghans. Former Ambassador to Afghanistan John Bass was dispatched to the airport to help with the logistics of the evacuations. Chargé d’affaires Ross Wilson remained at the airport with an embassy team even as the majority of staff were evacuated from the country.

Biden pledged to keep U.S. troops at the airport until all Americans wishing to leave are evacuated, pushing back the tentative August 31 deadline that had been discussed with the Taliban.

The president has yet to offer those same pledges to evacuate Afghans who have assisted the US military and are applying for Special Immigrant Visas (SIVs), or vulnerable Afghans in general.

If Biden doesn’t maintain the evacuation long enough that all of the people who requested SIVs and were put on hold because our process was slow and incompetent, then it’s morally abandoned, said Ronald Neumann, president of the American Academy of Diplomacy and who served as Ambassador to Afghanistan from 2005 to 2007.

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