Politics recap
That’s all from me. Here’s what we covered today:
- Joe Biden promised that all American citizens seeking to leave Afghanistan will be able to do so. Delivering an update this afternoon on evacuation efforts in Kabul, Biden said, “Let me be clear: Any American who wants to come home, we will get you home.” The White House noted that the US military evacuated 5,700 people in last 24 hours alone.
- But the US military was forced to pause evacuation flights earlier today, due to capacity constraints at the processing center in Qatar. Biden said the pause lasted “a few hours” and had since been lifted, but CNN correspondent Clarissa Ward said earlier today that she had not seen a US evacuation flight leave Kabul in at least eight hours. Some US military planes are now being directed to other locations, including Ramstein Air Base in Germany.
- Biden claimed Americans were not having issues accessing the Kabul airport, an assertion that was contradicted by on-the-ground reports and the president’s own advisers. American citizens told ABC News they had been beaten at Taliban checkpoints, even after presenting their US passports. Defense secretary Lloyd Austin reportedly told House members in a briefing call that the Pentagon had received similar reports of Taliban violence against US citizens.
- Biden promised that his administration would do everything in its power to evacuate America’s Afghan allies still in the country. “We’re going to do everything, everything that we can to provide safe evacuation for our Afghan allies, partners and Afghans who might be targeted because of their association with the United States,” Biden said. Many Afghan allies have reported problems reaching the Kabul airport and proving their credentials to US troops, intensifying concerns that they will be left behind after the military’s withdrawal.
- An internal state department memo issued last month warned of the possibility of a swift Taliban takeover in Afghanistan. The memo, which was obtained by the Wall Street Journal, appeared to contradict claims from Biden and his national security advisers that they received no warning about how quickly Kabul might fall to the Taliban. Asked about the memo this afternoon, Biden said, “We’ve got all kind of cables, all kinds of advice. ... I made the decision. The buck stops with me. I took the consensus opinion.”
- Joe Biden nominated the former Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel to be the next US ambassador to Japan, citing Emanuel’s “distinguished career in public service”. But the news is likely to garner mixed reactions in Chicago where some residents have said his controversial tenure as mayor of the city should disqualify him from a role in the administration.
- A North Carolina man has been charged with threatening to use a weapon of mass destruction and attempting to use an explosive device. Floyd Ray Roseberry claimed he had a bomb in a pickup truck near the US Capitol yesterday, prompting an hours-long standoff.
- The US secretary of state says 13 countries have agreed to at least temporarily host at-risk Afghans evacuated from Afghanistan, while a dozen others will act as transit points for those fleeing.
- Republicans in Texas are on track to quickly pass sweeping new voting restrictions after the end of Democrats’ 38-day walkout. The house has the required two-thirds of members necessary for a quorum after Democratic lawmakers returned to the state.
-
High-profile figures and advocates are calling on the Biden administration to support Afghan women and girls. The poet Amanda Gorman, the actor Kate Winslet and the Facebook executive Sheryl Sandberg have signed on to an open letter urging Biden to protect Afghan women.
- Joan E Greve and Dani Anguiano
Updated
The Pentagon said on Friday that the US used three military helicopters to bring 169 Americans to the Kabul airport from a building that was just 200m (656ft) away.
John Kirby, the defense department spokesman, said a decision was made to use the helicopters on Thursday because the Americans were unable to get to the gate of the airport. They were picked up from the nearby Hotel Baron, Reuters reported.
Kirby said these were the 169 Americans rescued that Joe Biden mentioned in his speech earlier on Friday.
Kirby, the Associated Press reported, said the helicopters took no hostile fire. He added that the Americans initially were going to walk the short distance from the hotel to an airport gate, but a crowd outside the gate changed the plan.
Updated
Amanda Gorman and Kate Winslet join advocates urging Biden to protect Afghan women
High-profile figures including the poet Amanda Gorman, the actor Kate Winslet and the Facebook executive Sheryl Sandberg are calling on the Biden administration to support Afghan women and girls.
The Guardian’s Maya Yang has more on the open letter:
Dozens of women’s rights advocates and high-profile figures, including the poet Amanda Gorman, are calling on the Biden administration to protect and support Afghan women and girls.
In an open letter titled “Do Not Abandon Afghan Women and Girls”, Gorman, alongside the Facebook executive Sheryl Sandberg, fashion designer Diane von Furstenberg, actors Charlize Theron and Kate Winslet, and others, urged the administration to honor its commitment.
“Immediate action must be taken to safeguard Afghan women most at risk: women’s rights activists, journalists, educators, civil society leaders, human rights defenders and direct service providers. The very women who have been on the frontlines for decades, risking their safety to realize the promise of equal rights, are being abandoned by those who pledged to protect them,” it said.
The letter, organized by Vital Voices and Women International, demands the administration take four concrete steps: provide direct evacuation flights for women who are under imminent threat, expand special immigrant visas to include a category for at-risk women and raise the refugee cap, allocate resources for livelihood assistance and resettlement, and protect and invest in women who remain in Afghanistan.
Texas Republicans on track to pass harsh new voting restrictions
Republicans in Texas are on track to quickly pass sweeping new voting restrictions after the end of Democrats’ 38-day walkout. The house has the required two-thirds of members necessary for a quorum after Democratic lawmakers returned to the state.
More from the Associated Press:
The sudden end of Texas Democrats’ 38-day walkout has put Republicans back on a fast track to pass a sweeping voting bill and is causing rifts among some Democrats who said Friday they felt “betrayed” by colleagues who returned to the state Capitol.
Texas is the last big GOP-controlled state that has not passed more restrictive voting laws driven by former President Donald Trump’s false claims that the 2020 election was stolen. But it is now likely only a matter of weeks after enough Democratic lawmakers ended their holdout Thursday to restore a quorum — by the slimmest of margins — in the state House of Representatives.
It broke a stalemate that brought the Texas Capitol to a standstill, and already Republicans are working fast to advance a sweeping bill to the House floor as early as Monday. The collapse of Democrats’ holdout frustrated a faction that appeared ready to torpedo the bill for a third time in Texas, even though a commanding GOP majority in the Texas statehouse made it unlikely that Democrats could permanently stop the bill from passing.
Thirteen countries agree to host at-risk Afghans – Blinken
The US secretary of state says 13 countries have agreed to at least temporarily host at-risk Afghans evacuated from Afghanistan, while a dozen others will act as transit points for those fleeing.
More from the Associated Press:
Secretary of State Antony Blinken says 13 countries have thus far agreed to at least temporarily host at-risk Afghans evacuated from Afghanistan and a dozen more have agreed to serve as transit points for evacuees, including Americans and others.
Blinken says in a Friday statement that potential Afghan refugees not already cleared for resettlement in the United States will be housed at facilities in Albania, Canada, Colombia, Costa Rica, Chile, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Mexico, Poland, Qatar, Rwanda, Ukraine and Uganda.
Transit countries include Bahrain, Britain, Denmark, Germany, Italy, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Qatar, Tajikistan, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and Uzbekistan.
Blinken says: “We are encouraged by other countries that are also considering providing support. We have no higher priority than the safety and security of U.S. citizens overseas and to fulfill our commitments to citizens of partner nations and at-risk Afghans.”
Updated
Biden says he will consider 'every means' to evacuate Americans
Joe Biden said the US is considering “every means” to evacuate US citizens from Afghanistan, but acknowledged it was a dangerous mission.
My colleague David Smith has more on the president’s remarks:
Joe Biden, under mounting pressure to evacuate American citizens from Afghanistan, has said the US is considering “every means” to get people to Kabul airport, promising: “We will get you home.”
The embattled president again defended his decision to end the 20-year intervention by withdrawing US forces, which resulted in the Afghan government’s total capitulation to the Taliban, and denied that it hurt Washington’s standing with allies.
Media reports from Kabul have described outbursts of chaos and violence in which Taliban guards refuse to let anyone, including those with American passports, past checkpoints near the airport. The US embassy in Kabul has also told American citizens that the government “cannot ensure safe passage to the airport”.
But speaking at the White House on Friday, Biden insisted: “Let me be clear. Any American who wants to come home, we will get you home.”
Updated
Floyd Ray Roseberry, the North Carolina man who claimed he had a bomb in a pickup truck near the US Capitol yesterday, has been charged with threatening to use a weapon of mass destruction and attempting to use an explosive device.
The incident outside the Library of Congress on Thursday prompted an hours-long standoff that ended with him surrendering to police. Police later searched the vehicle and said they did not find a bomb but did collect possible bomb-making materials.
Read more here:
Rahm Emanuel to be nominated as US ambassador to Japan
Hi all, Dani Anguiano here taking over our live coverage for the next few hours.
Joe Biden announced today that he plans to nominate Rahm Emanuel, the former mayor of Chicago, as ambassador to Japan. Emanuel, 61, also served as the White House chief of staff under Obama and was a senior adviser to Bill Clinton.
The former mayor has had a “distinguished career in public service”, the White House said.
Emanuel was previously considered for a cabinet role, which frustrated some Chicago residents who said his controversial tenure as mayor of the city should disqualify him from a role in the administration.
Updated
Today so far
That’s it from me today. My west coast colleague, Dani Anguiano, will take over the blog for the next few hours.
Here’s where the day stands so far:
- Joe Biden promised that all American citizens seeking to leave Afghanistan will be able to do so. Delivering an update this afternoon on evacuation efforts in Kabul, Biden said, “Let me be clear: Any American who wants to come home, we will get you home.” The White House noted that the US military evacuated 5,700 people in last 24 hours alone.
- But the US military was forced to pause evacuation flights earlier today, due to capacity constraints at the processing center in Qatar. Biden said the pause lasted “a few hours” and had since been lifted, but CNN correspondent Clarissa Ward said earlier today that she had not seen a US evacuation flight leave Kabul in at least eight hours. Some US military planes are now being directed to other locations, including Ramstein Air Base in Germany.
- Biden claimed Americans were not having issues accessing the Kabul airport, an assertion that was contradicted by on-the-ground reports and the president’s own advisers. American citizens told ABC News they had been beaten at Taliban checkpoints, even after presenting their US passports. Defense secretary Lloyd Austin reportedly told House members in a briefing call that the Pentagon had received similar reports of Taliban violence against US citizens.
- Biden promised that his administration would do everything in its power to evacuate America’s Afghan allies still in the country. “We’re going to do everything, everything that we can to provide safe evacuation for our Afghan allies, partners and Afghans who might be targeted because of their association with the United States,” Biden said. Many Afghan allies have reported problems reaching the Kabul airport and proving their credentials to US troops, intensifying concerns that they will be left behind after the military’s withdrawal.
- An internal state department memo issued last month warned of the possibility of a swift Taliban takeover in Afghanistan. The memo, which was obtained by the Wall Street Journal, appeared to contradict claims from Biden and his national security advisers that they received no warning about how quickly Kabul might fall to the Taliban. Asked about the memo this afternoon, Biden said, “We’ve got all kind of cables, all kinds of advice. ... I made the decision. The buck stops with me. I took the consensus opinion.”
Dani will have more coming up, so stay tuned.
There were actually 823 Afghan citizens in that viral photo of the US military C-17 plane that left Kabul earlier this week.
The US military had previously said there were 640 Afghan citizens on the flight, but the US Air Mobility Command noted today that the initial count did not include children, some of whom were seated in adults’ laps.
CORRECTION: A @usairforce C-17 Globemaster III safely transported 823 Afghan citizens from Hamid Karzai International Airport Aug. 15, 2021. This is a record for this aircraft.⁰
— Air Mobility Command (@AirMobilityCmd) August 20, 2021
The initial count of 640 inadvertently included only adults. 183 children were also aboard. https://t.co/DL6wP8WTQV
There were 183 children on the flight, bringing the total number of Afghan citizens on the plane to 823.
“A @usairforce C-17 Globemaster III safely transported 823 Afghan citizens from Hamid Karzai International Airport Aug. 15, 2021. This is a record for this aircraft,” the Air Mobility Command said on Twitter.
The Kabul airport gates were a path not to escape but to hospital for one Afghan human rights activist this week.
A relative was shot in the head in the melee of people trying to leave, and so she spent the evening trudging to a market to buy alcohol and gauze for his wounds. The hospital had run out.
Every day, people are shot, beaten and choked with teargas as they gather outside the concrete barricades that shutter off the last tiny sliver of western-held territory in Afghanistan, and the last hopes of escaping the Taliban regime. At least 12 people have died trying to reach the airport this week, from gunshots or in stampedes.
While the US and UK say their evacuations are gathering pace, there seems to be little sign of that on the ground in Kabul, where many Afghans are stuck outside the airport or behind checkpoints that seem impossible to pass.
Still the crowds are gathering in their thousands, willing to risk their lives, and their children’s lives, for fear of what lies ahead at home now.
The Pentagon confirmed that some evacuation flights from Kabul will be flown to locations in Europe, due to capacity constraints at the processing center in Qatar.
At a press briefing this afternoon, Pentagon officials specifically named Ramstein Air Base in Germany as one of the potential destinations for evacuation flights.
Evacuation flights from Kabul were paused for hours today because of the space issues in Qatar, as the US military races to meet its August 31 deadline to complete the evacuation mission.
The US Air Force shared photos online showing American troops preparing for evacuees’ arrival at the Ramstein base:
Photos of @usairforce prepping Ramstein AB in Germany for incoming evacuees from Kabul, over on FB: https://t.co/zdkF1Fc2yu pic.twitter.com/pYTLFfLJll
— Kevin Baron (@DefenseBaron) August 20, 2021
Updated
Austin says Americans have been beaten by Taliban in Kabul - report
Defense secretary Lloyd Austin reportedly told House members that the Pentagon has heard accounts of Americans being beaten by the Taliban in Kabul, as the US military continues its evacuation mission.
Multiple people on the House briefing call shared details of Austin’s comments with Politico, noting that the defense secretary described the violence as “unacceptable”:
NEW: Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin in a briefing call with House lawmakers just now said Americans have been beaten by the Taliban in Kabul, according to multiple people on the call. Austin called it “unacceptable.”
— Andrew Desiderio (@AndrewDesiderio) August 20, 2021
Austin’s comments notably clash with those of Joe Biden, who said this afternoon that his administration had seen “no indication” of Americans being unable to safely reach the Kabul airport.
“We know of no circumstance where American citizens, carrying an American passport, are trying to get through to the airport,” Biden said. “But we will do whatever needs to be done to see to it they get to the airport.”
The president’s claim contradicted reports on the ground of Americans presenting US passports and still being blocked at Taliban checkpoints, preventing them from reaching the airport.
ABC News correspondent Ian Pannell, who has been on the ground in Afghanistan for the past week, said Joe Biden’s claim that Americans have not had trouble reaching the Kabul airport is “totally” false.
Pannell noted the president’s “breathtaking” assertion contradicts the accounts of American citizens who have spoken to ABC News and said they were beaten by Taliban guards at Kabul checkpoints, even after presenting their US passports.
“It just seems the reality and the rhetoric are miles apart,” Pannell said. “I’m not quite sure what advice the president is receiving, but the truth on the ground is that these people who are in fear of their lives can’t get through.”
.@DavidMuir: "The president said he has no intelligence that the Americans have not been able to get [to the Kabul airport]. The question, obviously—does that square with reporting on ground?"@IanPannell: "I mean—just totally not."
— ABC News (@ABC) August 20, 2021
Read more: https://t.co/6U5QW2IOjc pic.twitter.com/DTuyOZBmmn
While taking questions from reporters after his speech, Joe Biden was asked whether he was equally committed to getting Afghan allies out of the country compared to evacuating American citizens.
“Yes, we’re making the same commitment,” Biden said. “There’s no one more important than bringing Americans citizens out, I acknowledge that.”
Reporter: "Would you make the same commitment to bring out Afghans who assisted in the war effort?"
— The Hill (@thehill) August 20, 2021
President Biden: "Yes. Yes, we're making the same commitment." pic.twitter.com/7aRf8YL0ij
But the president said special immigrant visa applicants, the Afghans who provided translation services and other assistance to US troops over the past twenty years, are “equally important almost” to the American citizens seeking to leave the country.
Many Afghan allies have reported problems reaching the Kabul airport and proving their credentials to American troops, intensifying concerns that they will be left behind after the US military’s withdrawal mission is completed.
After Joe Biden’s speech, the White House provided an operational update on evacuation efforts in Afghanistan, although some of the details were included in the president’s remarks.
“We evacuated approximately 13,000 people on US military aircraft since August 14, and relocated approximately 18,000 people since the end of July. The US military evacuated 5,700 people in last 24 hours alone. The US military evacuated 3,000 people since last night’s update,” the White House said.
“The Biden Administration is leading an unprecedented and highly complex global effort to coordinate safe transit out of Afghanistan for thousands of US citizens, SIV applicants and their families, vulnerable Afghans, and third-country nationals.
“We have already secured a number of agreements for these passengers to temporarily transit through other countries, and have been working aggressively to secure additional agreements.”
Amid questions about today’s pause in evacuation flights from Kabul, senior White House officials have rushed to tout the number of people evacuated by the US military in the past 24 hours.
Here’s what White House chief of staff Ron Klain said on Twitter in response to a tweet about the flight pause:
We evacuated 5700 people in the past 24 hours. The best military operation in the world is in charge. https://t.co/pTfaalv6YG
— Ronald Klain (@WHCOS) August 20, 2021
After taking several questions from reporters, Joe Biden left the East Room with Vice-President Kamala Harris and secretary of state Antony Blinken.
Reporters tried to shout more questions at the president as he departed, but he did not turn around to answer.
Biden had been scheduled to leave for Wilmington, Delaware, after delivering his speech, but he is now expected to remain in Washington tonight. Stay tuned.
One reporter asked Joe Biden if he would commit to sending US troops into Kabul to help evacuate Americans who have been unable to safely reach the aiport.
The president claimed his administration had seen “no indication” that Americans were having trouble reaching the airport, pointing to an agreement with the Taliban to allow US citizens to go through checkpoints in the city.
NEW: "We know of no circumstance where American citizens, carrying an American passport, are trying to get through to the airport" in Kabul, Pres. Biden tells @sramosABC.
— ABC News (@ABC) August 20, 2021
"But we will do whatever needs to be done to see to it they get to the airport." https://t.co/PCh0P9Jg9R pic.twitter.com/vxRekd69iA
“We know of no circumstance where American citizens, carrying an American passport, are trying to get through to the airport,” Biden said. “But we will do whatever needs to be done to see to it they get to the airport.
That claim contradicts reports on the ground in Kabul of Taliban guards refusing to let anyone, including those with American passports, past the checkpoints near the airport.
The US embassy in Kabul has also told American citizens remaining in Afghanistan that the government “cannot ensure safe passage to the airport”.
“We are in huge danger. Please help”
— Ian Pannell (@IanPannell) August 19, 2021
LISTEN: The voice of US permanent resident trapped in #Kabul
More on @ABCWorldNews
Sayed Harris Khelwati via Storyful pic.twitter.com/SENiXjQQuh
Joe Biden confirmed the Wall Street Journal’s report that he received an internal state department memo last month warning of the possibility of a swift Taliban takeover in Afghanistan.
“We got all kinds of cables, all kinds of advice,” Biden said. “I made the decision. The buck stops with me.”
The president argued he had moved forward with the “consensus opinion” that Kabul would likely not fall to the Taliban until at least later in the year.
Joe Biden is taking reporters’ questions for the first time since the Taliban took control of Kabul, with the exception of the president’s sit-down interview with ABC News on Wednesday.
An AP reporter asked Biden whether he believed the widely criticized execution of the withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan had harmed America’s reputation on the world stage.
“I have seen no question of our credibility from our allies around the world,” Biden said. “As a matter of fact, the exact opposite I’ve gotten.”
Joe Biden promised that his administration would do everything in its power to evacuate Afghan citizens who provided assistance to the US military and its allies over the past twenty years.
“We’re going to do everything, everything that we can to provide safe evacuation for our Afghan allies, partners and Afghans who might be targeted because of their association with the United States,” Biden said.
President Biden: "We're going to do everything, everything that we can to provide safe evacuation for our Afghan allies, partners, and Afghans who might be targeted because of their association with the United States...Any American who wants to come home we will get you home." pic.twitter.com/fxz6gy9rKY
— CSPAN (@cspan) August 20, 2021
That comment represented the US president’s firmest commitment yet to ensuring the safe evacuation of America’s Afghan allies.
However, many vulnerable Afghans are still unable to reach the Kabul airport because of threats of violence at Taliban checkpoints in the city.
Joe Biden argued that now is not the time to criticize his policies on Afghanistan, amid widespread criticism of how the withdrawal of US troops has been carried out.
“There will be plenty of time to criticize and second guess when this operation’s over, but now -- now -- I’m focused on getting this job done,” Biden said.
BIDEN SPEECH: President Biden says, "There will be plenty of time to criticize and second guess when this operation's over, but now -- now -- I'm focused on getting this job done." pic.twitter.com/lnkUahzPnS
— Forbes (@Forbes) August 20, 2021
'We will get you home,' Biden tells Americans in Afghanistan after pause in evacuation flights
Joe Biden acknowledged the US military had to pause evacuation flights from Kabul for “a few hours” today due to processing delays, but he said that pause has already been lifted.
According to CNN correspondent Clarissa Ward, no US flights left the Kabul airport for at least eight hours today.
“Even with the pause, we evacuated 5,700 evacuees yesterday,” Biden said.
Despite concerns about whether the military will be able to meet its August 31 deadline to evacuate all US citizens from Afghanistan, the president promised that all Americans still there will have an opportunity to leave.
“Let me be clear: Any American who wants to come home, we will get you home,” Biden said.
Biden delivers update on Afghanistan as evacuation efforts continue
Joe Biden is now delivering an update on the evacuation efforts in Afghanistan, after receiving a briefing from his national security team in the Situation Team.
The president delivered his remarks in the East Room, with Vice-President Kamala Harris and secretary of state Antony Blinken standing next to him.
Biden said the US military had made “significant progress” in the evacuation mission since he last spoke on Monday, noting that the Kabul airport is secure and flights have been able to resume.
There are now almost 6,000 US troops on the ground, and the military has evacuated approximately 13,000 people since Saturday.
“This is one of the largest, most difficult airlifts in history,” Biden said.
The White House press pool is now in place to hear Joe Biden’s remarks on the situation in Afghanistan, which were supposed to begin about 45 minutes ago. Stay tuned.
White House press in place, waiting for President Biden’s delayed remarks on Afghanistan. pic.twitter.com/Zt5DunOJsS
— Sebastian Smith (@SebastianAFP) August 20, 2021
US set to expand evacuation flights from Kabul to Europe - report
The state department is expected to announce that US evacuation flights from Kabul will now be able to land at certain European destinations, as the processing center in Qatar faces capacity restraints.
Reuters reports:
The United States is expected to announce that its evacuation flights from Kabul will now be able to land in several locations across Europe, U.S. officials told Reuters on Friday, as its largest military base in the Middle East has reached capacity.
The United States is desperately trying to evacuate thousands of people from Afghanistan as reports of Taliban reprisals against Afghans who worked with U.S.-led forces increase, forcing foreign powers to accelerate the evacuation effort.
But officials said no evacuation flights left Kabul for several hours on Friday because they had nowhere to go due an overflow at Al Udeid air base in Qatar, home to U.S. Central Command and already sheltering 8,000 Afghan evacuees. A senior administration official said the U.S. commander on the ground has ordered a restart.
Joe Biden is expected to soon deliver an update on evacuation efforts in Afghanistan, and he may confirm this new agreement between the US and its European allies. Stay tuned.
A senior White House official told CNN that the pause on evacuation flights in Kabul will soon be lifted, and the US military will once again be able to get more Americans and vulnerable Afghans out of the country.
The official described the pause in flights as “brief,” but according to CNN correspondent Clarissa Ward, no US planes departed the Kabul airport for about eight hours.
NEW: Senior WH official says pause on flights at Kabul will be lifted and flights are set to resume soon. While the official described the pause as “brief,” CNN’s Clarissa Ward reported flights have not departed for more than eight hours. CNN has asked the Pentagon for comment
— lisa mirando (@LisaMirandoCNN) August 20, 2021
Joe Biden is getting ready to talk at the White House about the latest situation in Afghanistan, in particular about evacuations of US citizens and selected Afghans, especially those who have worked for the US government over the last 20 years.
The president’s schedule originally had him departing for Delaware shortly after his remarks, which are due at 1pm today, although we know Biden can sometimes run late and it looks like there’s a delay.
In a change of plan, it was communicated a little earlier that he will now be staying at the White House today instead.
It’s not yet known if he will go to Wilmington tomorrow or at any other point at the weekend.
He and vice president Kamala Harris have been in top-level briefings this morning in the situation room at the White House, as conditions in Afghanistan appear to be highly unpredictable.
There’s total chaos at the airport as evacuations are happening in fits and starts with hundreds of people in a state of panic and some being injured and killed. And in the wider regime, only ominous signs so far about how the Taliban intend to treat the people of Afghanistan going forward.
Human rights must be the center of our foreign policy, not the periphery. But the way to do it is not through endless military deployments. pic.twitter.com/w2jMtgzisE
— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) August 18, 2021
Updated
NATO foreign ministers express "deep concern" over Afghanistan
The US State Department has put out a joint statement from the foreign ministers of the members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), after a meeting earlier today, appealing to the Taliban, effectively, in a display of resolve that appears undermined by the scenes on the ground in Afghanistan - and what is known of the Taliban.
It reads:
We are united in our deep concern about the grave events in Afghanistan and call for an immediate end to the violence. We also express deep concerns about reports of serious human rights violations and abuses across Afghanistan.
We affirm our commitment to the statement by the UN Security Council on 16 August, and we call for adherence to international norms and standards on human rights and international humanitarian law in all circumstances.
Our immediate task is now to meet our commitments to continue the safe evacuation of our citizens, partner country nationals, and at-risk Afghans, in particular those who have assisted our efforts. We call on those in positions of authority in Afghanistan to respect and facilitate their safe and orderly departure, including through Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul. As long as evacuation operations continue, we will maintain our close operational coordination through Allied military means at Hamid Karzai International Airport.
Here’s the Guardian’s latest report:
However, the Nato ministerial statement goes on.
The Afghan people deserve to live in safety, security and dignity, and to build on the important political, economic and social achievements they have made over the last twenty years. We stand by civil society actors who must be able to continue to safely play their meaningful role in Afghan society. We call on all parties in Afghanistan to work in good faith to establish an inclusive and representative government, including with the meaningful participation of women and minority groups. Under the current circumstances, NATO has suspended all support to the Afghan authorities.
Any future Afghan government must adhere to Afghanistan’s international obligations; safeguard the human rights of all Afghans, particularly women, children, and minorities; uphold the rule of law; allow unhindered humanitarian access; and ensure that Afghanistan never again serves as a safe haven for terrorists.
For the last twenty years, we have successfully denied terrorists a safe haven in Afghanistan from which to instigate attacks. We will not allow any terrorists to threaten us. We will remain committed to fighting terrorism with determination, resolve, and in solidarity.
We will continue to promote the stable, prosperous Afghanistan that the Afghan people deserve and address the critical questions facing Afghanistan and the region, in the immediate future and beyond, including through our cooperation with regional and international partners, such as the European Union and United Nations.
Today so far
Here’s where the day stands so far:
- An internal state department memo issued last month warned of the possibility of a swift Taliban takeover in Afghanistan. The memo appears to contradict claims from Joe Biden and his national security advisers that they received no warning about how quickly Kabul might fall to the Taliban. “The truth is: This did unfold more quickly than we had anticipated,” Biden said on Monday.
- Biden will deliver another update on the situation in Afghanistan today, and he will likely be asked about the state department memo. However, the president has not taken reporters’ questions in about a week, with the exception of the exclusive interview he gave to ABC News on Wednesday.
- US officials have paused evacuation flights in Kabul due to capacity constraints at the processing center in Qatar, according to multiple reports. CNN correspondent Clarissa Ward, who is on the ground in Kabul, said she has not seen a US evacuation flight take off in about eight hours.
The blog will have more coming up, so stay tuned.
Updated
CNN correspondent Clarissa Ward, who is on the ground in Kabul, said she has not seen any US evacuation flights leave the airport in eight hours.
Breaking news: @clarissaward reports that no U.S. flights have left from Kabul in the last 8 hours. President Biden addresses the crisis in Afghanistan at 1pmET.
— Javi Morgado (@javimorgado) August 20, 2021
As Ward noted, the pause in flights makes it even less likely that the US military will be able to meet its August 31 deadline to complete the evacuation mission.
Earlier this week, the Pentagon said it was looking to ramp up the rate of evacuation flights so that there would be a plane leaving Kabul every hour.
US evacuation flights pause in Kabul - reports
The US military has reportedly paused its evacuation flights from Kabul because the processing facility in Qatar has reached capacity.
CBS News reports:
With tens of thousands of U.S. nationals, legal residents, their families and untold numbers of Afghans all desperate for a way out of the Taliban’s Afghanistan, the U.S. military was forced on Friday to pause its evacuation flights out of Kabul. The suspension, hopefully to be quickly reversed by the opening of a new flight option to a base in Bahrain, was due to the current processing facility in Qatar hitting capacity.
People inside the stuffy air base on Friday described the situation to CBS News as ‘pretty much a full-blown humanitarian disaster.’
Joe Biden is scheduled to deliver an update on the situation in Afghanistan this afternoon, and he will likely address the pause in evacuation efforts. Stay tuned.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson met today with some of the Afghan citizens who fled their country and have now resettled in the UK.
“Our efforts in the coming days are focused on helping Afghans who worked alongside us to leave Afghanistan and establishing a new route for 20,000 more vulnerable Afghans to come to the UK,” Johnson’s team said on Twitter.
Today the Prime Minister met with Afghans who have been safely resettled in the UK.
— UK Prime Minister (@10DowningStreet) August 20, 2021
Our efforts in the coming days are focused on helping Afghans who worked alongside us to leave Afghanistan and establishing a new route for 20,000 more vulnerable Afghans to come to the UK. pic.twitter.com/Q1al9a5fJ3
Macron tells Biden: 'We cannot abandon' Afghan allies
The Élysée Palace has released a readout of French President Emmanuel Macron’s conversation with Joe Biden yesterday about the situation in Afghanistan.
The Élysée said Macron “underlined the absolute need to ensure rapid and concrete coordination among allies on the ground to continue the evacuations”.
The French government’s readout indicates that Macron delivered an impassioned plea for ensuring the safe evacuation of Afghan allies who assisted American and European troops over the past twenty years.
According to the readout, Macron described the mission as a “moral responsibility” and told Biden, “We cannot abandon them.”
"During his exchange with @POTUS 🇺🇸 on the situation in #Afghanistan, Pres. @EmmanuelMacron 🇫🇷 underlined the absolute need to ensure rapid and concrete coordination among allies on the ground to continue the evacuations." - @Elysee https://t.co/Lw4dZsMnlR
— French Embassy U.S. (@franceintheus) August 20, 2021
Interestingly, the White House’s readout of the call between Biden and Macron made no mention of a “moral responsibility” to evacuate Afghan allies.
“They lauded the tireless efforts of their personnel working closely together in Kabul on the evacuation of their citizens, the brave Afghans who have stood by us and our NATO partners, and other vulnerable Afghan nationals,” the White House said.
“They underscored the importance of continued close coordination among allies and democratic partners on Afghanistan, including through multilateral fora, on the provision of humanitarian assistance and support for refugees.”
Reports of torture and killing contradict Taliban’s promises
The Guardian’s Peter Beaumont and Hannah Ellis-Petersen report:
Evidence of Taliban killings, detentions and intimidation is emerging across Afghanistan ominously contradicting the hardline Islamist group’s promise earlier this week not to take revenge against its opponents.
With reports of the Taliban going door to door searching for those who worked with the former Afghan government or western countries, claims have also emerged of Taliban fighters torturing and killing members of an ethnic minority in Afghanistan after overrunning their village last month.
Amnesty International said its researchers had spoken to witnesses in Ghazni province who recounted how the Taliban killed nine Hazara men in the village of Mundarakht between the 4 and 6 of July. It said six of the men were shot, and three were tortured to death.
The brutality of the killings was “a reminder of the Taliban’s past record, and a horrifying indicator of what Taliban rule may bring”, said Agnès Callamard, the head of Amnesty International.
The latest security alert from the US Embassy in Kabul to the remaining American citizens in Afghanistan is ... rather bleak.
In its message, the embassy reiterated, “The U.S. government cannot ensure safe passage to the airport.”
There have been numerous reports of violence at Taliban checkpoints near the Kabul airport, blocking some people from accessing the departing planes.
The embassy added in its message, “We are processing people at multiple gates. Due to large crowds and security concerns, gates may open or close without notice. Please use your best judgment and attempt to enter the airport at any gate that is open.
“Be aware of the potential for violence and security threats associated with large crowds.”
Taliban fighters trying to track down western-affiliated journalists allegedly shot dead a family member of an editor working for Deutsche Welle and seriously injured another, the German public broadcaster has said.
The state-owned broadcaster said the Taliban had carried out house-to-house searches in western Afghanistan to try to find the journalist, who had already relocated to Germany.
Other family members managed to escape at the last minute and were on the run, a Deutsche Welle spokesperson said.
The broadcaster’s director general, Peter Limbourg, called on the German government to do more to help Afghans who worked with western media in the country.
“The killing of a close relative of one of our editors by the Taliban yesterday is inconceivably tragic, and testifies to the acute danger in which all our employees and their families in Afghanistan find themselves,” Limbourg said.
“It is evident that the Taliban are already carrying out organised searches for journalists, both in Kabul and in the provinces. We are running out of time.”
Here’s Joe Biden’s full schedule for the day, as the US military continues its evacuation efforts in Kabul:
The president and the vice-president will meet with their national security team at 10:45 am ET to receive an update on the situation in Afghanistan.
At 1 pm, Biden will deliver remarks on Afghanistan and the operation to evacuate American citizens, special immigrant visa applicants and vulnerable Afghans out of the county.
After the speech, Biden will leave Washington for his home town of Wilmington, Delaware, where he is expected to spend the weekend.
That’s all still coming up, so stay tuned.
Pressure on Biden to speed up visas for Afghan allies
The Guardian’s Daniel Strauss reports:
For the two decades the US waged war in Afghanistan, hundreds of thousands of Afghans worked with American forces at great risk to themselves and their families.
A small fraction of those translators, drivers and other workers were promised pathways to special visas to leave the country and relocate to the US in return for their service.
But now, after a hasty US military departure and an even faster takeover by the Taliban, thousands of applicants to these programs and other refugees find themselves in limbo with an unclear timeline on when their applications will be processed and serious questions about their safety while they wait.
It’s a scenario some lawmakers in Congress had warned about for months. The Republican congressman Peter Meijer of Michigan called the backlog and delays “enraging”.
“This has been a program that across administrations had been slow rolled,” Meijer, a veteran who supported expanding the special immigrant visas (SIVs) for Afghans program earlier this year, told the Guardian.
“We’ve already had people who are in this pipeline get killed. We need to move heaven and earth to get this done.”
Updated
Kamala Harris will leave Washington tonight to travel to southeast Asia, and the trip has taken on increased significance now that the Taliban has taken control of Afghanistan.
The AP reports:
The trip, which begins Friday and includes stops in Singapore and Vietnam, will provide a forum for Harris to assert herself more directly in foreign affairs. She will have opportunities to affirm what she and President Joe Biden view as core American values, including human rights. That’s especially important given concerns about the future for women and girls in Afghanistan with the Taliban back in power.
But there are also substantial risks. A longtime district attorney and former senator, Harris is largely untested in international diplomacy and foreign policy. Her swing through Vietnam could draw unwanted comparisons between the humiliating withdrawal of U.S. troops there in 1975 and the tumultuous effort this week to evacuate Americans and allies from Afghanistan. And it’s all happening in the shadow of China, whose growing influence worries some U.S. policymakers.
With her stop in Vietnam, Harris will become the first US vice-president to ever visit the country, and the pressure could not be higher.
State department memo warned of potential swift collapse of Kabul - report
Greetings from Washington, live blog readers.
Joe Biden and his senior national security advisers have insisted that they never anticipated such a swift Taliban takeover of Kabul as the last US troops left Afghanistan.
But now, the Wall Street Journal has obtained an internal state department memo that seems to contradict the administration’s narrative.
The Journal reports:
The cable, sent via the State Department’s confidential dissent channel, warned of rapid territorial gains by the Taliban and the subsequent collapse of Afghan security forces, and offered recommendations on ways to mitigate the crisis and speed up an evacuation, [two] people said.
The cable, dated July 13, also called for the State Department to use tougher language in describing the atrocities being committed by the Taliban, one of the people said. ...
In all, 23 U.S. Embassy staffers, all Americans, signed the July 13 cable, the two people said. The U.S. official said there was a rush to deliver it, given circumstances on the ground in Kabul.
That severe warning, delivered a month before the fall of Kabul, seems to be at odds with the White House’s assessment of the speed of the Taliban takeover.
Biden said on Monday: “I always promised the American people that I will be straight with you. The truth is: This did unfold more quickly than we had anticipated.”
And the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, Gen Mark Milley, said Wednesday: “There was nothing that I or anyone else saw that indicated a collapse of this army and this government in 11 days.”
So did they never see the memo, or are they simply not telling the truth? Biden is set to deliver another speech on Afghanistan this afternoon, and reporters will likely try to ask him about the memo. Stay tuned.
