As the last five US military transport planes took off from Afghanistan On Monday they left up to 200 Americans and thousands of desperate Afghans who did not come out and now have to rely on the Taliban to facilitate their exit.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the US will continue to try to get Americans and Afghans out of the country and work with Afghanistan’s neighbors to ensure their departure either by land or by charter flight once Kabul airport reopens.
“We have no illusion that all of this will be easy or quick,” Blinken said, adding that the total number of Americans who are in Afghanistan and still want to leave could be closer to 100.
Shortly after the Pentagon announced the completion of the US military withdrawal on Monday, Blinken said the US embassy in Kabul would be closed and empty for the foreseeable future. American diplomats, he said, will be stationed in Doha, Qatar.
“We will continue our tireless efforts to help Americans, foreigners and Afghans to leave Afghanistan,” said Blinken in a speech by the State Department. “Our commitment to them has no deadline.”
ALSO READ | Fireworks, cheers: Taliban announce “full independence” after US troops have withdrawn from Afghanistan
‘NOT EVERYONE COME OUT’
Marine General Frank McKenzie, head of US Central Command, told reporters that the US military was able to evacuate up to 1,500 Afghans in the final hours of the US evacuation mission. But now it will be up to the State Department to work with the Taliban to get more people out.
McKenzie said no more citizens were stranded at the airport and none had been on recent military flights. He said the US military had a chance to get Americans out until shortly before the end, but “none of them made it to the airport”.
“This exit comes with a lot of heartache,” McKenzie said. “We didn’t get everyone out that we wanted out. But I think if we had stayed another 10 days, we would not have got out everyone we wanted out. “
McKenzie and other officials painted a vivid picture of the past few hours U.S. forces were on the ground and the preparations they were making to ensure that Taliban and ISIS militants were not provided with operational U.S. military weapon systems and other equipment .
ALSO READ | UN Security Council adopts resolution on Afghanistan, but no “safe zone”
MILITARY EQUIPMENT DISABLED
The terrorist threat remains a major problem in Afghanistan. At least 2,000 “hard” members of the Islamic State group remain in the country, including many who were released from prisons when the Taliban took control.
To underscore the lingering security threats, the weapon systems that had been deployed just hours earlier to repel IS missiles in the direction of the airport were kept operational until “the very last minute” when the last US military plane flew out, officials said. One of the last measures taken by the US troops was to disable the so-called C-RAMS (Counter Rocket, Artillery and Mortar System).
McKenzie said they had “demilitarized” the system so it could never be used again. Officials said the troops did not blow up any equipment to ensure they would leave the airport drivable for future flights once they start again. Additionally, McKenzie said the US has also disabled 27 Humvees and 73 aircraft so they could never be used again.
Later that day, as the last of the C-17 transport planes readied to take off, McKenzie said the US continued to “overwhelm US air forces” to deal with potential ISIS threats.
ALSO READ | After the US withdrawal, Qatar is considered a major player in Afghanistan
SECRET SILENCE IN THE LAST MOMENTS
Back at the Pentagon, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and General Mark Milley, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, watched the final 90 minutes of the military departure in real time from an operations center in the basement.
According to a U.S. official, they sat in hushed silence as they watched as troops checked the runway at the last minute, decommissioned key defense systems, and boarded the C-17. The officer said a pin could be heard drop as the last plane took off, and the guides in the room breathed a sigh of relief. Austin later called Maj. Gen. Christopher Donahue, the commander of the 82nd Airborne Division, who coordinated the evacuation. Donahue and Acting US Ambassador to Afghanistan Ross Wilson were the last to board the last plane to leave Kabul.
Officials spoke on condition of anonymity to provide details of military operations.
“Just because we left doesn’t mean that both Americans who are in Afghanistan who want to go and Afghans who want to go are not deprived of this opportunity,” McKenzie said.
The military left some equipment for the Taliban to operate the airport, including two fire engines, some front loaders, and airplane stairs.
Blinken said the US would work with Turkey and Qatar to help them get Kabul airport back on track.
“This would allow for a small number of daily charter flights, which is a key for anyone planning to fly out of Afghanistan in the future,” he said.
एक टिप्पणी भेजें