Ever since Joe Biden handed Afghanistan to the Taliban, things have been a mess. The terrorist group took control of 11 military bases, acquired an air force, is riding around the country in U.S. taxpayer-funded Humvees beating and killing dissenters and enforcing their control with U.S.-bought weapons. People are waiting to be rescued in Kabul as the Taliban block roads and beat U.S. citizens. Rescues are happening, but at a much slower pace than expected. And though Joe Biden has promised to get Americans home, it isn’t exactly happening. Over 17,000 were rescued from Afghanistan this week. Guess how many were Americans?
You might assume that U.S. citizens would be top priority, but you’d be wrong. Taliban are blocking routes to airports where rescue operations are being conducted and assaulting Americans — despite promises to play nice — but our soldiers aren’t even allowed to leave the airport perimeter to help them. In fact, only 14 percent (2,500) of those who have been evacuated from Afghanistan have been Americans. And while French and British troops are conducting rescue operations through Kabul, the United States is sitting on its hands and refusing to help the up to 20,000 Americans still in Afghanistan.
Major General Hank Taylor says that the United States has only rescued 2,500 Americans — that’s fewer than the 5,200 troops we have on the ground at the Kabul airport. The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports:
Army Maj. Gen. Hank Taylor, Joint Staff deputy director for regional operations, told Pentagon reporters on Saturday that of the 17,000 people evacuated since Aug. 15, just 2,500 have been Americans. U.S. officials have estimated there are as many as 15,000 Americans in Afghanistan, but acknowledge they don’t have solid numbers.
The evacuations have been hampered by screening and logistical strains at waystations such as al-Udeid Air Base in Qatar, which hit maximum capacity. U.S. officials said they have limited numbers of military and U.S. Customs and Border Patrol screeners at the transit points, and they are struggling to work through glitches in the vetting systems.
Kirby refuses to say what security problems are preventing us from doing what other countries are doing for their citizens. Asked about Americans being brutally beaten by the Taliban, Kirby shrugged the problem off.
“We’ve actually been talking about this for several days here, here at this particular podium,” Kirby says, adding that “it wasn’t just Americans that he talked about that have been harassed and in some cases beaten,” and that “We don’t believe it is a very large number.” He claims that “by and large, most Americans who who have their credentials with them are being allowed through the Taliban checkpoints and into the gate and onto the airfield.”
“Now, I have to caveat it and I’ll do it again,” Kirby adds. “We are aware of sporadic cases… where they aren’t being allowed, where there is some harassment going on and yes, some physical violence has occurred.”
Don’t worry though. Kirby claims that U.S. commanders have made it “clear to Taliban commanders” that violence is “unacceptable.” The problem is that they aren’t listening and Biden is too weak-willed to do anything about it. He can’t even get our citizens out of the country.
