Thanks to the heroic efforts of our armed forces and the leadership of the Biden administration, tens of thousands of Americans and our partners have been able to evacuate from Afghanistan. 

The Biden administration has already evacuated over 122,000 people, with nearly non-stop flights out of Afghanistan.

The White House: “From 3 AM ET on 8/29 to 3AM ET on 8/30, a total of approximately 1,200 people were evacuated from Kabul. 26 US military flights carried approximately 1,200 evacuees and 2 coalition flights carried 50 people.”

The White House: “Since August 14, the U.S. has evacuated and facilitated the evacuation of approximately 116,700 people. Since the end of July, we have re-located approximately 122,300 people”

The Biden administration quickly and succesfully ramped up the airlift out of Afghanistan in what has become a “herculean effort.” 

The Atlantic: “The Biden administration nimbly adapted its plans, ramping up the airlift and sending additional troops into the country to aid crisis teams and to enhance security. Around-the-clock flights came into and went out of Afghanistan. Giant cargo planes departed, a number of them packed with as many as 600 occupants. Senior administration officials convened regular meetings with U.S. allies to find destinations for those planes to land and places for the refugees to stay. The State Department tracked down Americans in the country, as well as Afghans who had worked with the U.S., to arrange their passage to the airport. The Special Immigrant Visa program that the Trump administration had slowed down was kicked into high gear. Despite years of fighting, the administration and the military spoke with the Taliban many times to coordinate passage of those seeking to depart to the airport, to mitigate risks as best as possible, to discuss their shared interest in meeting the August 31 deadline.”

Washington Post’s Jennifer Rubin: “When the Afghan government did collapse, evacuation efforts switched into high gear and went global. In a 24/7 push, approximately 500 State Department consular officials not only in Kabul but also around the world began the excruciating process of going through the thousands of names of Americans who could be in Afghanistan… The herculean effort to extract thousands of Americans after the Taliban seized control of the country should not go unnoticed or unappreciated.”

Thanks to President Biden’s leadership, we are finally ending a 20-year-long war that has cost countless lives and trillions of dollars.

The Atlantic: “The very last chapter of America’s benighted stay in Afghanistan should be seen as one of accomplishment on the part of the military and its civilian leadership. Once again the courage and unique capabilities of the U.S. armed services have been made clear.  And, in a stark change from recent years, an American leader has done the hard thing, the right thing: set aside politics and put both America’s interests and values first.”

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