(PresidentialWire.com)- Following President Joe Biden’s botched withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan, which resulted in the Bagram airbase being ransacked immediately following the withdrawal because he ordered millions of dollars of equipment to be abandoned there, the U.S. is now formally launching an operation to evacuate Afghans who helped the U.S. military in the war.
Operation Allies Refuge will grant refuge to Afghans who took part in the 20-year war in Afghanistan, helping fight against Jihadists in the Taliban.
The announcement was made by the White House on Wednesday, with flights leaving Afghanistan already. Afghans who assisted in the war are being processed for special immigrant visas as of the final week of this month, according to a senior official from the Biden administration. However, no specific details have been provided on when the evacuations will officially begin and where they will be evacuated too. White House officials cited “operational security” concerns while refusing to offer any more details about the plan.
An official told the press that the U.S. is launching the operation to “support relocation flights for interested and eligible Afghan nationals” as well as their families. The source added that the U.S. “remains confident” that Afghanistan’s Armed Forces have both the capability and the resources to defend themselves against the Taliban, and that the conflict will finally be resolved at the negotiating table and not through further war.
The Biden administration is facing mounting criticism over the withdrawal, which former President Donald Trump had spent the last four years preparing. Even after delaying the full withdrawal to September, President Joe Biden doesn’t seem to be handling it very successfully so far.
Around 5% of American troops remain, and roughly 18,000 Afghan applicants are awaiting visas to enter the United States.
