Afghanistan war

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Senate to Investigate What Led to 'Worst-Case Scenario'

'Highest-level' Biden officials will speak at congressional hearings, Pelosi says

(Newser) - Democratic lawmakers have largely avoided directly criticizing President Biden's administration over events in Afghanistan—but they still have a lot of questions about how the Taliban were able to seize control with stunning speed, leading to a chaotic evacuation from Kabul's airport. Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Mark Warner...

Up to 15K Americans Are Still in Afghanistan, and It's a Big Mess

It's not clear what will happen to those outside Kabul

(Newser) - Americans are being evacuated from Afghanistan amid the Taliban's takeover of the country, but as many as 15,000 still remain there, according to administration sources who spoke to NBC News and the Washington Post . About 1,100 had been evacuated as of Tuesday night, but "now that...

US Officials Fooled Themselves Into This Mess Over 20 Years

Daniel Silverberg and Fred Kaplan see a mission that was misguided and unsuccessful all along

(Newser) - Afghanistan was never America's to lose. The US and its Afghan allies did not, at any point, control the country, Daniel Silverberg writes in the Atlantic . Instead, officials in Washington deluded themselves and each other for two decades, until President Biden was left with nothing but bad choices . A...

US Reaches Out to Russia, China on Afghanistan

Merkel calls developments 'bitter, dramatic, and awful'

(Newser) - The Biden administration is reaching out to top rivals Russia and China as the situation in Afghanistan continues to deteriorate amid a scramble to evacuate Americans, other foreigners and at-risk Afghans from the Kabul airport. The outreach also comes amid concerns that either or both Moscow and Beijing might stymie...

Female Mayor Is 'Waiting for Taliban to Kill Her'

'There is no one to help me or my family,' says Zarifa Ghafari

(Newser) - In 2018, Zarifa Ghafari became one of Afghanistan's first female mayors—and the country's youngest mayor. Now, the 27-year-old says she is at her home in Kabul, waiting for the Taliban to kill her. "There is no one to help me or my family. I'm just...

Biden: 'I Stand Squarely Behind My Decision'

'I’ve learned the hard way that there was never a good time to withdraw US forces'

(Newser) - With the Taliban in control of Afghanistan and desperate Afghans clinging to US planes amid chaos at Kabul's airport, President Biden is defending his decision to pull American troops out of the country. "I stand squarely behind my decision,” he said at the White House Monday, per...

Afghans Cling to US Plane, Fall to Their Deaths

Disturbing footage shows people pressed against a US Air Force C-17 as it takes off

(Newser) - The videos are unbearable to watch. In one, people desperate to flee Afghanistan cling to the side of a US Air Force plane as it tries to take off. "How petrified does an individual have to be to risk everything and just try to physically crush yourself onto the...

Taliban Have Seized the Presidential Palace
Taliban Have Seized
the Presidential Palace
the rundown
Aug 16, 2021 1:20 AM CDT

Taliban Have Seized the Presidential Palace

Government collapses as Taliban declare the war 'over'

(Newser) - Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan, on Sunday fell to the Taliban, completing the militant group's takeover of the country so quickly that even the Taliban's co-founder admitted in an evening video statement the group was surprised at the speed. Hours earlier, the Taliban had entered Kabul as Afghanistan'...

Afghan President Leaves Nation as Taliban Reach Kabul

Ashraf Ghani flies out with militants on brink of total takeover of Afghanistan

(Newser) - Afghanistan’s embattled president left the country Sunday, joining his fellow citizens and foreigners in a stampede fleeing the advancing Taliban and signaling the end of a 20-year Western experiment aimed at remaking Afghanistan, per the AP . The Taliban, which for hours had been in the outskirts of Kabul, announced...

After Afghan Cities Fall Without a Fight, Biden Announces New Deployment

Another 1K Americans will go for a 'safe drawdown'

(Newser) - The Taliban advance through Afghanistan rolled on Saturday unchecked, with government forces surrendering territory without a fight. When the central province of Daykundi fell, a lawmaker said, only two gunshots were fired in the capital. President Biden announced a series of steps, while reiterating that he will not "pass...

Americans Don&#39;t Seem to Care About Afghanistan (For Now)
Biden's Tone
on Afghans'
Plight Is
'Strikingly Cold'
the rundown
Aug 13, 2021 1:21 PM CDT

Biden's Tone on Afghans' Plight Is 'Strikingly Cold'

President is resolute about withdrawal, but criticism mounts as Taliban keeps advancing

(Newser) - President Biden is enduring the harshest criticism of his presidency to date in the wake of the Taliban's swift spread throughout Afghanistan. As of Friday afternoon, the group had completed its takeover of the south and now controls two-thirds of the nation, reports the AP . All eyes are now...

Panic, Disbelief in Kabul as More Cities Fall to Taliban

Group has completed sweep of southern Afghanistan

(Newser) - The Taliban's offensive in Afghanistan continued with terrifying speed Friday, with another three provincial capitals falling to the militants. Lashkar Gah, capital of Helmand province, was under Taliban control Friday after weeks of heavy fighting. Lawmakers in Uruzgat and Zabul provinces say their capitals have fallen to the Taliban,...

US Sends Troops to Help Evacuate Embassy

With Taliban closing in on Kabul, administration asks that its diplomatic post be spared

(Newser) - If the Taliban successfully storm Kabul, the US is asking that they please spare the American Embassy. In the meantime, troops are being sent to Afghanistan to help evacuate Americans stationed at the embassy. Other diplomatic stations in the country already have been closed as the Taliban overrun the nation...

Report: Pentagon Fears Kabul Could Fall in 30 Days

Taliban seizes 10th provincial capital

(Newser) - Less than a week ago, the Taliban seized their first provincial capital since the withdrawal of US troops began. On Thursday, they seized their tenth, raising their flag in the city of Ghazni, just 80 miles southwest of Kabul, the AP reports. Another three of the country's 34 capitals...

Book: US Lied About Cheney's Close Call With Taliban

Suicide bomber nearly killed him at Bagram base, according to 'The Afghanistan Papers'

(Newser) - Back in 2007, a Taliban suicide bomber struck at the Bagram air base in Afghanistan and killed 23 people. As it turns out, Vice President Dick Cheney was at the base at the time on an unannounced visit, and while he wasn't injured, the Taliban said he had been...

Pentagon: 'It's Their Country to Defend Now'

US will not step up airstrikes in Afghanistan despite Taliban advance

(Newser) - The US showed no sign Monday of stepping up airstrikes in Afghanistan despite accelerating Taliban gains there. A Pentagon spokesman emphasized that Americans now see the fight as one for Afghan political and military leaders to win or lose. "When we look back, it’s going to come down...

Taliban Assassinate Country's Top Media Official

Fighters overrun capital of Nimruz province

(Newser) - The deputy governor of Nimruz province in southwest Afghanistan says its capital city has fallen to the Taliban, making it the first provincial capital to be overrun by Taliban fighters since American forces began their withdrawal. The attack on Zaranj marks an escalation in the Taliban campaign, which has mainly...

Emergency Money for Capitol Security Passes

Half of the $2.1B measure will go toward resettling Afghan refugees who helped US

(Newser) - With few dissents, Congress on Thursday approved spending $2.1 billion to cover Capitol security costs and the evacuation and resettlement of Afghans who helped US forces during the 20-year war. The Capitol spending will repay costs incurred because of the Jan. 6 riot, as well as provide for security...

As Evacuations Near, Taliban Behead Translator

US has promised to evacuate translators but won't protect Afghans trying to reach planes

(Newser) - Sohail Pardis was last seen trying to run a Taliban checkpoint on a desert road. The Taliban opened fire, CNN reports. When the car stopped, Pardis was dragged from it and beheaded. He had been threatened after the Taliban learned he had served as a translator for US troops for...

Pulitzer-Winning Journalist Killed in Afghanistan

Danish Siddiqui was embedded with Afghan troops in covering the US withdrawal

(Newser) - Danish Siddiqui, a Pulitzer Prize-winning photojournalist who documented war, the toll of the pandemic and the violent plight of refugees, was killed in a Taliban attack Friday in Afghanistan. He was 38. Siddiqui, who was based in Mumbai as Reuters' chief photographer in India, was embedded with Afghan forces to...

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