Well, when you see these images and you’re a now-former student at American University in Kabul, I would be incredibly worried as well. Taliban fighters were seen at the campus gates of the institution noting how the place was a place where “infidel wolves” were bred to infect the minds of Muslims. There are over 600 American University students and staff who tried to get out. After several hours of waiting to enter the airport in the hopes of being escorted out to safety by US forces, they were turned away. With the recent suicide bombing, the security situation is even worse. Biden warned of another terror attack occurring soon due to the chaos. While the Taliban extended the deadline from which American citizens and those who wish to leave can depart Afghanistan—we’re still trusting terrorists to keep their word. Terrorists who gave Osama bin Laden refuge to train his operatives to attack the United States. Also, what did we give the Taliban to make that happen? Did we fly in pallets of cash again?
The university president, Ian Bickford, left Kabul on August 14 along with other foreign staff members, according to The New York Times. Bickford added that only assistance from our government can assure safe passage to these students. Oh, and the Taliban has all their names (via NYT):
Hundreds of students, their relatives and staff of American University of Afghanistan gathered at a safe house on Sunday and boarded buses in what was supposed to be a final attempt at evacuation on U.S. military flights, the students said.
But after seven hours of waiting for clearance to enter the airport gates and driving around the city, the group met a dead end: Evacuations were permanently called off. The airport gates remained a security threat, and civilian evacuations were ending Monday.
“I regret to inform you that the high command at HKIA in the airport has announced there will be no more rescue flights,” said an email sent to students from the university administration on Sunday afternoon, which was shared with The New York Times.
[…]
The email asked the 600 or so students and relatives to return home. The U.S. troop withdrawal from Afghanistan must be completed by a Tuesday deadline, so the U.S. military is turning from evacuating civilians to bringing its own personnel home.
The group was then alarmed after the U.S. military, following protocol, shared a list of names and passport information of hundreds of students and their families with the Taliban guarding the airport checkpoints, the university president said.
“They told us: we have given your names to the Taliban,” said Hosay, a 24-year-old sophomore studying business administration who was on the bus on Sunday. “We are all terrified, there is no evacuation, there is no getting out.”
Jake Sullivan’s spin didn’t survive 8 hours’ contact with events.
— Noah Rothman (@NoahCRothman) August 29, 2021
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— Farnaz Fassihi (@farnazfassihi) August 29, 2021
“I regret to inform you that the high command at HKIA in the airport has announced there will be no more rescue flights,” said an email sent to students from the university administration on Sunday afternoon, which was shared with The New York Times.
The Taliban posted a picture of themselves on social media standing at the entrance of a university building with an ominous message, saying they were where America trained infidel “wolves” to corrupt the minds of Muslims.
— Farnaz Fassihi (@farnazfassihi) August 29, 2021
The American University of Kabul is the only American university established in an active conflict zone. The American University of Vietnam was established in 2011.
— Farnaz Fassihi (@farnazfassihi) August 29, 2021
The American University of Iraq is located in Suliamanieh, Kurdistan where it's been safe and stable.
It didn’t have to be this way. The whole piece just highlights how the evacuation plan, if you could call it that, was plagued by serial errors. First, let’s not forget that our citizens who are still strapped are in the same boat as these students. They cannot get out. Access to the airport is non-existent. The Taliban are beating Americans. The Taliban are taking US passports. The Taliban also have names of American citizens who have yet to reach the airport. We gave terrorists a kill list with our citizens on it. A ton of people are still at-risk and frankly, I wouldn’t be shocked if some hostage situation occurs. And like these students, our own armed forces can’t get to them either because we need to leave by August 31. After that, we’re supposed to trust Biden’s ‘deer in the headlights’ diplomacy team to ensure the safe exit of these students and the Americans left behind. Not good.
Yet, this is what’s going to happen. Americans are going to be left behind and we need to get our people out first. Can Joe do that? We shall see, but I would bet a pint of chocolate chocolate chip that could become a months-long ordeal.
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