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The Taliban said Tuesday that Afghanistan should not leave Afghanistan and refused to agree to extend the looming US withdrawal deadline.
“We will send a message to the Americans again and evacuate the citizens. [Aug. 31] They have planes, the airport is with them, and they have to transfer all the troops and contractors involved, as they have the means to do so. [sic] Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid told reporters at a press conference in Kabul.
“We do not agree with allowing Afghans to leave — we do not allow them — and then we do not. [Americans] Being here takes us seriously, God is happy, “he added.
The United States uses an airport in Kabul to evacuate thousands of Afghans, in addition to Americans and citizens of other countries.
US President Joe Biden previously said the US would complete its withdrawal from Afghanistan by August 31st.
As of Tuesday, the timeline hasn’t changed, Pentagon spokesman John Kirby told reporters in Washington.
The US military has promised to eliminate Americans who want to leave Afghanistan before the deadline, he added.
Some MPs and US allies questioned that the mission would be completed by the deadline and called on Biden to extend it.
If he does not, other countries will be forced to withdraw, even if the evacuation has not been completed, the British defense minister said this week.
The United States and the United Kingdom were one of the countries that attended the seven-person virtual group meeting on Tuesday. Biden was then scheduled to speak at the White House.
Evacuation surged
According to the White House, the United States has recently been able to significantly accelerate the pace of evacuation with the support of its allies, evacuating about 21,600 people from 3:00 am on August 23 to 3:00 am on August 24. I let you. Official.
In addition to 37 US military flights, 57 commercial and ally flights departed from Kabul airport. This equates to about one flight every 45 minutes.
Currently, since August 14, the United States has promoted the evacuation or evacuation of 58,700 people.
Major Hank Taylor told Pentagon reporters, “This level because U.S. military personnel and partners are working 24 hours a day to carry out this crucial task, such as airport security and flight operations. Can achieve an increase in departures. ” ..
Evacuees in Afghanistan have been sent to various countries such as Israel, Germany and Spain. Some are designated for the United States and have approximately 25,000 spaces at military bases in four states.
In the last 24 hours, four flights with a total of more than 1,000 evacuees have landed at Dulles International Airport in Washington, officials said.
Authorities refused to give a firm figure on the number of Americans evacuated rather than “thousands,” and continued to say they did not know how many Americans remained in Afghanistan.
Zachary Stieber covers US news, including politics and proceedings. He started in The Epoch Times as a metro reporter for New York City.
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