More than 170 people were killed and at least 200 were wounded, an official with Afghanistan’s Ministry of Public Health tells CNN.
The attack comes as the US and other countries race to evacuate people ahead of President Biden’s Aug. 31 withdrawal deadline.
Our live coverage has ended. Read more about the situation in Afghanistan here.
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Group in Washington racing to coordinate Afghan evacuations
From CNN's Hadas Gold
In a conference room at the luxury downtown Washington, DC hotel The Willard, a group of volunteers is trying desperately to get people into the Kabul airport and onto specially chartered planes.
Among those working on Friday evening are military veterans, the deputy ambassador of the Afghan Embassy, former military contractors and more.
Posters and whiteboards taped to the walls listed the closed airport gates, contact information, and priorities. A screen showed a chart of flights that had been chartered, and their status.
The volunteers are led by Zach Van Meter, president of private equity firm New Standard Holdings. Van Meter said he was approached for help getting 3,500 orphans out of Kabul. With his connections in the UAE, Van Meter said they were able to be flown out. The command center they set up for that operation at the Willard quickly morphed into getting as many people as they could out on chartered flights.
The group estimates it has helped about 5,000 individuals leave – but time is running out.
If an airport gate would suddenly open, Van Meter said the room would quickly fill with dozens more volunteers.
Now, though, the group is focusing on keeping people safe on the ground, while helping resettle those who managed to get out.
“If we can’t get people through the gates, it’s hard for us as our entire premise was chartering aircraft, putting them on the ground in Kabul, having them filled and moving them out,” Van Meter said. “If we can’t push flights in and push people to the gates, we have to focus on resettlement.”
Even as we spoke, other volunteers were fielding phone calls, messages, arranging transport, safe houses and more – some for US citizens they said were still trying to leave Afghanistan.
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Officials warn of possible threats to US in wake of Afghanistan attack and mass evacuation
From CNNs Geneva Sands
Federal officials are on high alert for threats to the United States following the mass evacuation from Afghanistan and devastating attack in Kabul this week.
The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is tracking three primary threats – including whether individuals abroad in Afghanistan, who are associated with ISIS or al Qaeda, could use the relocation process as a way to enter the US, according to a federal government call with law enforcement partners obtained by CNN.
An official with the FBI said on the call that though there is no specific intelligence on terrorist organizations using relocation as an opportunity, “we cannot discount that it is a possibility.”
There is “a very small number of individuals who’ve been flagged for concern,” said an official with the National Targeting Center on the call, who appeared to be referring to people at so-called “lily pad” transfer point locations like Doha and Qatar.
CNN reached out to the DHS for comment on the call, including for details on the individuals flagged for concern.
The relocation process: Upon departing Kabul, Afghans are sent to several overseas locations, where they provide biographic and biometric information and are checked against US databases.
Once these subjects are determined to be “green,” meaning there is no derogatory information, they are placed on US-bound flights.
They go through additional screening once arriving in the US. If they fail primary screening, they undergo a secondary screening, which includes FBI support, US Customs and Border Protection official James McCament said on the call.
It’s unclear what would happen if someone does not pass secondary screening after landing in the US.
Homegrown threat: The second significant security threat is whether people already in the US, who may be inspired by narratives associated with al Qaeda, ISIS or other foreign terrorist groups, “will view the events in Afghanistan as an opportunity to engage in violence here at home,” Cohen said.
The ability to detect threats from homegrown violent extremists represents a challenge for officials because there may not be direct intelligence prior to an act of violence being committed.
White supremacists: The third threat concern is individuals who are inspired or motivated to violence based on their connection with a domestic violent extremist narrative.
Some antigovernment and white supremacist groups have expressed concern on online platforms that the arriving Afghans would degrade the control and authority of the white race, Cohen said – which “may incite violent activities directed at immigrant communities, certain faith communities, or even those who are relocated to the United States.”
Additionally, there are narratives framing the activities of the Taliban as a success with commentary focusing on potential acts of violence directed at US government, law enforcement, and others who are symbols of the current government structure.
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President Biden approved the strike against ISIS-K planner
From CNN's Kaitlan Collins
President Joe Biden delivers remarks on the terror attack at the Kabul International Airport, on Thursday, August 26.
(Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
President Biden approved the strike against the ISIS-K planner, an official said.
According to a statement from Central Command spokesperson Capt. Bill Urban, “the unmanned airstrike occurred in the Nangarhar Province of Afghanistan. Initial indications are that we killed the target.”
“We know of no civilian casualties,” the statement said.
Reporting from CNN’s Jamie Crawford and Oren Liebermann contributed to this post.
UPDATE: This story has been updated with US Central Command’s corrected spelling of the Nangarhar Province.
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US Embassy in Kabul again warns US citizens to leave airport gates "immediately"
From CNN's Jennifer Hansler
The US Embassy in Kabul again warned US citizens at a number of gates at the airport to “leave immediately,” citing security threats.
The alert advised US citizens “to avoid traveling to the airport and to avoid airport gates.”
Some context: Following a deadly terrorist attack at one of the gates of the Hamid Karzai International Airport on Thursday, President Biden’s national security team told him Friday that “another terror attack in Kabul is likely, but that they are taking maximum force protection measures at the Kabul Airport,” according to White House press secretary Jen Psaki.
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US military conducts airstrike against ISIS-K planner
From CNN's Jamie Crawford and Oren Liebermann
President Joe Biden delivers remarks on the terror attack outside Kabul International Airport, on Thursday, August 26.
(Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images)
The US has conducted an airstrike against an ISIS-K planner, Central Command spokesperson Capt. Bill Urban said in a statement.
“US military forces conducted an over-the-horizon counterterrorism operation today against an ISIS-K planner. The unmanned airstrike occurred in the Nangarhar Province of Afghanistan. Initial indications are that we killed the target. We know of no civilian casualties,” the statement said.
UPDATE: This story has been updated with US Central Command’s corrected spelling of the Nangarhar Province.
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Parents of US Navy corpsman killed in Kabul share their son's last words
From CNN's Catherine Carter and Paul P. Murphy
US Navy corpsman Maxton Soviak died in Thursday’s bombing outside Kabul International Airport, the family told CNN in a statement.
“Today she realized that they all just went together,” the statement says.
“Maxton was [an] awesome young man that was well-liked in the community as evidenced by the outpouring of condolences from teachers, coaches, employers, family, and friends,” the statement said. “Maxton was always proud of being part of a state champion wrestling team and state playoff final four football team two years in a row.”
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Family of US Marine killed in Kabul says he had a "tough outer shell and giant heart"
From CNN’s Monica Serrano, Andy Rose and Paul P. Murphy
A US Marine from Nebraska was among the service members killed in the bombing in Kabul, Afghanistan, Thursday.
Cpl.Daegan Page was 23 years old, his family said in a statement provided to CNN.
Page was raised partly in Iowa and near Omaha, Nebraska, and served at Camp Pendleton in California.
“He loved hunting and spending time outdoors with his dad, as well as being out on the water,” said the family. “He was also an animal lover with a soft spot in his heart for dogs.”
The statement said that Page joined the US Marine Corps after graduating from Millard South High School. He was a longtime Boy Scout and “enjoyed playing hockey for Omaha Westside in the Omaha Hockey Club and was a diehard Chicago Blackhawks fan.”
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Sister of US Marine killed in Kabul attack says he made the "ultimate sacrifice"
From CNN's Gloria De Leon
US Marine Rylee McCollum.
(Courtesy The McCollum Family)
The family of US Marine Rylee McCollum confirmed to CNN that he died in Thursday’s suicide bombing outside Kabul’s international airport.
Roice McCollum, Rylee’s older sister, said her brother was “an amazing man with a passion for the Marines.”
Roice said that her brother, a native of Wyoming, was on his first deployment and had been determined to be in the infantry. He was sent to Afghanistan when the evacuation began and had been manning the checkpoint when the explosion occurred, she said.
Rylee, she said, was tough but kind and loving and “made an impact on everyone he met.”
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About 4,200 people evacuated from Kabul over a 12-hour stretch Friday
From CNN's Jason Hoffman
About 4,200 people were evacuated from Kabul on Friday, according to the White House.
The evacuations were carried out from 3 a.m. ET to 3 p.m. ET by 12 US military flights that evacuated about 2,100 evacuees and 29 coalition flights that also evacuated approximately 2,100 people.
Approximately 7,500 people were evacuated from Kabul over the same 12-hour stretch of time on Thursday.
Since Aug. 14, the US has evacuated and facilitated the evacuation of about 109,200 people, according to the White House.
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Soldier killed in Kabul attack was a member of US special forces
From CNN's Oren Lieberman
The US soldier killed in the Kabul airport attack was a member of the 1st Special Forces Command, the command said in a statement on Twitter Friday afternoon.
“We are saddened to report the death of one of our soldiers as a result of the attacks at [Hamid Karzai International Airport] yesterday,” the command said.
The soldier’s family has been notified, the command said. Per policy, the Defense Department will wait 24 hours until releasing the name of the soldier.
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First lady Jill Biden pens open letter to military families
From CNN's Kate Bennett
(Susan Walsh/AP)
Jill Biden has posted a letter to military families to her Facebook page.
In the wake of Thursday’s attack on troops in Afghanistan, Biden touches on what it feels like to be a member of a military family – noting she, too, was a military mother, when Beau Biden was serving – and specifically what those with loved ones serving in Afghanistan might be feeling. “Too many of you lost a piece of your heart forever there. This mission is personal to you, and you have shouldered its enormous weight,” writes Biden.
The first lady advises military family members who are struggling to seek help. One of Biden’s platform initiatives is Joining Forces, her initiative focused on supporting military families and veterans.
Read Biden’s full letter:
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It is unclear when normal air travel will resume at Kabul airport, US State Department says
From CNN's Jennifer Hansler
State Department spokesperson Ned Price said Friday that “it is probably unreasonable to expect that there will be normal airport operations on Sept. 1” following the US military withdrawal from Kabul airport on Aug. 31.
There is currently no plan in place for operation of the airport once US and other partner forces leave, but there are discussions ongoing between the US, Taliban, and regional countries about its fate.
Price told reporters that “teams of US and allied air traffic experts have accessed Karzai international airports for capabilities that would support the resumption of commercial operations once we depart,” but declined to say what that assessment found.
“We are departing by Aug. 31, upon that date, we are delivering, we are essentially giving the airport back to the Afghan people, but we are working with all concerned parties to facilitate a smooth transfer of both the airport and the airfield, knowing how important it is to us, knowing it is to the international community, and again how it important it is to the Taliban’s own self-interest,” Price said.
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US military still in control of Kabul airport, Pentagon says
From CNN's Michael Conte
The Pentagon said that reports that the Taliban have taken control of the airport in Kabul are false.
“They are not in charge of any of the gates. They are not in charge of any of the airport operations. That is still under US military control,” said Pentagon spokesperson John Kirby.
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Turkey evacuates most of its forces and civilians from Afghanistan
From CNN's Isil Sariyuce
Citizens of Turkey arrive at Istanbul Airport after being evacuated from Afghanistan on August 19.
Islam Yakut/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images
Turkey has completed the evacuation of civilians and military from Afghanistan, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday during his one-day visit to Bosnia and Herzegovina’s capital Sarajevo.
The Turkish Defense Ministry also said in a tweet Friday that “the evacuation of our Turkish Armed Forces personnel, who successfully performed their duty in Afghanistan for 20 years, has been completed. We say ‘welcome to your country’ to our troops who returned to the homeland.”
Earlier Friday: Erdogan said a delegation from Turkey met the Taliban for more than three hours for the first time, and the Taliban offered Turkey to run Kabul’s airport while the Taliban took care of the security.
“Turkey has not made the decision yet,” Erdogan said,
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Pentagon says proper verification was causing delays processing Afghans at DC-area Airport
From CNN's Michael Conte
Pool
The commander of US NORTHCOM said that “use of the proper vetting authorities” was causing earlier delays processing Afghan refugees at Dulles International Airport near Washington, DC.
“What was happening is, if the improper system was utilized, they were being flagged as red on the receiving end at Dulles,” said Gen. Glen VanHerck, explaining that they were “ensuring verification” at customs for the Afghans coming into the US.
VanHerck said that as of this morning, there were no airplanes waiting on the tarmac at Dulles.
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NORAD commander says there are low numbers of Covid-positive tests from refugees
From CNN's Adrienne Vogt
Gen. Glen VanHerck, commander of United States Northern Command and North American Aerospace Defense Command, expressed confidence in Covid-19 testing for refugees coming from Afghanistan.
“With regards to Covid, the Afghans coming from the Middle East into our locations that we have stood up are all being tested actually multiple times. We tested 100% upon arrival at each location. They’re getting tested at Dulles [Airport] as well, and en route they get tested,” VanHerck said.
Fort McCoy in Wisconsin, Fort Bliss in Texas, Fort Lee in Virginia and Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst in New Jersey are all housing Afghan refugees. The Department of Defense today authorized three more US bases to help support evacuation operations from Afghanistan: Marine Corps Base Quantico in Virginia; Fort Pickett in Virginia and Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico.
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State Department unaware of any US civilians killed or injured in Kabul attack
From CNN's Michael Conte and Jennifer Hansler
The State Department said they are unaware of any non-military US citizens who were casualties of the attacks in Kabul yesterday.
Price said the State Department accounted for all individuals under their authority after the attacks.
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Biden won't ask for any resignations from military leaders in wake of Afghanistan attack, White House says
From CNN's Jason Hoffman
Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images
President Biden won’t ask any of his military leaders to resign in the wake of Thursday’s deadly attack in Afghanistan, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Friday.
Asked if Biden still has confidence in his Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Psaki said yes, and would not respond to Republican lawmakers who are looking to impeach him.
“I have no response on a day where we’re still honoring the lives of men and women in the military who were lost yesterday,” she said.
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State Department: "Vast majority" of locally employed Afghan embassy staff have been evacuated or at airport
From CNN's Michael Conte
State Department spokesperson Ned Price pauses while speaking during a briefing at the State Department, Monday, August 2.
Brendan Smialowski/Pool/AP
The State Department said that the “vast majority” of locally employed US embassy staff and their families have either been evacuated from Afghanistan or are waiting at the Kabul airport to leave.
Price added that the State Department is in contact with the embassy staff who have not yet been evacuated.
CNN’s Nick Paton Walsh reported earlier Friday that local Afghan staff of the US embassy are still coming to the airport, but the operations team is expected to complete that part of the operation on Friday.
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Additional vetting could lead to some delays for refugees arriving in the US, White House says
From CNN's Jason Hoffman
White House press secretary Jen Psaki speaks during the daily briefing at the White House, Friday August 27.
Susan Walsh/AP
Additional vetting and security processes could lead to some refugees facing long wait times at airports upon their arrival in the United States, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Friday.
Responding to reports that some refugees landing at Dulles Airport near Washington DC are sitting on planes for hours at a time upon landing in the US, Psaki said that would be due to potential additional screening measures.
Earlier in the briefing, Psaki announced the Department of Homeland Security will be overseeing the federal government response for relocating evacuated Afghans to the United States.
“Already, DHS has been working closely with agencies across government, including our military, diplomats, intelligence community and law enforcement professionals, and many others to ensure that all Afghans are screened and vetted prior to being allowed into the United States,” she said.
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State Department says it's working with 500 US citizens to facilitate evacuation from Afghanistan
From CNN's Adrienne Vogt
US State Department spokesperson Ned Price said there are about 500 American citizens that the department is working with to evacuate from Afghanistan.
Price said officials are “communicating directly” with these citizens to facilitate departures.
In 24 hours between the mornings of Aug. 26 and Aug. 27, approximately 12,500 people were evacuated from Kabul, Price said. There have been 105,000 people evacuated since Aug. 14.
In the last day, more than 300 additional Americans were evacuated, Price said.
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Department of Homeland Security will lead federal effort for relocation of Afghans in US
From CNN's Geneva Sands
Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg/Getty Images
At the direction of President Biden, the Department of Homeland Security is taking on the challenge of overseeing the federal government response for relocating evacuated Afghans to the US, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Friday.
DHS will coordinate with other federal agencies to ensure that relocated Afghans have access to medical care and sufficient support to enable their successful resettlement in the US, Psaki said.
Some context: The new role for DHS comes as the Biden administration has relocated thousands of people to the United States as part of a rushed and chaotic evacuation from Afghanistan, an effort that has caused long delays and major security challenges for the agencies responsible for screening and vetting.
Additional details about the department’s role are not immediately available.
DHS has already deployed hundreds of personnel from Customs and Border Protection, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the Transportation Security Administration and the Coast Guard to Bahrain, Germany, Kuwait, Italy, Qatar, Spain and the United Arab Emirates to assist with processing, screening, vetting.
Additionally, staff from US Citizenship and Immigration Services have been deployed to domestic locations to help with the effort.
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4 San Diego families stuck in Afghanistan are secure and in the process of returning to US
From CNN's Cheri Mossburg
Four of the five Southern California families still stranded in Afghanistan are in a safe place and are in the process of being removed from the country after a bombing at Kabul’s airport killed scores of people Thursday, school officials told CNN.
The San Diego-area families traveled to Afghanistan this summer to visit relatives and became stranded in the country as the Taliban quickly took power this month.
The four families in a secure place are preparing to depart, according to Howard Shen, spokesperson for the Cajon Valley Union School District. A fifth family is still unable to safely exit and continues to seek help from US officials.
Each of the involved families has students in the school district, located just east of San Diego.
California Rep. Darrell Issa’s office told CNN Friday it is working to help at least one additional family – a sixth – escape Afghanistan, but provided no details about the situation.
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11th Marine was among 13 US service members killed, US Marines confirm
From CNN's Oren Liebermann
The US Marines have confirmed that another Marine was among the 13 US service members killed Thursday.
“We can confirm, at this time, 11 Marines were killed in the line of duty at Hamid Karzai International Airport. This is an update to the information we provided yesterday,” said Maj. Jim Stenger, Marine Corps spokesperson.
What we know: A total of 11 US Marines, one US Navy sailor and one US Army soldier were killed in Thursday’s attack at Kabul’s airport. Another 18 service members were injured.
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White House says working with the Taliban is needed to continue evacuations
From CNN's Jason Hoffman
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki speaks to reporters during the daily press briefing at the White House on August 27.
Drew Angerer/Getty Images
The United States’ continued coordination with the Taliban in Afghanistan is a necessity, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Friday, adding that while the relationship is not preferred, it is needed to continue to facilitate evacuations from the country.
When asked if working with the Taliban is considered the best of bad options or the only option for the US in Afghanistan, Psaki responded “maybe both.”
“This is not a preferred relationship or a situation that we would have designed if we had started from scratch, I think that’s very clear. But right now we need to continue to coordinate, that’s our focus for the next couple of days,” she added later in the briefing.
Psaki said that while the US does not trust Afghanistan, there is nothing at this time to suggest Thursday’s attack was coordinated between the Taliban and ISIS-K.
“Clearly something went wrong here in the process that we saw the ISIS-K attack occur yesterday. We don’t have additional information to suggest that it was, you know, intentional or anything along those lines,” she said. “But clearly there was a break in the security process here. There’s no question about that.”
When asked about a statement released earlier Friday that said “another terror attack in Kabul is likely,” Psaki said the administration felt it was important to be open with the public about what threats US forces continue to face in Afghanistan.
“That threat is acute, it is ongoing. Our troops are still in danger and they are taking the steps they are taking to save lives and evacuate people because of their commitment to the mission, and we felt it was important for people to understand that,” she said.
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UK says it will "shift heaven and Earth" to help people stranded in Afghanistan after Aug. 31
From CNN's Zahid Mahmood
Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson (right) and Britain's Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab (left) visit the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office Crisis Centre in London, on August 27, to see how they are supporting and monitoring the ongoing evacuations in Afghanistan.
Jeff Gilbert/Pool/AFP/Getty Images
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson pledged on Friday to “shift heaven and Earth” to help people who are eligible for resettlement and are stranded in Afghanistan after Aug. 31, the deadline for the US mission.
Speaking to British media, the prime minister said he felt a “great sense of regret” that they were not able to get everyone out during what he described as the “first phase” of the evacuation process.
“As we come down to the final hours of the operation, there will also be people who haven’t got through, people who might qualify [for resettlement],” Johnson told reporters. “What I say to them is that we will shift heaven and Earth to help them, we will do whatever we can.”
“But I don’t think you should in any way underestimate the scale of the achievement of UK armed forces, the bravery of the men and women on the ground who have been able to shift a huge number of people,” he added.
Johnson confirmed that two UK nationals and the child of a UK national were among the victims in the deadly blast in Kabul that killed more than 170 people, adding that their loss “underlines concluding” the evacuation process.
“What the terrorist attack certainly shows is that the government of Afghanistan, it’s going to be extremely difficult for whoever is running it and that’s been the case for a very long time,” he said.
The UK has evacuated 13,708 people from Afghanistan since Aug. 13, the UK Defense Ministry said Friday as the nation’s evacuation mission wraps up in Kabul.
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Significant remaining number of US embassy staff expected to leave Kabul this weekend
From CNN's Nick Paton Walsh, Kylie Atwood and Jennifer Hansler
A significant contingent of remainingUS embassy staff is expected to leave the Kabul airport this weekend, according to a senior US official and a source directly familiar with the situation on the airport — a reflection of the changed reality on the ground in Afghanistan as the US evacuation mission draws near its end.
State Department officials had for months pledged to maintain a diplomatic presence on the ground in Kabul, and while a formal decision to withdraw all US diplomats from Afghanistan has not been inked by the secretary of state, preparations are underway for that likely eventuality.
A small number of diplomats and civilians facilitating the evacuation may stay on until Aug. 31, the sources added, reflecting the White House and Pentagon’s insistence evacuations will continue until the end.
The group of US diplomats who are in Afghanistan now remained in the country primarily to work with military officials to run operations at the airport and process Afghans who are leaving the country. The majority of the US diplomats already departed earlier in the month when the US embassy in Kabul was evacuated and moved to the airport.
The Taliban have said that they want to see other countries, including the US, maintain a diplomatic presence in the country after Aug. 31.
Whether or not the Kabul airport will be able to remain up and running after Aug. 31 is a key factor that has played into the plans to pull out all US diplomats.
Earlier in the week a senior state department official said that the future of the airport and the future of the US diplomatic presence are “very much related,” noting that “you’d be hard pressed to find a country that would feel comfortable operating diplomatically in a country where there is not ready access to an airport or a seaport.”
“An airport is going to be important to not only a country like the United States but also our allies and partners,” they told reporters Wednesday.
While the US is working with the international community to keep the airport operational, right now there is no plan in place that would go into effect immediately when the US military leaves.
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Biden was warned "another terror attack in Kabul is likely" as mission enters "most dangerous period"
From CNN's Kaitlan Collins
President Joe Biden delivers remarks on the terror attack at Hamid Karzai International Airport, and the US service members and Afghan victims killed and wounded, in the East Room of the White House in Washington on August 26.
(Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images)
President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris were warned by their national security team this morning “that another terror attack in Kabul is likely,” according to a White House official, who said the US is taking “maximum force protection measures at the Kabul Airport.”
“The US military is airlifting out thousands of people every few hours. They continue to prioritize evacuating the remaining American citizens who have indicated that they wish to leave, and are engaged in a variety of means to get them to the airport safely,” the official continued.
“The President directed the Secretary of State to continue diplomatic efforts with international partners to secure means for third-country nationals and Afghans with visas to leave the country even after the U.S. military presence ends.”
The official said US commanders also updated Biden and Harris “on plans to develop ISIS-K targets.”
“The next few days of this mission will be the most dangerous period to date. The President reaffirmed with the commanders his approval of all authorities they need to conduct the operation and protect our troops, and all reported back that they have the resources they believe they need to do so effectively,” the official said.
Harris was not at the meeting in person but joined via a secure video teleconference, the official said.
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Evacuation effort is a "worthy mission," Biden says one day after Kabul attack
From CNN's Adrienne Vogt
President Joe Biden delivers remarks on the terror attack at Hamid Karzai International Airport, and the US service members and Afghan victims killed and wounded, in the East Room of the White House in Washington on August 26.
(Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images)
A day after an attack near Kabul’s international airport that killed 13 US service members, President Biden again expressed sympathy to those who died and called the Afghanistan evacuation effort “a worthy mission.”
At least 170 people were killed in the attack, according to an official with Afghanistan’s Ministry of Public Health.
Biden said he received a “detailed briefing” this morning from his national security advisers.
“We will complete the mission,” Biden said.
Biden made the remarks during a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett.
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Kabul death toll increases to more than 170 killed, Afghan health official says
Relatives load in a car the coffin of a victim of the explosion at the Abbey gate at Hamid Karzai International airport on Friday, August 27, in Kabul.
(Aamir Qureshi/AFP/Getty Images)
The death toll has increased to more than 170 people killed from Thursday’s Kabul attack, an official with Afghanistan’s Ministry of Public Health told CNN Friday.
More than 200 people were wounded, the official said.
Yesterday, the Pentagon confirmed that 13 US service members were killed and 18 were injured in the attack near Kabul’s airport.
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Pentagon: There are still "credible threats" to Kabul airport
From CNN's Nicole Gaouette
Pentagon officials say they are receiving reports of credible threats to the evacuation effort in Afghanistan and are monitoring those threats “virtually, in real time.”
“We have additional information,” Kirby told reporters at a Pentagon briefing. “What you’re seeing us act on, to the degree we can talk about, it is based on information that we have, and I think, I think I’d like it at that.”
Pressed by CNN’s Barbara Starr on whether another attack in potentially imminent, Kirby said, “we certainly are prepared and would expect future attempts, absolutely, but I won’t get into the specifics of what those are and why we’re doing what we’re doing.”
Asked if the US has additional intelligence on threats to Kabul airport since the attack, Kirby said, “again, without talking to intelligence, we’re monitoring these threats, very, very specifically, virtually in real time, and I think you can understand I wouldn’t get in more detail than that.”
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Pentagon confirms reports of backlog of Afghan refugee flights at DC-area airport
From CNN's Michael Conte
The Pentagon said that reports of refugee flights from Afghanistan being stuck on the tarmac at Dulles Airport near Washington, DC, for hours were accurate but said it was an issue with Customs and Border Patrol processing.
“As we understand it this morning, they have worked through the difficulties and we believe that wait time now upon landing is going to get much much shorter,” Pentagon press secretary John Kirby said.
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Army confirms 1 soldier was among the 13 US service members killed in Kabul attack
No further information will be released until 24 hours after next of kin notification is complete.
“I am heart-broken by the appalling attacks in Kabul and offer my sincere condolences to the families of the victims. These fallen Service Members died ensuring that others might live. They represent the very best of America, and we continue this mission in their honor,” said Gen. James C. McConville, the Army chief of staff.
The US Marine Corps announced Thursday that 10 Marines were among the dead and the Navy confirmed Friday that one sailor also died.
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“There will be a day of reckoning” for Biden’s actions on Afghanistan, top US House Republican says
From CNN's Ryan Nobles and Annie Grayer
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy departs from the podium after speaking at a press conference at the Capitol building on August 27 in Washington.
(Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy said “there will be a day of reckoning” for President Biden as the result of his handling of the deteriorating situation in Afghanistan, as calls within the Republican conference grow for Biden to resign or even be impeached for his actions.
But McCarthy said the focus now had to be on getting Americans and troops out of the region.
“Look I’m extremely frustrated with this President” McCarthy said, as the calls within the Republican conference grow for Biden to resign and even be impeached.
McCarthy was unclear about his personal stance on whether troops should remain in Afghanistan or not. At one point he said that all troops need to be evacuated from Afghanistan, while later told reporters that he would be open to sending more troops to help with evacuations and even maintaining a more permanent base there.
“I would have checked and maintained the Bagram Air Force base,” McCarthy said, referring to a separate air base that is currently not being used for getting people out of Afghanistan because the military and State Department ruled it was too far from the Kabul airport.
On sending more troops to Afghanistan, McCarthy said, “if the military says it makes them safer, yes I would.”
Asked by CNN’s Ryan Nobles about a bill that McCarthy is pushing to bring to the floor, which essentially gives the White House the direction to decide if it is safe for troops should remain in Afghanistan, McCarthy said, “the only way we want troops to be there, is to make sure Americans get back safely and that the troops are safe.”
McCarthy repeatedly attacked the Biden administration for negotiating with the Taliban. When presented with the fact that former President Trump also negotiated with the Taliban, McCarthy said, “Trump also had conditions. And he upheld the conditions. Trump never gave the names of Americans to the Taliban.”
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Pentagon: US still planning to end Afghanistan mission by Aug. 31
From CNN's Jennifer Hansler
Pentagon press secretary John Kirby said Friday that the US military is still planning to end its mission in Afghanistan by Aug. 31.
“We’re still planning on ending this mission at the end of the month,” Kirby said at a Pentagon briefing.
“As we get closer, and we are getting closer, you’re going see us begin to make those muscle movements to pull out our troops and some of our equipment, as appropriate with any retrograde,” he said, adding they want to “preserve as much capability for as long as we can, both in terms of the security footprint” and ability to evacuate people.
“I think you’ll see us adjust as necessary to make sure that we’re achieving that proper balance. But we’ll be able to fly out evacuees right up until the last moment. That’s gonna be the goal,” he said.
Kirby said the “inter-agency, the US Government will pursue a variety of ways to help any Americans who want to get out after our military presence at the airport has ended, to be able to help them get out.”
“While Afghanistan is a unique case, it is not completely separated from the larger efforts that the United States government pursues all over the world when we know that Americans are at special risk, we do what we can to get them out, and that doesn’t necessarily involve the United States military,” he said.
“I certainly wouldn’t speculate one way or another about what is going to happen after this particular mission ends. But I would not envision a significant military role in that effort going forward,” he continued.
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Pentagon announces 3 more military bases will be used to support Afghans coming into the US
From CNN's Nicole Gaouette and Kiely Westhoff
The Pentagon announced Friday that additional military bases in the US will be used to help support evacuation operations from Afghanistan.
Kirby said the three new bases join Fort McCoy in Wisconsin, Fort Bliss in Texas and Fort Lee and Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst in New Jersey in providing support, with the capacity of up to 50,000 Afghan special immigrant visa applicants and other evacuees.
“The Defense Department will continue to support the State Department in providing temporary housing sustainment and support inside the United States for a capacity of up to 50,000 Afghan special immigrant visa applicants, their families, and other at risk individuals,” Kirby said.
“US Northern Command will coordinate the details of all this with the State Department, the Department Homeland Security and of course the Department of Health and Human Services as necessary,” Kirby said.
He added that “it’ll be providing, provided, under presidential drawdown authority to the maximum extent possible, with additional support being provided on a reimbursable basis.”
Evacuees from Afghanistan are expected to arrive in Virginia at two of the new temporary housing facilities Saturday, Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam announced Friday.
Northam said Fort Pickett has the capacity to house up to 3,800 refugees. Quantico is currently equipped to host 1,000, but can be upscaled to accommodate up to 5,000 people, per Northam’s announcement.
The evacuees are being tested for Covid-19 upon arrival unless they can show proof of a negative test result from the past 72 hours.
Only 20 people have tested positive in the 11 days since Virginia’s repatriation program began, according to Northam.
CNN has reached out to confirm how many refugees the state has taken in so far.
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More than 300 Americans evacuated in past 24 hours, Pentagon says
From CNN's Jennifer Hansler
More than 300 Americans were evacuated from Kabul in the past 24 hours, Army Maj. Gen. William “Hank” Taylor, Joint Staff deputy director for regional operations, said Friday.
About 5,100 US citizens have been evacuated to date, he said.
In addition, “35 US Military aircraft — 29 C-17s and six C-130s — departed with approximately 8,500 personnel,” Taylor said. “Combined with 54 coalition aircraft departures an additional 4,000 personnel left Kabul for various intermediate staging bases.”
He added: “89 flights total yesterday out of Kabul totaling 12,500 evacuees now safely out of Afghanistan in a 24-hour period.”
The State Department said Thursday they believed there were approximately 1,000 Americans in Afghanistan who wished to leave, but described the “vast majority” as already taking steps to leave.
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US personnel wounded in attack landed at US airbase in Germany and were transferred to medical center
From CNN's Michael Conte
A general view of the Ramstein Air Base of the United States Air Force on August 26 in Ramstein-Miesenbach, Germany.
(Andreas Rentz/Getty Images)
Joint Staff deputy director for regional operations Army Maj. Gen. William “Hank” Taylor announced that the US service members wounded in yesterday’s attack in Kabul have landed at the US’s Ramstein Air Base in Germany and have been transferred to Landstuhl Regional Medical Center for treatment.
At least 18 US service members were wounded in the attack, and 13 others were killed, according to the Pentagon
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Pentagon confirms only one explosion outside Kabul airport, after initially reporting two
The Pentagon originally said there was a second explosion outside the Baron hotel in its initial statements.
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NOW: Pentagon holds briefing on Kabul attack
Army Maj. Gen. William "Hank" Taylor.
(Source: Pool)
Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby and Army Maj. Gen. William “Hank” Taylor, Joint Staff deputy director for regional operations, are speaking to reporters following yesterday’s attack at the Kabul airport.
Gen. Kenneth “Frank” McKenzie, head of US Central Command, said yesterday US troops were continuing the evacuation mission at “best speed,” noting there were still about 1,000 American citizens in Afghanistan. But he said the focus right now was on the “extremely active threat streams against the airfield.”
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UN Security Council condemns deadly Kabul attack
From CNN’s Richard Roth
The United Nations Security Council condemned “in the strongest terms” the deadly attack near the airport in Kabul, Afghanistan, Thursday.
The council denounced terrorism in all its forms, calling it “one of the most serious threats to international peace and security,” and called on all parties to respect and facilitate the safe evacuations of civilians.
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Afghan woman: US's hurried withdrawal vindicates Taliban-inflicted violence and abuses as "acceptable"
Pashtana Durrani.
(CNN)
In hurriedly withdrawing from Afghanistan, the United States is setting a clear example for the world — the Taliban’s violence and abuses are acceptable, Afghan human rights activist Pashtana Durrani said.
“When your President says ‘we will not forget and we will not forgive,’ it’s exactly what he did. He forgave the Taliban. He forgot what they did. He’s leaving and there was no hunting down,” Durrani told CNN.
Durrani also offered an alternative view — one where the US has failed to offer protection to women like her despite the values they evangelize around the world, and instead, her countries much-criticized “tribes” are offering her alliance and support.
“The US came for their own benefit and for their own war, but it was just fought on our ground,” Durrani said. “Your president said that we are a country that is having petty fights about our tribes. It’s the tribes that are protecting me right now. It’s the different ethnicities that are protecting me. It’s the different allies that I have built over the course of years, who are here who are willing to protect me.”
Watch:
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This pilot says helping Afghans evacuate was special for him as the son of a Holocaust survivor
Delta Airlines pilot Alexander Kahn.
(CNN)
When Delta Airlines pilot Alexander Kahn was tasked with flying Afghan evacuees from Germany to the United States, the moment felt special to him.
As he flew the plane with Afghans coming to the US, he said he was able to “put myself in their position.”
“They’re starting a new life. This is going to be a frightening experience for them. But it has the potential to be an excellent experience for them.”
The flight crew took the initiative to prepare by using their own money to buy supplies for the children and other evacuees who were going to be on board, Kahn said Friday.
“We knew these evacuees were coming with no opportunity to prepare and to take things that you and I would prepare for [with] an international flight. [The crew spent] their own money, they purchased diapers and wipes and candy and balloons, coloring books and other things they knew the evacuees were going to need, and refused to take any reimbursement from us, from the pilots for this,” he added.
Kahn flew the evacuees to the US out of the Ramstein US Air Base, which is where he first learned to fly an airplane and where he got his pilot’s license.
Years from now, if he had the chance to meet an evacuee, he says he would ask them about their goals and give them hope.
“I think I’d probably ask them, how was their experience? Have they been able to reach goals that they never dreamed possible? And to give them hope, to show them that we are a land of legal immigrants, and this is what built the United States. We’re a generous country because we’re a generous people, and the future is theirs.”
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Sweden ends evacuation operation from Afghanistan
From Niamh Kennedy in Dublin
Sweden’s evacuation operation in Afghanistan has come to an end, the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs (MFA) said Friday.
“Following days of intensive efforts around the clock, the Ministry for Foreign Affairs evacuation from Afghanistan has now been concluded,” a tweet from the Swedish MFA said. “All Swedish staff have left Afghanistan.”
Other countries, such as Italy, Spain, Australia and New Zealand, have also concluded their evacuations operations in Afghanistan.
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Obama says he's "heartbroken" after attack in Kabul
From CNN's Kevin Liptak
Former President Barack Obama released a statement Friday on the terrorist attack that killed more than 100 people, including 13 US service members, in Kabul, Afghanistan on Thursday.
“Like so many of you, Michelle and I were heartbroken to hear about the terrorist attack outside the Kabul airport,” Obama said in a written statement. “As president, nothing was more painful than grieving with the loved ones of Americans who gave their lives serving our country.”
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Few people seen around Kabul airport on Friday
From CNN’s Tim Lister
There are very few people gathering at Kabul airport on Friday following yesterday’s attack, a journalist working with CNN who took a trip through the city on Friday reports.
People are not allowed to go to the main gate of the airport, the journalist said. Almost 500 yards before the main gate, the road is blocked by the Taliban who have parked their cars there, they added.
The rest of the city is “calm,” with less traffic than on previous days.
All the main commercial centers are either closed or their business is very slow, the stringer reported. This is unsurprising because Friday marks the start of Afghanistan’s weekend.
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About 2,500 Afghans en route to US from Jordan
From Hamdi Alkhshali
About 2,500 Afghans who arrived in Amman, Jordan, earlier this week are now en route to the United States, the country’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Daifallahal-Fayez said.
“The Afghan nationals were not granted refugee status, as Jordan did not bear any burdens due to their crossing,” the spokesperson added.
The process of Afghans’ crossing will continue until the end of this month, al-Fayez said.
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Afghan passports with Indian visas stolen from office in Kabul
From CNN’s Swati Gupta in New Delhi, India
The Indian government was forced to change its visa issuing policy for Afghan nationals fleeing the country after one of its offices in Kabul was raided and Afghan passports with Indian visa stamps were stolen.
Earlier this month, an outsourcing agency associated with the Indian embassy in Kabul was compromised, forcing the Indian government to issue a high alert for any illegal entries into India, according to Arindam Bagchi, official spokesperson, Ministry of External Affairs.
India has since then instituted an e-visa facility for any Afghan nationals who are looking to travel to India.
Meanwhile, India’s most recent evacuation flight out of Kabul was unable to collect all the passengers due to the deteriorating situation outside the airport, Bagchi confirmed.
The Indian government has evacuated more than 550 people out of Afghanistan, including embassy staff, Indians working in the country and Afghan nationals seeking refuge. Currently, none of the Afghan nationals have been provided with a status and are on a six-month temporary visa.
India also condemned Thursday’s attack at Kabul airport.
“We extend our heartfelt condolences to the families of the victims of this terrorist attack. Our thoughts and prayers also go out to the injured. Today’s attacks reinforce the need for the world to stand unitedly against terrorism and all those who provide sanctuaries to terrorists,” the external affairs ministry said in a statement.
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WHO is trying to establish an air bridge into northern Afghanistan to bring in more medical supplies
From Hannah Ritchie
The World Health Organization (WHO) is trying to establish an air bridge into the city of Mazar-i-Sharif in Northern Afghanistan in the coming days, with the help of Pakistan authorities, it said Friday.
Brennan said WHO’s mission would rely heavily on the “support of the Pakistan government.”
“One of the problems we have in Afghanistan right now is there is no civil aviation authority functioning. We are working with Pakistan, particularly in the context of Mazar-i-Sharif airport, because they can work with contacts on the ground on all the necessary steps needed to land a cargo aircraft,” Brennan told the UN.
Trauma kits, emergency supplies for hospitals and medicines for treating malnutrition will be among the priority items sent by WHO to Afghanistan.
Thirteen US service members and at least 90 Afghans were killed in the two bombings outside Kabul’s airport Thursday, according to the Pentagon and Afghanistan’s Ministry of Public Health.
Brennan expressed his condolences to the families of the victims and said the situation in Afghanistan “remains volatile and tense.”
“While tens of thousands of vulnerable Afghans are being evacuated through the air operation at Kabul airport, millions of vulnerable Afghans will remain behind — and we have a collective responsibility to continue to assist them,” Brennan told the briefing.
WHO has staff in all of Afghanistan’s 34 provinces, and continues to monitor the health situation there, however Brennan warned that medical supplies were “rapidly running out.”
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US Navy confirms sailor was among 13 service members killed in Kabul attack
From CNN's Barbara Starr
The explosion site near the Kabul airport is seen on August 27.
(Chine Nouvelle/Sipa/Shutterstock)
The US Navy announced Friday that one sailor was killed in the terrorist attack at Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul that left 13 US service members dead and 18 more injured.
Ten Marines were among those killed in the attack, the Marine Corps announced Thursday evening.
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Italy will end its evacuation mission in Afghanistan
From Hada Messia and Amy Cassidy
Italy’s evacuation mission in Afghanistan will end Friday, Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio has announced.
“We need now to plan the second phase, looking beyond the date of Aug. 31 in order to put in place answers for the medium and long term that is a well-structured and orderly strategy. The Italian Foreign Ministry is already working in putting together a plan to help the Afghan people,” he added.
Italy’s focus — along with the international community, he said — should be on five priorities:
Protecting civilians
Safeguarding human rights
Guaranteeing humanitarian aid
Fighting terrorism
An “efficient management of the migration”
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Biden plans to contact families of US service members killed in Kabul airport attack
From CNN's Jeremy Diamond
U.S. President Joe Biden speaks about the situation in Afghanistan in the East Room of the White House on August 26 in Washington, DC.
(Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
President Biden plans to contact the families of the 13 US service members who were killed in yesterday’s attack on Kabul airport, according to a senior official.
Planning is underway for the President to make that outreach, but the White House is first working to ensure that next of kin notifications have taken place.
Biden addressed those families in his public remarks yesterday, saying “my heart aches for you.”
“My heart aches for you, and I know this, we have a continuing obligation, a sacred obligation to all of you, to the families of those heroes. That obligation is not temporary, it lasts forever,” he added.
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Here's what to know about ISIS-K, the terror group claiming to be behind the Kabul airport attack
From CNN's Rob Picheta
A Taliban fighter stands guard at the site of the August 26 suicide bombs on August 27.
(Wakil Kohsar/AFP/Getty Images)
A terror group called ISIS-K claimed responsibility for the deadly bombing attacks outside Kabul airport on Thursday, that killed 13 US troops and more than 90 Afghans. The group provided no evidence to support the claim but US officials have said it was likely behind the atrocity.
While this was ISIS-K’s most globally consequential action to date, it has been responsible for thousands of deaths since its 2015 formation. It launched 77 attacks just in the first four months of 2021, according to UN figures.
The group’s full name, ISIS-Khorasan, comes from its terminology for the area that includes Afghanistan and Pakistan, and its members operate in central Asia. Counter-terrorism analysts estimate its strength now at around 1,500-2,000 members.
According to a US State Department report, the group relied heavily on suicide bombings – the same tactic used in the Kabul airport blasts on Thursday.
In 2018, ISIS-K was ranked the world’s fourth deadliest terror group, claiming more than 1,000 lives, mostly in Afghanistan, according to the Institute for Economics and Peace.
The connection between ISIS-K and its apparent parent group ISIS is not entirely clear; the affiliates share an ideology and tactics, but the depth of their relationship with regards to organization and command and control has never been entirely established.
Read a full report on the group’s origins, area of operation and more here.
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The UK has evacuated 13,708 people from Afghanistan since August 13
From CNN’s Sarah Dean in London
Passengers evacuated from Afghanistan disembark a British military transport aircraft at RAF Brize Norton station in southern England on August 26.
(Jacob King/Pool/Getty Images)
The United Kingdom has evacuated 13,708 people from Afghanistan since August 13, the country’s defense ministry said Friday as the nation’s evacuation mission wraps up in Kabul.
The ministry added in a tweet that 7,975 of those people are Afghan Relocation and Assistance Policy claimants, based on current data.
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China condemns Kabul attacks, says security situation in Afghanistan is “complex and severe”
From Zixu Wang and Hannah Ritchie
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian attends a press conference in Beijing on May 19.
(Kyodo News/Getty Images)
China has condemned Thursday’s attacks at the Kabul airport.
“China is shocked by the heavy casualties caused by the explosions near Kabul Airport, and China strongly condemns it,” China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian told reporters Friday.
“The incident shows that the security situation in Afghanistan remains complex and severe. We hope relevant parties will take effective measures to ensure a smooth transition of the situation in Afghanistan,” Lijian added.
No Chinese casualties have been reported so far and contact has been established with remaining Chinese citizens in Afghanistan, according to the country’s embassy there.
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Iran’s Foreign Ministry condemns attacks on Kabul
From CNN’s Kareem Khadder in Jerusalem
Iran’s Foreign Ministry has expressed its “deepest condolences” for the attacks on Afghanistan’s capital Kabul, its spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh said in a statement.
“Foreign Ministry Spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh condemned attacks targeting innocent Afghan people as well as any terrorist operations directed at men, women, youth and children,” the statement read.
“[Khatibzadeh] expressed hope with the immediate establishment of a broad-based government in Kabul, relevant government bodies and institutions discharge their responsibilities with regards to protecting people’s lives and property,” the statement added.
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"The threat is still out there," says senior White House official
From CNN's Jeremy Diamond
As the US works to complete its evacuation mission and withdrawal from Afghanistan by August 31, President Joe Biden and his team are bracing for the possibility of another terrorist attack in the final days of that operation.
“The threat is still out there,” a senior White House official said. “It’s still heightened.”
Biden plans to receive regular updates throughout the day on the state of the evacuation mission and the ongoing terrorist threat in Kabul, beginning with his at 8 a.m. daily intelligence briefing.
The President will then meet with his national security team in the Situation Room at 8:30 a.m. to discuss Afghanistan. Additionally, this official said Biden was “solemn and serious” on Thursday as updates on the attack at Kabul airport filtered in.
“He’s kind of extremely calm and solemn” in those moments, the official said.
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Approximately 12,500 people evacuated by US military and coalition flights in 24 hours
From CNN's Betsy Klein
In this handout provided by the U.S. Air Force, an air crew assigned to the 816th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron assists evacuees aboard a C-17 Globemaster III aircraft in support of the Afghanistan evacuation at Hamid Karzai International Airport on August 21 in Kabul, Afghanistan.
(Senior Airman Taylor Crul/U.S. Air Force/Getty Images)
As evacuations from Afghanistan approach their final days, the White House says approximately 12,500 people were evacuated in 24 hours.
From 3:00 a.m. ET Thursday to 3:00 a.m. Friday, approximately 8,500 people were evacuated by the US military, and approximately 4,000 were evacuated via coalition flights, for a total of approximately 12,500 people evacuated.
That brings the total number of people evacuated via US military and coalition flights to 105,000 since August 14, and 110,600 since late July, per the White House.
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Kremlin condemns terrorist attacks in Afghanistan
From CNN’s Anna Chernova and Zahra Ullah in Moscow
The Kremlin condemned the terrorist attacks in Afghanistan and said the situation continues to be a cause of “grave concern” for Russia.
“We condemn these attacks in the strongest possible terms. Of course, this is very sad news about the large number of casualties,” Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in a conference call with journalists.
The “pessimistic predictions” about the threat of attacks from ISIS were “unfortunately” realised, Peskov added.
“Unfortunately, pessimistic predictions are confirmed that terrorist groups, both ISIS and their derivatives, will not fail to take advantage of the chaos in Afghanistan. The danger to all is great. And this continues to be a cause for our grave concern,” he said Friday.
When asked if Russian President Vladimir Putin will be making a statement about the situation, Peskov emphasized that Russia is not part of the US-led coalition in Afghanistan.
Peskov added he is not aware of any appeals for help from Russia: “To help someone, you need someone to ask for it. I am not aware that there were any appeals from the Americans in this regard.”
Russian intelligence agencies are monitoring the situation and assessing whether the a threat of terrorist attacks is spilling over to other countries, Peskov said.
The Kremlin spokesman added that Russia is not yet planning new evacuation operations but said relevant departments are monitoring and further action will depend on the evolving situation, which he noted is “quite unpredictable.”
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"This claim of striking back is wishful thinking"
From CNN's Jeevan Ravindran
A Taliban fighter stands guard near where a bomb went off at Kabul airport on August 27.
(Wakil Kohsar/AFP/Getty Images)
CNN’s national security analyst, Peter Bergen, said it was “wishful thinking” from President Joe Biden that the US could strike back against those responsible for the attack at Kabul’s airport on Thursday.
Last night, US President Joe Biden vowed vengeance against the perpetrators, the Islamic State affiliate known as ISIS-K. He said: “We will not forgive. We will not forget. We will hunt you down and make you pay.”
But the assertion was “ludicrous,” Bergen said Friday. He questioned the US’s ability to carry out such an offensive, saying American intelligence capabilities had been severely depleted in Afghanistan due to the withdrawal.
Bergen explained that the raid that killed former al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden in Pakistan in 2011 had taken years to plan, despite the US having substantial intelligence in Pakistan.
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Germany will leave flying intensive care unit in Uzbekistan to support American forces
From CNN’s Sarah Dean in London and Fred Pleitgen in Moscow
Germany will leave a plane housing an intensive care unit, called ‘MedEvac,’ in the Uzbekistan capital of Tashkent for 24 hours in order to support American forces if necessary, Germany’s defense ministry tweeted Friday.
“Under extremely difficult and highly dangerous conditions, our colleagues in Kabul evacuated more than 5000 people in a joint effort with Bundeswehr,” the office said.
The defense ministry said German soldiers were among the 5,347 people evacuated since August 16. More than 4,000 of that figure were Afghan nationals, it tweeted.
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Pakistan government making room for evacuees from Afghanistan
From CNN’s Sophia Saifi in Islamabad
A Pakistani soldier stands guard as Afghans walk along fences after arriving in Pakistan through the Pakistan-Afghanistan border crossing point in Chaman on August 26.
(AFP/Getty Images)
The government of Pakistan is asking hotels across Islamabad to close reservations and place all rooms at government disposal for at least three weeks starting Friday to accommodate thousands of foreigners being urgently evacuated from Afghanistan.
The directive comes in an official document from the office of the district magistrate, which was issued right after the deadly Kabul airport attacks.
Even before the attack, scores of people were lined up on a major Afghanistan-Pakistan border crossing, trying to make their way into Pakistan.
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Spain ends evacuation mission in Afghanistan, says the Spanish government
From CNN’s Duarte Mendonca and Ingrid Formanek
Spain has ended its evacuation mission from Afghanistan, with the last remaining people expected to land at the Torrejon military airbase near Madrid later on Friday, the country’s Presidency said in a statement.
The statement released Friday said two military planes carrying the last 81 Spaniards remaining in Afghanistan – “including military personnel and embassy personnel” – arrived in Dubai from Kabul early on Friday morning local time.
The planes also carried four Portuguese soldiers and 85 Afghans and their families who had worked with NATO countries.
It added that the Spanish Armed Forces has “evacuated a total of 1,900, Afghans and their families,” who had worked with Spain, other countries, and international bodies.
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More than 18,700 evacuees have come through Ramstein Air Base in Germany
From CNN’s Atika Shubert at Ramstein Air Base in Germany
Evacuees from Afghanistan walk from a temporary tent to a bus at Ramstein Air Base on August 26, 2021 in Ramstein-Miesenbach, Germany.
Andreas Rentz/Getty Images
More than 18,700 evacuees from Afghanistan have come through Ramstein US Air Base in southwestern Germany so far, according to the air base’s Public Affairs Office (PAO).
As of 7:30 a.m. local time on Friday, approximately 76 US Air Force aircrafts have landed at air base during the evacuation mission.
A huge influx of more than 10,000 evacuees are expected to arrive at the air base over the coming hours.
Flight are expected to continue throughout the weekend.
More than 4,100 evacuees have departed Ramstein on approximately 18 flights to their resettlement locations, the vast majority of which are in the US.
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Republicans split on strategy to make Biden pay a political price for Afghanistan
From CNN's Melanie Zanona
The GOP is divided over how hard – and how quickly – to go after President Joe Biden in the wake of Thursday’s deadly attack on US troops at the Kabul airport.
While a growing chorus of rank-and-file Republicans have called for Biden’s resignation or impeachment over the administration’s disastrous exit from Afghanistan, key leaders and others in the party have struck a more measured tone for the moment.
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy even pushed back against some of his members during a private conference call Thursday night, suggesting that the demands for Biden’s immediate ouster are counterproductive and saying the focus right now needs to be on getting Americans out of Afghanistan safely. But he also promised to pressure the administration.
“Promise you there is going to be a reckoning,” McCarthy, who spoke to Biden by phone on Thursday, told members on the GOP conference call, according to sources. “We are going to hold every single person accountable.”
Countries are racing to evacuate people ahead of the Aug. 31 deadline. Here's where things stand
In this handout provided by U.S. Central Command Public Affairs, passengers are seen lining up to board a U.S. Air Force C-17 Globemaster III at Hamid Karzai International Airport on August 24.
Master Sgt. Donald R. Allen/U.S. Air Forces/Getty Images
Keeping this deadline in mind, here are where other countries’ evacuation operations stand.
Australia: Defense Minister Peter Dutton confirmed Australia has ended its evacuation flights from Kabul following Thursday’s attacks. The Australian forces evacuated more than 4,000 people from Kabul.
“I’m pleased that we were able to lift our people out not too long before this attack,” Dutton told a Sky News reporter.
New Zealand: The country’s final evacuation flight from Afghanistan landed in the United Arab Emirates Thursday night local prior to the attacks at the Kabul Airport.
“Operational considerations have now dictated the necessity to end further flights into Kabul,” Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said in a press release Friday.
At least 276 New Zealand nationals and residents had been evacuated, the government added.
Germany: Troops are “all safely back from Kabul”, Germany’s Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer said in a tweet Friday. Germany’s armed forces have used Tashkent, Uzbekistan, as a staging post for evacuations from Afghanistan.
Spain: The country has ended its evacuation mission, the country’s Presidency said in a statement.
Two military planes carried out the last 81 Spaniards remaining in Afghanistan, along with four Portuguese soldiers and 85 Afghans and their families who had worked with NATO countries.
United Kingdom: While Thursday’s attack “did not hasten” UK’s departure, the country’s evacuation efforts will end in a “matter of hours,” Ben Wallace, the defense secretary, said Friday. UK’s main processing center outside Kabul airport is now closed.
France: The country will see its evacuation mission “through to the end and will maintain its humanitarian and protection efforts for Afghans under threat,” despite Thursday’s deadly attack on Kabul’s international airport, the Élysée said in a statement.
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All German soldiers safely out of Kabul, defense minister says
From CNN's Sarah Dean
German troops are “all safely back from Kabul,” Germany’s Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer said in a tweet Friday.
Kramp-Karrenbauer is on a visit to Tashkent, Uzbekistan, to thank the soldiers for their service, the minister said.
Germany’s armed forces have used Tashkent as a staging post for evacuations from Afghanistan.
“Your outstanding commitment makes us proud,” she added.
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Kabul terrorist attack highlights Biden's Afghanistan dilemma
Analysis from CNN's Stephen Collinson
A Taliban fighter stands guard at the site of the attack, on August 27.
The bloody coda to a tortured 20 years – the loss of 13 US troops and more than 90 Afghans in blasts outside Kabul’s airport on Thursday – exemplified the human tragedy and ultimate futility of a conflict that failed in its core purpose: purging Afghan soil of terrorism. In a cruel irony, the latest Americans to die perished in an attack conceived in the very same land as the al Qaeda assault on September 11, 2001, that triggered the war they were trying to leave.
The atrocity – believed to have been carried out by the Islamic State affiliate known as ISIS-K – rocked the final stages of the frantic US evacuation of as many as 1,000 Americans who may still be in the country, as well as thousands of Afghans who helped US forces and officials and fear Taliban executions if they are left behind.
It also shone a harsh light on President Joe Biden’s decision-making and the chaotic nature of the US withdrawal that left American troops and civilians so vulnerable, in the confusing, chaotic days after the Taliban seized Kabul.
The most alarming realization in the aftermath of the carnage was that there may be more to come before the deadline for the US to leave for good on Tuesday.
The UK's evacuation effort in Afghanistan will end in a "matter of hours," says defense secretary
From CNN's Nick Paton Walsh in Doha and Niamh Kennedy in Dublin
British soldiers secure the perimeter outside the Baron Hotel in Kabul, Afghanistan on August 26.
Marcus Yam/Los Angeles Times/Getty Images
The United Kingdom’s evacuation operation in Afghanistan will end in a “matter of hours,” Ben Wallace, the UK defense secretary, said Friday.
That follows the closure of the UK’s main processing center, the Baron Hotel, located outside Kabul airport. The country’s defense ministry said in a statement Friday that it had closed the processing facilities to enable it to focus efforts on evacuating the British nationals and others it had already processed who were at the airport awaiting departure.
Wallace told Sky News that, following the decision to close the processing center at 4.30 a.m. UK time, the UK will now “process” the approximately 1,000 people in the airfield.
The operation has a “matter of hours” left, Wallace said, and the “sad fact” is that “not every single one will get out.”
The move comes after two bomb attacks outside the airport on Thursday, local time.
Wallace stressed that the blast “did not hasten our departure.”
“We closed the Baron Hotel, almost exactly on schedule. The explosion was horrendous. But it didn’t hasten our departure, we were going last night,” he told Sky News.
In the statement Friday, Wallace said more than 13,000 people had been evacuated in 14 days.
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Kabul death toll increases to more than 90 Afghans killed, 150 wounded, according to the Afghan Health Ministry
Volunteers and medical staff unload bodies outside a hospital after the bomb blasts at the Kabul airport on August 26.
(Wakil Kohsar/AFP/Getty Images)
The death toll from Thursday’s blasts in Kabul has increased to more than 90 peoplekilled, an official with Afghanistan’s Ministry of Public Health told CNN Friday.
There are also more than 150 peoplewounded by the blasts, the official said.
According to initial reports, the dead and wounded in these counts were all Afghans, the official added.
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Australia and New Zealand end evacuation missions from Kabul
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern speaks during a press conference on Thursday, August 26, in Wellington, New Zealand.
(Mark Mitchell/Pool/Getty Images)
Australia and New Zealand have both ended their evacuation flights from Kabul, as Afghanistan reels from the deadly bombing attacks.
New Zealand’s final evacuation flight had landed in the United Arab Emirates on Thursday night local time, before the attacks took place. No members of the national defense force were in Kabul at the time of the attack, and no New Zealanders were left at the airport, the government said.
However, there are still New Zealand citizens in Afghanistan, who are in contact with the Foreign Ministry.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said there would be no more evacuation flights from Kabul.
Australian Defense Minister Peter Dutton also confirmed Australia has finished the country’s evacuation mission.
He added on Friday that he was “grateful” for the work of Australian forces and commended their success of evacuating more than 4,000 people from Kabul.
He called the attack “horrific,” and said it wasn’t clear if there were any Australians caught up in the attacks, but added the country’s Foreign Ministry had sent a message to all Australian citizens to steer clear of the airport.
For Australian citizens that might still be in Afghanistan, many will likely try to make their way to other borders, he said.
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Here are the groups vying for power in Afghanistan
Analysis by Zachary B. Wolf
Taliban fighters sit inside the presidential palace in Kabul on August 15.
Zabi Karimi/AP
After the frantic evacuation effort in Kabul and the bombing attacks at the airport on Thursday, what is becoming painfully clear is that we have no idea what will happen in Afghanistan when US forces leave at the end of the month.
Here’s an attempt to collate what we know about who will take over.
Who are the Taliban? The group dates to 1994 and controlled Afghanistan until the US and NATO invaded in 2001. They regrouped over the past two decades; as recently as February, they were thought to have fewer than 100,000 fighters.
What about al Qaeda? In recent years, the Taliban have kept al Qaeda in check; they pledged in 2020 to prevent al Qaeda and other terror groups from using Afghan soil. But experts say many of the prisoners released by the Taliban sympathize with al Qaeda – and could regroup whats left of al Qaeda in Afghanistan.
Who are ISIS-K? ISIS-Khorasan is a branch of the ISIS terror group that first emerged in Syria and Iraq. While the affiliates share an ideology and tactics, the depth of their relationship with regards to organization and command and control has never been entirely established. ISIS-K has been orchestrating attacks in Kabul since 2016 and is a sworn enemy of the Taliban.
What about resistance to the Taliban? The Northern Alliance, a coalition of Uzbek and Tajik forces, managed to keep the Panjshir Valley in northern Afghanistan free from the Taliban during its five-year rule. It was led by Ahmad Shah Massoud before he was assassinated by al Qaeda operatives just before 9/11; the coalition is now led by his son, who has vowed to continue fighting the Taliban.
What has become of the US-backed power structure? It’s gone. The ousted Afghan president has fled the country; his vice president has fled to the Panjshir Valley, the one stronghold of resistance to the Taliban; previous leaders and former presidents are effectively under house arrest.
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Key things to know about ISIS-K, the ISIS affiliate in Afghanistan
President Biden said Thursday that he has ordered up plans to strike ISIS-K targets following the attack near the Kabul airport.
ISIS in Khorasan, known as ISIS-K, claimed that an ISIS militant carried out the suicide attack, but provided no evidence to support the claim.
US officials have been warning over the past week that a threat of a terror attack at the airport was becoming more acute. Earlier on Thursday local time, US diplomats in Kabul warned American citizens to “immediately” leave several gates into the airport, citing security threats.
But who are ISIS-K? ISIS-Khorasan is a branch of the terror group that first emerged in Syria and Iraq. While the affiliates share an ideology and tactics, the depth of their relationship with regards to organization and command and control has never been entirely established.
US intelligence officials previously told CNN the ISIS-K membership includes “a small number of veteran jihadists from Syria and other foreign terrorist fighters,” saying that the US had identified 10 to 15 of their top operatives in Afghanistan. The group’s name comes from its terminology for the area that includes Afghanistan and Pakistan: “Khorasan.”
The US Defense Department Inspector-General for Afghanistan (SIGAR) said in a report covering the months April to June of this year that “ISIS-Khorasan exploited the political instability and rise in violence during the quarter by attacking minority sectarian targets and infrastructure to spread fear and highlight the Afghan government’s inability to provide adequate security.”
ISIS-K has formed cells in Kabul which have carried out a number of devastating suicide attacks in and beyond the Afghan capital since 2016.
The group has built up a presence in eastern Afghanistan in recent years, especially in the provinces of Nangahar and Kunar. Last August, the group attacked the main prison in Jalalabad, the capital of Nangahar, in an effort to free dozens of their supporters who had been captured by the Afghan army and police.
CNN’s Nikki Carvajal, Jim Sciutto and Tim Lister contributed reporting to this post.
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A lot has happened following the attack near Kabul's airport. Here's what you need to know
Smoke rises from a deadly explosion outside the airport in Kabul, Afghanistan, on Thursday, August 26.
(Wali Sabawoon/AP)
Thirteen US service members have died as a result of the attack at the Kabul airport Thursday, according to a statement from US Central Command.
The total number of US service members injured is now 18, said Capt. Bill Urban, a spokesperson for CENTCOM.
Here’s the latest:
The casualties: In total, more than 60 Afghans were killed and at least 140 were injured, according to Afghanistan’s Ministry of Public Health. Gen. Kenneth “Frank” McKenzie, head of the US Central Command, confirmed US that service members were killed and injured in the attack, saying, “it’s a hard day today.”
Nature of the attack: McKenzie said the attack included two suicide bombers followed by gunmen opening fire. There were at least two explosions near a gate at the Kabul airport today. They came as the US and other countries race to evacuate people ahead of President Biden’s Aug. 31 withdrawal deadline.
“We will hunt you down”: Biden issued a warning to those responsible for the Kabul airport attack in Afghanistan Thursday, saying, “We will hunt you down and make you pay.” “To those who carried out this attack, as well as anyone wishes America harm, know this: We will not forgive. We will not forget. We will hunt you down and make you pay. I will defend our interests and our people will every measure at my command,” he said at the White House.
Biden orders plans to strike: Biden revealed Thursday that he has ordered military commanders “to develop operational plans to strike ISIS-K assets, leadership and facilities.” “We will respond with force and precision in our time, in a place we choose in a manner of our choosing,” the President said, declining to give specifics on timing.
Threats persist: McKenzie, head of the US Central Command, said that while they continue to investigate the perpetrators of today’s attack against Kabul airport, they are also focused on other “extremely active threat streams” to the airfield. The general explained that these threats mean they could be “imminent” and “could occur at any moment” and could include rocket attacks, vehicle attacks or a vest-wearing suicide attacker. McKenzie said they are coordinating with the Taliban on security for the airport and that the US mission is continuing despite the attack, and that the US will “go after” the people responsible for the attack.
Americans still in Afghanistan: There are roughly 1,000 Americans left in Afghanistan following the attack, according to the Pentagon.
Evacuation efforts will continue: While the “threat from ISIS is extremely real,” troops are still assisting with bringing people onto the airfield at Kabul’s airport, McKenzie said. “We just brought a number of buses aboard the airfield over the last couple or three hours. We’ll continue to process and flow people out. The plan is designed to operate under stress and under attack,” he said.
Paying their respect: Flags across the United States were lowered to half-staff “as a mark of respect” for the victims of the terror attack in Afghanistan, the White House said. During remarks on the attack in Afghanistan Thursday, Biden held a moment of silence “for all those in uniform and out of uniform, military and civilian, of giving the last full measure of devotion.”
