- The Pentagon said that US troops will withdraw from Afghanistan starting Saturday.
- According to reports, these forces are aimed at assisting thousands of Afghans who have evacuated from the Kabul capital.
- U.S. assistance also applies to some Afghans in danger and other foreigners eager to flee.
The Pentagon said on Saturday that as the evacuation from the Afghan capital enters the final stage, the U.S. military has begun to withdraw from the Kabul airport.
Earlier this month, when the Taliban swept Afghanistan to help evacuate American citizens, Afghans in danger and other foreigners eager to flee, President Joe Biden sent thousands of soldiers to the airport.
At the peak of deployment, 5,800 U.S. troops protected Hamid Karzai International Airport, which will end its unprecedented air operations on Tuesday.
After a US official told Reuters that there were fewer than 4,000 soldiers left at the airport, Pentagon spokesman John Kirby confirmed to reporters at a briefing that the withdrawal had already begun. He declined to say how many service staff there are.
U.S. officials said that with the withdrawal of the army, people are increasingly worried about the threat posed by the militants of the Islamic State Khorasan (ISIS-K) to the airport, with the focus on rocket attacks and vehicle-mounted explosives.
After the suicide bombing of the Islamic State on Thursday killed dozens of Afghan civilians and 13 U.S. troops, the U.S. military launched a drone strike on Friday, claiming that the target was a member of the organization in Nangarhar Province, east of Kabul. .
U.S. Army Major General William Taylor from the Joint Staff of the Military said at the briefing that two “high-profile” ISIS-K planners and facilitators were killed and another was wounded.
The Pentagon declined to give more details.
US officials told Reuters that none of the victims were believed to be high-ranking militants, and further military operations against the organization may be carried out in the coming days and weeks.
Although Biden vowed to track down the perpetrators of Thursday’s attacks, US officials warned that, other than symbolic actions or limited actions, the US could actually do little to demean ISIS-K.
A defense official said: “Since 2014, we have been trying to destroy the organization in Afghanistan, but it is impossible to deploy thousands of soldiers on the ground.”
As the evacuation draws to a close, a State Department spokesperson said on Saturday that about 350 Americans are still trying to leave the United States.
According to the US government, approximately 5,400 US citizens have been evacuated since August 14.
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