US: Security threats slowing Kabul evacuations

WASHINGTON — The Pentagon says that astir 3,800 civilians person been evacuated from Afghanistan implicit the past day, amid wide logistical challenges and backlogs astatine waystations successful the Middle East and Europe.

Security threats slowed the advancement of Americans and others done the gates astatine Kabul airport, arsenic thousands desperately effort to get connected flights retired of the country.

The Pentagon said that six U.S. subject C-17 craft and 32 charter flights departed Kabul airdrome implicit the past 24 hours. The subject planes carried conscionable 1,600 of those people.

Army Maj. Gen. Hank Taylor, Joint Staff lawman manager for determination operations, told Pentagon reporters connected Saturday that of the 17,000 radical evacuated since Aug. 15, conscionable 2,500 person been Americans. U.S. officials person estimated determination are arsenic galore arsenic 15,000 Americans successful Afghanistan, but admit they don’t person coagulated numbers.

The evacuations person been hampered by screening and logistical strains astatine waystations specified arsenic al-Udeid Air Base successful Qatar, which deed maximum capacity. U.S. officials said they person constricted numbers of subject and U.S. Customs and Border Patrol screeners astatine the transit points, and they are struggling to enactment done glitches successful the vetting systems.

Taylor said that the Kabul airdrome remains open, and that Americans proceed to beryllium processed if they get to the gates.

He and Pentagon spokesperson John Kirby declined to sermon information problems successful immoderate detail, but said the menace representation changes by the hour.

“We cognize that we’re warring against some clip and space,” Kirby said. “That’s the contention we’re successful close now.”