International | October 19, 2021
State Department IG to probe Biden admin’s chaotic Afghanistan withdrawal
International | October 19, 2021
The State Department’s inspector general is launching a series of investigations into the Biden administration’s last diplomatic moves in Afghanistan. The reviews will focus on the State Department’s Special Immigrant Visa program, Afghans processed for refugee admission into the U.S., resettlement of refugees and visa recipients, and the emergency evacuation of the U.S. Embassy in Kabul, according to an Oct. 15 memo to Secretary of State Blinken. Diana Shaw, the acting inspector general at State, told Congress that her office was launching “several oversight projects” related to the end of the U.S. military and diplomatic missions in Afghanistan…. (Excerpts from Fox News)
District of Columbia | October 1, 2021
Afghans are leaving U.S. military bases before resettlement
District of Columbia | October 1, 2021
Something unexpected is happening at U.S. military bases hosting Afghan evacuees: Many hundreds of them are simply leaving before receiving U.S. resettlement services, two sources familiar with the data told Reuters.
The number of “independent departures,” which top 700 and could be higher, has not been previously reported. But the phenomenon is raising alarms among immigration advocates concerned about the risks to Afghans who give up on what is now an open-ended, complex and completely voluntary resettlement process. In the speed and chaos of the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan in August following 20 years of war, many evacuees were brought into the United States under a temporary status of “humanitarian parole.” Once transferred to U.S. military bases, refugee resettlement groups and U.S. officials have been trying to connect people with services for a smooth transition to the United States.
In a statement, a U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) spokesperson declined to comment on the figures provided to Reuters by sources but said people who had left the bases “generally” had ties to the United States, like family members of friends, and resources to support themselves…. (Excerpts from Reuters)
Connecticut, International | September 30, 2021
Democratic Senator Blumenthal: ‘Nobody is in charge’ on Afghanistan
Connecticut, International | September 30, 2021
Senator Richard Blumenthal suggested Tuesday that the Biden administration’s current approach to Afghanistan is beset by chaos. “Nobody is in charge,” the Connecticut Democrat told generals appearing at a hearing of the Senate Armed Service Committee. The outrage is so great over Americans and our Afghan allies being left to the Taliban that even some Democrats are willing to abandon their partisanship to speak the truth…. (Excerpts from the White House Dossier)
International | September 28, 2021
Joint Chiefs chairman calls Afghan withdrawal a ‘strategic failure
International | September 28, 2021
Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, refused to say what advice he gave President Joe Biden last spring when Biden was considering whether to keep any troops in Afghanistan. But he told the Senate Armed Services Committee it was his personal opinion that at least 2,500 were needed to guard against a collapse of the Kabul government and a return to Taliban rule.
In a blunt assessment of the outcome to a war that cost 2,461 American lives, Milley called it a strategic failure.
“The enemy is in charge in Kabul,” he noted, referring to the Taliban having taken control of the capital on Aug. 15. “There’s no way else to describe that,” he said, adding that it’s possible the U.S. military’s biggest failure was to make the Afghan military overly dependent on an American presence and technology… (Excerpt from American Family News)
District of Columbia | September 27, 2021
Key Trump defense official refutes Blinken, says Trump left Afghan withdrawal plan for Biden
District of Columbia | September 27, 2021
Kash Patel, former chief of staff to Acting Secretary of Defense Christopher Miller, blasted Secretary of State Antony Blinken for claiming that the Trump administration did not leave President Biden a plan for the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan. On the John Solomon Reports podcast on Thursday, Patel was asked if Blinken accurately told Congress that Trump left Biden a deadline for leaving Afghanistan without a plan. “No, absolutely not,” Patel replied. Criticizing Blinken for playing “politics with the national security apparatus of the United States,” Patel, who worked on the transition coordination team, said that the Trump administration did not leave Biden a deadline… (Excerpts from the Just the News)
Wisconsin | September 24, 2021
Afghan Refugees in US Indicted on Assault Charges
Wisconsin | September 24, 2021
Two Afghan refugees have been indicted on assault charges stemming from incidents at a military base in Wisconsin that houses thousands of recently evacuated Afghan nationals.
A federal grand jury indicted Bahrullah Noori, 20, on charges that he tried to molest two underage boys. The grand jury issued a separate indictment against Mohammad Haroom Imaad, 32, on charges that he strangled and suffocated his wife. Noori and Imaad were among 12,500 refugees airlifted from Afghanistan to Fort McCoy during the U.S. military withdrawal last month.
The cases are likely to stoke concerns about the government’s vetting process for the 100,000 refugees brought to the United States during the airlift…(Excerpts from Washington Free Beacon)