The president will speak about the end of the war in Afghanistan today after he and the vice president receive relevant security updates. President Joe Biden’s administration negotiated an extension for citizens to continue to be evacuated beyond tonight’s deadline of 11:59 pm Kabul time. The last U.S. military transport departed Afghanistan yesterday, 24 hours ahead of the Taliban’s deadline for troops to be withdrawn.
General Frank McKenzie stated in a Pentagon briefing Monday afternoon, “I’m here to announce the completion of our withdrawal from Afghanistan, and the end of the military mission to evacuate American citizens, third-country nationals, and vulnerable Afghan.” He continued, “The last C-17 lifted off from Hamad Karzai International Airport on Aug. 30, this afternoon, at 3:29pm, East Coast time.”
The State Department announced on Sunday the extension of the deadline for U.S. citizens to depart Afghanistan, stating, “We are all committed to ensuring that our citizens, nationals and residents, employees, Afghans who have worked with us and those who are at risk can continue to travel freely to destinations outside Afghanistan. We have received assurances from the Taliban that all foreign nationals and any Afghan citizen with travel authorization from our countries will be allowed to proceed in a safe and orderly manner to points of departure and travel outside the country.”
As the Lord Leads, Pray with Us…
- For U.S. officials attempting to coordinate the departure of Americans remaining in Afghanistan.
- For the president and his administration as they handle the situation overseas as well as addressing the devastation of the hurricane that hit the Gulf Coast.
- For emergency responders as they seek to help those in the aftermath of the storm.
