The president’s warning follows a bombing at the Kabul airport, that killed 170 Afghans and 13 US service members. Biden reiterated that the mission to evacuate civilians and allies by August 31 continues and will not be affected by further security measures being taken.
“Despite the treacherous situation in Kabul, we are continuing to evacuate civilians,” Biden said.
“This strike was not the last,” Biden said, despite the 20 year military conflict in Afghanistan winding down to a close in the coming days. The president also promised more strikes from the US in response to the ISIS-K bombing. It was revealed prior to Biden’s statement that the US conducted air strikes that killed two “high profile” people involved in the planning of the Kabul attacks.
Approximately 117,000 people have been evacuated from Afghanistan, including over 6000 in the last 24 hours, and the US has begun lowering its troop count in the country as it prepares to make its last trips out of the country.
Biden did not guarantee in his statement that evacuations would actually be fully complete by August 31, revealing he has been discussing ways to “help people continue to leave Afghanistan after our military departs.”
