News Sources: Biden Remains Committed to Withdrawal from Kabul by August 31

According to reports, Joe Biden has decided, after consultations with national security advisors, that the withdrawal from Afghanistan should be completed within the specified timeframe. A Taliban spokesperson has described any continuation of foreign forces and their local partners departing after August 31 as non-negotiable.

As crowds continue to gather around Kabul airport, Taliban militias have intensified their harsh treatment of citizens seeking to emigrate, emphasizing that the evacuation of foreign forces and their local partners must end on August 31 in accordance with the agreement with the United States.

On Tuesday, August 24 (second day of Shahrivar), Suhail Shaheen and Zabihullah Mujahid, Taliban spokespersons in Doha and Kabul, respectively, described extending the evacuation deadline for foreign forces from Afghanistan as non-negotiable.

Mujahid, in a press conference, called extending this deadline a violation of agreements reached and simultaneously urged Afghan citizens to refrain from approaching Kabul airport henceforth.

Taliban Worried About “Brain Drain”

He stated that Afghan citizens would no longer be permitted to leave the country. The Taliban spokesperson accused the United States of encouraging Afghan specialists to emigrate.

Mujahid urged Afghan citizens to remain in the country and emphasized that Afghanistan needs its doctors, engineers, and educated individuals. He added that the Taliban group intends to reduce the crowds around Kabul airport.

The Taliban spokesperson warned the thousands of people who go to the airport area daily to leave the country to stay in their homes and return to their daily lives.

Since Sunday, August 15, when the Taliban took control of the Afghan capital with unexpected speed, the evacuation of foreign citizens and local partners of NATO forces from Kabul has continued at a rapid pace.

Joe Biden’s Decision

Joe Biden has so far emphasized the completion of the withdrawal of American military personnel from Afghanistan by August 31, but given recent developments and the critical situation at Kabul airport, he had not ruled out the possibility of extending this deadline.

The U.S. president had previously stated that on Tuesday he would decide on any possible postponement of the date for the departure of foreign citizens and Afghans at risk.

Now news sources, citing American officials, report that the president of the United States, after consulting with national security advisors, has decided to remain committed to agreements reached with the Taliban regarding the withdrawal of American forces by the end of August.

At the same time, emergency plans for short-term delays in the complete withdrawal of American forces are set to be on the agenda.

According to Reuters, Boris Johnson, the British Prime Minister, says leaders of the Group of Seven countries agree that the Taliban must guarantee the security of the departure of foreign citizens and Afghans until August 31 and beyond.

Simultaneously, Suhail Shaheen, Taliban spokesperson in Doha, told Sky News that the end of foreign forces’ withdrawal by August 31 is “our red line” and if the West does not adhere to this timeline, “any option, even a military response” is possible.

According to ISNA, Shaheen further stated: “Extending the legal deadline for the withdrawal of American forces from Afghanistan means a lack of trust between the two sides. If they seek to extend occupation, it will provoke a reaction from us.”

Secret CIA Chief’s Trip to Kabul

Apparently, secret negotiations are also underway between the United States and the Taliban on several issues, including the formation of a new government in Afghanistan and how to continue the transfer of citizens from Kabul.

The Washington Post reported on Tuesday that William Burns, director of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), met and negotiated on September 1 with Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, one of the Taliban’s founders and deputy political leader.

Some sources, including the Tolo News network, citing hearsay, reported that Zalmay Khalilzad, the U.S. special representative for Afghan affairs and head of American negotiators with the Taliban, was also present at this meeting.

The CIA chief’s trip to Kabul has not been formally confirmed to date, and there is no reliable information regarding the purpose of this visit and its possible outcomes.

Over the past week, approximately 22,000 people have been transferred from Kabul out of Afghanistan, but thousands of others are still waiting to leave, and the possibility of their evacuation in the remaining days until the end of August is very slim.

Since the Taliban took control of Kabul, control of the interior of Kabul airport has been largely in the hands of American military personnel. To ensure the security of air traffic at Kabul airport and the transfer of foreigners and at-risk Afghan citizens, the United States has deployed more than 5,000 additional military troops to Afghanistan.

Removing these troops and their equipment is itself another major problem. Yesterday, a military confrontation occurred at the northern entrance of Kabul airport, involving American and German military personnel as well.

Details of this confrontation remain unclear, but this incident, combined with increasing tensions around the airport and the Taliban’s decision to prevent Afghan citizens from reaching the airport, has made the situation more tense and complicated.

Source: DW