By Emily Gianni
United States troops have been in Afghanistan for twenty years in response to terrorism. Currently, United States troops have been pulled out of Afghanistan. President Joe Biden defended this decision by claiming he would either send thousands more soldiers to Afghanistan starting a “third decade” of war or pull the soldiers out. U.S. troops are evacuating quicker than expected because United States officials did not think that the Taliban would move into the capital, Kabul, so quickly as our troops withdrew, and they are trying to protect U.S. soldiers. Biden announced that U.S. troops would leave by August 31; however, more troops were sent back to Afghanistan to help people evacuate.
Recent videos of babies being passed forward, over barbed wire, to U.S. and British soldiers at Kabul airport have spread over the internet. Mothers are afraid that they are being beaten by the Taliban; they want their children to get to safety and give their babies a better life. A White House official on August 18, 2021 said that about 1, 800 people evacuated Afghanistan during a 24-hour window. The Pentagon estimated that between 5,000-9,000 people could evacuate if everything went smoothly.
Another video that went around was of people falling from planes in Kabul, Afghanistan. This is another example of people being so desperate to leave Afghanistan, after the Taliban took over their government, that they will do anything to get out. Human body parts were actually found in a C-17 plane wheel after the plane landed. More than 600 Afghans were crammed into one U.S. transport flight.
A huge issue that is happening right now is that no one knows how many Americans are still in Afghanistan. A State Department spokesperson estimates that there are 5,000-10,000 American citizens still over there. Currently, the department does not have a full list of Americans in Afghanistan so the U.S. government does not know how many more people we have to evacuate. President Joe Biden said that U.S. troops would stay in Afghanistan until all Americans evacuated; however, the August 31, 2021 deadline to remove troops has yet to be changed.
It is still unclear about what will happen in Afghanistan next. The Taliban say they want an “inclusive, Islamic government.” They claim to enforce Islamic law but they will provide a secure environment for the return of a normal life for Afghans after this war. Many Afghans do not trust the Taliban because they fear their rule won’t be what they are promising; instead, Afghans believe that the rule will be violent and oppressive.