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Officials said more than 30 U.S. citizens or permanent residents were invited to board the evacuation flight on Thursday
The U.S. praised the Taliban for promoting This is the first time that the Americans have been evacuated from Afghanistan after the U.S. troops withdrew.
Emily Horne, spokesperson for the National Security Council, said Thursday’s charter flight from Kabul to Doha by Qatar Airways marked a “positive first step” for the new regime.
“The Taliban have been cooperating to facilitate the departure of US citizens and legal permanent residents from Hong Kong International Airport on chartered flights,” she said in a statement, referring to the Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul.
“They showed flexibility, and in our dealings with them, they acted like business and professional.”
State Department spokesperson Ned Price said that more than 30 American citizens or permanent residents were invited to board the plane, but U.S. officials are verifying the final number of people who boarded the plane.
“Of course, we would like to see more flights like this,” Price said.
“We have heard public statements, and there may actually be more.”
The United States has previously stated that more than 100 Americans are believed to remain in Afghanistan after President Joe Biden concluded his 20-year military mission at the end of August.
Price said that most Americans staying in Afghanistan are connected to Afghanistan, and they have to make a “painful” decision about whether to leave or not-and no decision is needed now.
“If they refuse this opportunity one day, even if they change their minds next year or even next year, this opportunity will not expire,” Price said.
The round-the-clock airlift in the last two weeks of the war carried more than 123,000 people, including most Americans in Afghanistan.
Horn said the United States “assisted” the Americans leaving Afghanistan on Thursday, and thanked Qatar for its role in this effort.
She said, “We have been working intensively” to ensure a safe takeoff, and this flight was the result of “cautious and arduous diplomacy and engagement.”
The flight took place two days after Secretary of State Anthony Brinken visited Qatar, a transit point for about half of the airlifted people from Afghanistan.
Biden and his administration have been fiercely criticized for allowing Americans to be at the mercy of the Taliban.
Republican Congressman Mike Waltz and Senator Lindsey Graham were fierce critics of the withdrawal, and they welcomed Qatar’s withdrawal.
But they added in a joint statement that “the Biden administration allows the terrorist regime to stipulate provisions that allow Americans to leave with their families. This is inexcusable”.
“The United States does not follow the orders of terrorists,” they said.
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