Blinken: 'About 340' Individuals have been evacuated from Afghanistan since US withdrawal

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“Since August 31, as of right now, we have gotten out — of the Individuals left who mentioned that they wished to depart — about 340,” Blinken instructed CNN’s Dana Bash on “State of the Union.”

“What’s occurred since is that this: extra individuals have come ahead in two methods. There have been some small variety of Individuals in Afghanistan who did not need to depart who’ve now seen that we have efficiently been in a position to get a number of the few remaining Individuals out who’ve now come ahead and mentioned, ‘We do need to depart,’ and there are a pair hundred of those that are prepared to depart and we are going to work to get them out,” Blinken mentioned, including that another Individuals whom the division had not beforehand recognized as potential evacuees have additionally come ahead asking for assist to depart the nation.

The feedback from Blinken come two months after the US completed its military withdrawal from Afghanistan following the Taliban’s takeover of the nation. Although the overwhelming majority of Individuals within the nation have been airlifted out in a frantic evacuation effort forward of the August 31 exit deadline, some remaining residents have left since then with the assistance of the State Division.

State Division spokesperson Ned Worth mentioned earlier this month the division has shaped a group to coordinate throughout authorities companies and with outdoors teams to facilitate the departure of Americans, authorized everlasting residents of the US, and Afghans.

The precariousness of the state of affairs was underscored earlier this month after most evacuation flights scheduled to depart Afghanistan throughout one week have been canceled abruptly, in line with a State Division e-mail despatched to US residents within the nation that was reviewed by CNN. The e-mail didn’t say why the flights had been canceled and instructed the recipients to “be able to journey on brief discover,” given how shortly the state of affairs has been evolving.

Blinken, who famous on Sunday that lots of the remaining Individuals in Afghanistan are nonetheless there as a result of their “total lives” are within the nation, reiterated that the US’ dedication to evacuating its residents will go on for so long as it must.

“There isn’t any deadline to this effort. We’ll proceed to get them out,” the secretary mentioned.

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