Biden says Afghan evacuation deadline may be extended. - The New York Times

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WASHINGTON — President Biden said Sunday that his administration may extend his Aug. 31 deadline for removing all American troops from Afghanistan, and he pledged that all evacuated Afghan allies will be given a home in the United States after they are screened and vetted at bases in other countries.

“We will welcome these Afghans who have helped us in the war effort over the last 20 years to their new home in the United States of America,” Mr. Biden said Sunday afternoon in remarks from the Roosevelt Room at the White House. “Because that’s who we are. That’s what America is.”

The military has evacuated 28,000 people since Aug. 14 from the chaotic capital of Afghanistan in the week since the Taliban seized control of the country, Mr. Biden said, and he suggested that the military has expanded the secure perimeter around the airport. He also said military officials will be looking at whether to stay in the country beyond Aug. 31 to complete evacuations.

“Our hope is we will not have to extend, but there are going to be discussions, I suspect, on how far along we are in the process,” the president said.

The president’s remarks came as he remained at the White House, instead of spending a planned weekend at his home in Wilmington, Del., amid continuing chaos at the airport in Kabul and a globe-spanning effort by the U.S. military and diplomats to ferry Americans and Afghan allies to safety.

The president said that the Taliban appeared to be abiding by a promise to grant Americans and others safe passage to the airport, an agreement negotiated over the last days even as the group set up armed checkpoints throughout the city they now control.

“So far, they have, by and large, followed through on what they said in terms of allowing Americans to pass through and the like,” Mr. Biden said.

He appeared to refer to numerous reports of people who have said they have been stopped by the Taliban, adding: “And I’m sure they don’t control all of their forces. It’s a ragtag force. And so we’ll see. We’ll see whether or not what they say turns out to be true.”

Asked whether the U.S. military might expand the secure perimeter around the airport to help more people in the city get safe passage, Mr. Biden did not say yes or no, speaking instead of the military’s “tactical changes” to increase security around the airport.

“We have constantly — how can I say it? — increased rational access to the airport, where more folks can get there more safely,” he said. “It’s still a dangerous operation, but I don’t want to go into the detail of how we’re doing that.”

He also hinted that the military is working on ways to bring Americans to the airport who have not been able to get there, saying, “we are executing a plan to move groups of these Americans to safety and to safely and effectively move them to the airport compound. For security reasons, I’m not going to go into the details of what these plans entail.”

Earlier on Sunday, Mr. Biden met with his national security team on what the White House called an “operational update” on the situation in Afghanistan. The administration on Sunday ordered American airlines to provide the use of airplanes and crews to help in that effort, activating the Civil Reserve Air Fleet, which was created in 1952 during the Berlin Air Lift.

But the evacuation from Afghanistan continued to be chaotic in the country’s capital city, which was seized by the Taliban last week. Thousands of Afghans seeking to escape from the new regime continued to rush to the airport amid violence and several deaths.

Understand the Taliban Takeover in Afghanistan

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Who are the Taliban? The Taliban arose in 1994 amid the turmoil that came after the withdrawal of Soviet forces from Afghanistan in 1989. They used brutal public punishments, including floggings, amputations and mass executions, to enforce their rules. Here’s more on their origin story and their record as rulers.

Who are the Taliban leaders? These are the top leaders of the Taliban, men who have spent years on the run, in hiding, in jail and dodging American drones. Little is known about them or how they plan to govern, including whether they will be as tolerant as they claim to be.

How did the Taliban gain control? See how the Taliban retook power in Afghanistan in a few months, and read about how their strategy enabled them to do so.

What happens to the women of Afghanistan? The last time the Taliban were in power, they barred women and girls from taking most jobs or going to school. Afghan women have made many gains since the Taliban were toppled, but now they fear that ground may be lost. Taliban officials are trying to reassure women that things will be different, but there are signs that, at least in some areas, they have begun to reimpose the old order.

What does their victory mean for terrorist groups? The United States invaded Afghanistan 20 years ago in response to terrorism, and many worry that Al Qaeda and other radical groups will again find safe haven there.

Mr. Biden acknowledged the situation but focused his brief remarks on what he said was an accelerating success in flying people out of Kabul and to safety.

“All together, we lifted approximately 11,000 people out of a couple in less than 36 hours,” he said. “It’s an incredible operation.”

The president has come under intense criticism from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle and from leaders around the world for the execution of the withdrawal, which left governments scrambling to get their citizens out of Kabul when the Taliban swept in.

Critics have also accused Mr. Biden of not expressing enough empathy for the situation at the airport, where several people have died amid huge crowds. In his remarks on Sunday, the president was more emotional than he has been in recent days.

“It’s heartbreaking,” he said. “We see it. We feel it. You can’t look at and not feel it. Nothing about this effort is easy.”

Matt Stevens contributed reporting.

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