Footage from the current mess in Afghanistan showed crowds of people running in front of American military planes that were taking off, and some died as a result.
Heartbreaking videos showed people falling from the cargo planes after takeoff as they clung to them in hopes of escaping the Taliban rule.
According to the Wall Street Journal, the Afghan military failed to keep the country safe because they relied heavily on U.S. air support, and it could not function after President Joe Biden decided to leave Afghanistan to its fate.
People falling from the World Trade Center during 9/11 attacks in New York City.
People falling from US C-17 aircraft this morning in Kabul, Afghanistan. pic.twitter.com/FmTOk01D55
— Aditya Raj Kaul (@AdityaRajKaul) August 16, 2021
Biden tried to shift the blame on former President Donald Trump in a statement last weekend, but experts quickly pushed back on his attempts to clear himself from blame.
Rebeccah Heinrichs, a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute, said in a statement:
“He begins by listing what his administration is scrambling to do to avoid American and partner deaths, and to have the ability to conduct counterterrorism operations. And this horrible scramble with high stakes is all because of Biden’s order to withdrawal immediately. There is plenty of blame to go around for the failures in Afghanistan, but what happens as a result of the way the withdrawal happened will be Biden’s alone. He can’t pass this off on Trump. He owns all of this. Also, I don’t care if he reads a script word for word, he needs to address the nation. There are a lot of military families who deserve it and so much more.”
Kabul Airport runway today. No words needed. pic.twitter.com/8SfzEOprUZ
— Shiv Aroor (@ShivAroor) August 16, 2021
Andrea Stricker, a research fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies said the following:
“The disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan fits a pattern of this administration deciding on a course of foreign action without consideration for the ramifications. Biden wanted out regardless of the cost to the Afghan people, regional security, and years of effort and dedication by many brave Americans and allies. This poorly planned exit will go down in history as a major U.S. strategic failure.”
— Sowaibah Hanifie (@SowaibahH) August 16, 2021
Jamil N. Jaffer, Founder and Executive Director of the National Security Institute said:
“Pathetic for the President to lay the situation he created by his own choices at the feet of his predecessor. Having inherited whatever he inherited, it was his job to do what the nation required, and the President ought admit he made the wrong choice. Be better @JoeBiden.”
Exclusive- A clear video (from other angle) of men falling from C-17. They were Clinging to some parts of the plane that took off from Kabul airport today. #Talibans #Afghanistan #Afghanishtan pic.twitter.com/CMNW5ngqrK
— Aśvaka – آسواکا News Agency (@AsvakaNews) August 16, 2021
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