House Republicans will release a report Monday criticizing President Joe Biden’s administration over the chaotic August 2021 Afghanistan withdrawal.
The report, led by Rep. Michael McCaul, accuses officials of delaying evacuation orders, poor interdepartmental communication, and mishandling paperwork for Afghan civilians eligible to leave. The findings follow a three-year investigation.
US House of Representatives Republicans will release a long-awaited report on Monday blasting Democratic President Joe Biden’s administration for failures surrounding the chaotic and deadly US withdrawal from Afghanistan in August 2021.
The report contends that the administration made its decision to evacuate noncombatants far too late, formally ordering it only on Aug. 16, failed to communicate between departments in Washington and among officials in Afghanistan, and botched the paperwork for the departure of Afghan civilians eligible to leave the country.
It is the result of a three-year investigation led by Representative Michael McCaul, Republican chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee.
“America’s credibility on the world stage was severely damaged after we abandoned Afghan allies to Taliban reprisal killings — the people of Afghanistan we had promised to protect,” the report said. “And the moral injury to America’s veterans and those still serving remains a stain on this administration’s legacy.”
The withdrawal has become intensely politicized ahead of the Nov. 5 US presidential election. Last month, the Republican nominee, former President Donald Trump, shot the video for his campaign at Arlington National Cemetery where he appeared at a ceremony honoring troops killed in the evacuation.
Trump has also attacked Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris over the exit from Afghanistan during campaign appearances, blaming them personally for the deaths at Kabul airport’s Abbey Gate.
On Aug. 26, 2021, as US forces were trying to help Americans and Afghans flee as the Islamist Taliban movement took control of the country, a suicide attack at the Abbey Gate entrance to Kabul’s airport killed 13 Americans, compounding the US sense of defeat after two decades of war.
Democrats have insisted that some blame for the messy end of the war – less than seven months into Biden’s presidency – should be laid at the feet of Trump, who began the withdrawal process by signing a deal with the Taliban in 2020.
