Over 1,24,000 folks airlifted from Afghanistan in largest air evacuation in American historical past: Pentagon

Briefing on the conclusion of the “largest air evacuations of civilians in American history,” US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin stated on Wednesday that he’s “proud” of how navy members have welcomed Afghan refugees to the United States.

Terming the US evacuations “heroic and historic”, Lloyd Austin knowledgeable, “US evacuated some 6,000 American citizens, and a total of more than 124,000 civilians”.ALSO READ | Day one in Afghanistan with no overseas forces: Long queues at ATMs amid uncertainty and concern”And we did it all in the midst of a pandemic and in the face of grave and growing threats,” Secretary of Defense Lloyd J Austin added..@SecDef: The United States evacuated some 6,000 American residents, and a complete of greater than 124,000 civilians. And we did all of it within the midst of a pandemic and within the face of grave and rising threats. pic.twitter.com/TjkdXyYooQ— Department of Defense (@DeptofDefense) September 1, 2021
Austin took a minute throughout the briefing to recollect the service members who died in Afghanistan throughout the battle and people who have been wounded, “some still carrying the scars that you can’t see on the outside,” he stated.”I hope that all Americans will unite to thank our service members for their courage and compassion. They were operating in an immensely dangerous and dynamic environment. But our troops were tireless, fearless and selfless. Our commanders never flinched. And our allies and partners were extraordinary,” Austin stated.ALSO READ | Major General Chris Donahue — the final American to go away Afghanistan”Some of those brave Afghans will be coming to make new lives with their families in America, after careful screening & security vetting run by our interagency partners. I’m proud of the way that our military communities have welcomed them,” Austin added.Meanwhile, US President Joe Biden defended his determination to finish America’s longest battle and withdraw all US troops forward of an August 31 deadline, saying: “I was not going to extend this “eternally battle”.I used to be not going to increase this eternally battle. pic.twitter.com/QoDLRA4Hqr— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) September 1, 2021
“I was not going to extend this “eternally battle”, US President Joe Biden declared from the White House, while calling the US airlift to extract over 1,24,000 Americans, Afghans and other allies from Afghanistan to end a 20-year war an “extraordinary success.”ALSO READ | Taliban celebrate victory as last US troops leave Afghanistan