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Pentagon approves more troops for Kabul as U.S. seeks to secure airport for evacuations

16 August 2021 07:10 (UTC +04:00)

The Pentagon authorized another 1,000 troops to help evacuate U.S. citizens and Afghans who worked for them from Kabul as the U.S. government said it would assume air traffic control to facilitate the departure of thousands of Americans, APA reports quoting Reuters.

A joint statement from the State Department and Pentagon after Taliban insurgents entered the Afghan capital confirmed that the United States over the next 48 hours will "have expanded our security presence to nearly 6,000 troops, with a mission focused solely on facilitating these efforts and will be taking over air traffic control."

The statement said it was working to secure the airport in Kabul "to enable the safe departure of U.S. and allied personnel from Afghanistan via civilian and military flights."

State Department spokesman Ned Price said late Sunday in a statement "the safe evacuation of all Embassy personnel is now complete. All Embassy personnel are located on the premises of Hamid Karzai International Airport, whose perimeter is secured by the U.S. military."

The joint statement added the United States "will be transferring out of the country thousands of American citizens" and others, and added the government would "accelerate the evacuation of thousands of Afghans eligible for U.S. Special Immigrant Visas."