Tuesday, August 24, 2021

Biden Faces Heat as Taliban Threaten U.S. Troops, Armed Afghan Resistance Grows; Taliban Threatens Joe Biden: Stay in Afghanistan Past August and Suffer ‘Consequences’, and related stories

AP Photo/Rahmat Gul, File
Biden faces heat as Taliban threaten U.S. troops, armed Afghan resistance grows:
The Taliban on Monday threatened violence against any American troops who remain in Kabul past Aug. 31, while President Biden faced new questions about whether the U.S. could or should be aiding thousands of Afghan resistance fighters now preparing for their own potentially bloody showdown with Taliban insurgents.
The two developments put renewed pressure on a White House already up against withering criticism over its hasty Afghanistan withdrawal and the chaotic scramble it created to evacuate tens of thousands of civilian personnel and Afghan allies from the hardline Islamist group now ruling the country.
Mr. Biden over the weekend expressed an “unwavering commitment” that U.S. forces would stay at the Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul for as long as it takes to complete that mission, even if it means remaining in Afghanistan past his self-imposed Aug. 31 withdrawal deadline.
But the Taliban‘s tolerance for the American presence and rescue mission has already worn thin. Top leaders of the militant group made clear Monday that they expect Mr. Biden to stick to his original timetable and warned of “consequences” if he does not.
“It’s a red line. President Biden announced that on 31 August they would withdraw all their military forces. So if they extend it that means they are extending occupation while there is no need for that,” Taliban spokesman Suhail Shaheen said in an interview with Sky News. “If the U.S. or U.K. were to seek additional time to continue evacuations, the answer is no. Or there would be consequences.”
Troops under fire
The evacuation mission at the Kabul airport is growing increasingly dangerous, with U.S. forces operating inside the airport while Taliban fighters run checkpoints on the streets around the facility, often aggressively managing crowds trying to access the entrances. --->READ MORE HERE
WAKIL KOHSAR/AFP via Getty Images
Taliban Threatens Joe Biden: Stay in Afghanistan Past August and Suffer ‘Consequences’:
A senior Taliban spokesman told the U.K.’s Sky News on Monday that the United States and its ally Britain will face “consequences” if they seek to extend their military presence in Afghanistan to ensure the safe evacuation of their citizens.
American President Joe Biden announced this summer that he would withdraw all American troops from the country by August 31. Biden had previously announced in April that the withdrawal would end on September 11, the 20th anniversary of the jihadist attacks that prompted the Afghan War. Both dates were a significant extension of the war from the set withdrawal date under former President Donald Trump, who brokered a deal with the Taliban that would have seen a full American military exit by May 1.
The Taliban followed Biden’s extension of the war – and his choice to break the agreement Trump brokered with the jihadist organization – with a nationwide campaign to overthrow the now-former government of Afghanistan. The campaign culminated with Taliban terrorists surrounding the country’s capital, Kabul, on August 15, prompting former President Ashraf Ghani to abruptly flee the country.
Taliban leaders now control nearly all of Afghanistan, excepting a small pocket of resistance in north-central Panjsher province, which the jihadists claimed on Monday they had surrounded and would soon control.
Taliban spokesman Suhail Shaheen discussed the current situation in Kabul – where thousands are attempting to reach the airport to avoid being under Taliban rule – with the U.K.’s Sky News, denying that the crowds feared for their safety under the radical Islamist terrorist group. The desperation to flee Taliban rule has prompted multiple deaths in and around the Kabul airport resulting from stampedes and deliberate violence. Eyewitnesses have also reported extensive violence against civilians on the part of Taliban thugs outside the airport, reports the Pentagon confirmed last week. --->READ MORE HERE
Follow links below to related stories:

'Red line': Taliban warn of 'consequences' if US keeps troops past Aug. 31

US Embassy staff face ‘brutal experience’ en route to Kabul airport

If you like what you see, please "Like" us on Facebook either here or here. Please follow us on Twitter here.


No comments: