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An Afghan child sleeps on the floor of a C-17 during the Kabul NEO.
(Photo courtesy of USAF, Aug 15, 2021)

October 2021

October 21, 2021. "Private Groups Seek Government Funding to Keep up Afghan Evacuation Flights", Voice of America.

September 2021

An elite team of Ukrainian troops known as the GUR flew to Kabul in mid-September and assisted in the evacuation of nearly 100 people - a mix of Ukrainian citizens and at-risk Afghans. This took place after the departure of U.S. troops from Afghanistan on August 31, 2021."In tense effort, Ukrain rescues Afghan contingent", Democrat Gazette, September 26, 2021.

The Taliban have agreed to allow over 200 American citizens and foreign nationals to depart Kabul on a chartered Qatar Airways plane. "Taliban gives permission for at least 200 Afghans dual nationals, including Americans, to leave the country", The Washington Post, September 9, 2021.

"Lessons from Kabul: The US Military Must Resolve It Air Mobiiity Dilemma", by Phillip Surrey, Modern War Institute at West Point.

"Secretary Antony J. Blinken Remarks to Embassy Doha and Mission Afghanistan", DoS.

"Seven armed American civilians arrested en route to Afghanistan", New York Post.

"The dangerous confusion over Mazar-i-Sharif", Politico.

"The United States Conducts Unprecedented Relocation Effort", Fact Sheet, September 6, 2021.

"Taliban holding planes with Americans on ground, including one chartered by Alaska Native-owned Goldbelt", by Suzanne Dowing, Must Read Alaska.

"US helped 4 US citizens leave Afghanistan overland, official says", CNN.com.

"Afghan resettlement raises the question: Who is coming to the U.S.?", The Washington Post.(subscription)

"U.S. Citizens and Afghans Wait for Evacuation Flights From Country's North", The New York Times.

"U.S. Embassy contractors, visa applicants among Afghans left behind after one of the largest airlifts in history", The Washington Post, (subscription)

"Kabul airport reopens for domestic flights with no radar as Taliban battle resistance fighters in last holdout", The Washington Post.

"U.S. lawmaker urges Blinken to clear private evacuation flights out of Afghanistan", Reuters.

"Biden chief of staff says 'around a hundred' Americans remain in Afghanistan", by Mike Brest, Defense Reporter.

"A Legendary Marine's Name As Code: the Ad Hoc Network That Helped Rescue Afghans", by Quil Lawrence, AP News.

"Taliban stop planes of evacuees from leaving but unclear why", Associated Press.

"Afghanistan: 'We didn't think you were going to make it' - RAF pilot reveals near miss on the runway at Kabul airport", Sky News.

September 3, 2021. "Why Is The US Government Blocking Refuge Flights From Afghanistan?", by Lela Gilbert, Religian Unplugged.

September 3, 2021. "Rescue groups: US tally misses hundreds left in Afghanistan", AP News.

September 3, 2021. "Taliban fighter told evacuee 'go and tell the State Department to f--- themselves', report says", The New York Post. The difficulties facing would-be evacuees who attempted to get to Kabul's airport through a gauntlet of Taliban checkpoints.

September 3, 2021. "How the CIA Secretly Evacuated Its Spies From Afghanistan", Foreign Policy. (subscription)

September 3, 2021. "Italy's Carabinieri Were the Perfect Force for the Kabul Evacuation", by Elisabeht Braw, Defense One. The soldier-policemen of this hybrid outfil went outside the wire to bring thousands to safety.

September 3, 2021. "Secretary Antony J. Blinken Remarks on Afghanistan at a Press Availability", DoS.

September 3, 2021. "A Dishonorable Exit", by Eliot Cohen, The Atlantic.

September 3, 2021. "The Pentagon's filtered version of the Kabul rescue mission looks nothing like what really went down", by Paul Szoldra, Task & Purpose.

September 2, 2021. "Kabul Airport Could Resume Domestic Flights on September 3; International Fligts 'To Take Time'", Gandhara Blog.

September 2, 2021. "Podcast - Task Force Dunkirk". Lt. Col. (Ret.) Russel Worth Parker is interviewed about how TF Dunkirk formed up and what it is doing to assist Afghans in leaving Afghanistan and escaping the Taliban.

September 2, 2021. A network of special operations veterans and contacts on the ground came together to evacuate American citizens and Afghan allies. Task Force Pineplle is now moving to the next phase of their operations - getting hundreds of Americans left behind in Afghanistan to safety. "Pineapple Express to Launch Phase II for Americans Left in Afghanistan", Brietbart.

September 2, 2021. "Fired Marine's question about leader accountability should not be dismissed", by Andrew Milburn, Marine Corps Times.

September 1, 2021. "Majority of Interpreters, Other U.S. Visa Applicants Were Left Behind in Afghanistan", The Wall Street Journal. The U.S. still doesn't have reliable data on who was evacuated from Afghanistan, according to a senior State Department official. (subscription).

September 1, 2021. "People stranded in Afghanistan will be provided 'tailored' evacuation routes: State Department", Fox News.

September 1, 2021. "Dunkirk By WhatsApp: UK Efforts Continue to Rescue Stranded Afghan Allies", Forces.net.

August 2021

August 31, 2021. "In secret texts, U.S. military officials lamented leaving Americans behind in Kabul", Just the News.

August 31, 2021. "Covert Evacuations and Planned Demolitions: How the C.I.A. Left its Its Last Base in Afghanistan", The New York Times. A compound outside Kabul, known as Eagle Base, was one of the most secretive in Afghanistan and it became a hub for clandestine evacuations during the Kabul NEO. High level Afghans were made their way to or were picked up by the CIA and found refuge at Eagle Base. They then were shuttled to HKIA on board Mi-17s and placed on flights.

August 31, 2021. "How Trump broke the system that offers protection to Afghan allies", The Hill. There are many reasons that the U.S. was so slow in evacuating Afghans who were eligible for Special Immigrant Visas (SIVs). One major reason is that the Trump administration intentionally broke the SIV processing system in 2017 - which resulted in an even bigger backlog of SIV cases.

August 31, 2021. "The Story of the Mysterious White 727 That Appeared in Kabul Afther the Bombing of Abbey Gate", by Tyler Rogoway, The Drive.

August 31, 2021. "Secret Gate Used by Special Operators to Sneak Evacuees Into Kabul's Airport", The Drive. Groups of Americans escorted by members of the Taliban were among those that reportedly used this clandestine passageway into the airport.

August 31, 2021. "U.S. official: "Majority' of Afghan allies who applied for special visas left behind in Afghanistan", NBC News.

August 31, 2021. "Al Qaeda praises Taliban's 'historic victory' in Afghanistan", FDD's Long War Journal.

August 31, 2021. "The normal military rules are out - How veterans helped rescue scores of people from Afghanistan", Task & Purpose.

August 31, 2021. "President Thanks Service Members for Aiding Afghanistan Evacuation", DoD News.

August 31, 2021. "Afghanistan: Former British soldier Ben Slater leading an escape effort after being stranded in Kabul says people are desperate", Sky News.

August 30, 2021. "Afghan Special Forces could serve in New British Army Regiment", Forces.net.

August 30, 2021. "How Turf Wars Mucked Up America's Exit From Afghanistan", Vanity Fair.

August 30, 2021. "Ukrainian troops complete daring rescue of Canada-bound Afghan translators", CTV News.

August 30, 2021. "Wife of local Afghan interpreter to arrive in U.S.", 8newsnow.com.

August 30, 2021. "Proposal to create new British Army regiment for Afghan special forces.", Evening Stardard. The suggestion is to establish a new regiment similar to that of the Gurkhas.

August 30, 2021. "The Veterans Struggling to Save Afghan Allies", The New Yorker.

August 30, 2021. "Afghan-American U.S. Army Soldier Supports Afghanistan Evacuation Efforts", DVIDS.

August 30, 2021. "This is the real story of the Afghan biometric databases abandoned to the Taliban", Technology Review. By capturing 40 pieces of data per person - from iris scans and family links to their favorite fruit - a system meant to cut fraud in the Afghan security forces may actually aid the Taliban in finding former members of the ANDSF and kill them.

August 30, 2021. "The Taliban reportedly have control of US biometric devices  - a lesson in life-and-death consequences of data privacy", The Conversation.

August 28, 2021. "Israeli organization sending private flights to get activists out of Kabul", Ynet News.com.

August 28, 2021. "New Zealand unable to get everyone out it wanted", News Observer.

August 27, 2021. "Just One More': Inside the massive military communtiy effort to save Afghans", Military Times. An adhoc group of military veterans formed up quickly to assist American citizens, Lawful Resident Persons, and Afghans at-risk to skirt Taliban checkpoints, work their way through the entry gates at the airport, and onto flights to other countries.

August 27, 2021. "US special operations vets carry out daring mission to save Afghan allies", ABC News. The "Pineapple Express" brought in hundreds of at-risk elite forces and their families to safety at the Kabul airport.

August 27, 2021. "Pentagon: Thousands of ISIS-K Combatants Released by Taliban", National Review.

August 26, 2021. "Where the U.S. is taking Afghans evacuate from Kabul", Axios.

August 26, 2021. "US officials gave Taliban list of evacuees: report", The Hill. In the early days of the evacution, the joint U.S. military and diplomatic coordination team at Kabul's airport gave the Taliban a list of people the U.S. wanted to evacuate. The list included Afghans who served alongside the U.S. during the war and sought special immigrant visas. But after thousands of visa applicants arrived, the State Department asked applicants not to come to the airport. One defense official was quoted as saying "Basically, they just put all those Afghans on a kill list."

August 26, 2021. "Satellite images, graphics, and maps show how fatal airport explosion ripped through Kabul", USA Today. A devastating blast at Abbey Gate of the Kabul airport killed thirteen U.S. service members and at least 169 civilians in a coordinated ISIS-K attack. Superiour graphics and maps provide a visual story.

August 26, 2021. "Now I'm Part of the "Digital Dunkirk" Trying to Get Them Out", Mother Jones. Joan Barker was an English teacher who worked with Afghan Special Forces and interpreters.

August 25, 2021. "Veteran Organizations form "Save Our Allies" Coalition", PR Newswire.

August 25, 2021. "Night Stalker Little Bird Helicopters Flew German Commandos On Kabul Misson", The War Zone. Germany's KSK and the 160th SOAR joined forces to evacuate foreigners deep in Taliban-controlled Kabul.

August 25, 2021. "Digital Dunkirk: With clock ticking, veterans race to save comrades", The Christian Science Monitor.

August 24, 2021. "A Primer on Escaping from Afghanistan", News Northeastern.edu.

August 24, 2021. "Dispatch: Inside Kabul Airport - 'A Death Metal Show With One Exit. And The Place is on Fire'", by Jariko Denman, Coffee or Die Magazine.

August 23, 2021. "US military gives Biden a deadline to decide on extending Afghanistan evacuations", CNN.

August 23, 2021. "Special forces working outside of Kabul airport to escort Canadians, Afghans onto flights to Canada", CBC.CA.

August 23, 2021. "Afghan visa applicants told to stay away from Kabul airport as US races to meet exit deadline", CNN.

August 23, 2021. "Tampa Company Working to Help People Evacuate from Afghanistan", MSN.com.

August 23, 2021. "Escape From Afghanistan", The Atlantic. Even those with a visa must endure harrowing conditions on their way to freedom.

August 23, 2021. "111 Afghan school girls escape kabul safely", MSN News.

August 22, 2021. "Current and former U.S. military special operations and intelligence operatives are using their own networks of contacts to get elite Afghan soldiers, intelligence assets, and interpreters to safety as they've become increasingly disillusioned and fed up with the U.S. government-led evacuation effort in Kabul." Read more about TF Dunkirk in "US special operations forces race to save former Afghan comrades in jeopardy", by James Gordon Meek and Matt Seyler, ABC News, August 22, 2021.

August 22, 2021. "Inside the Global Afghan Evacuation Network", by Jason Criss Howk, A Voice for Two Nations.

August 22, 2021. "Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin says US will look for every way possible to get people to Kabul airport", Yahoo! News.

August 22, 2021. "This is a NEO. It's Time to Execute It", Brad Taylor Books.

August 22, 2021. "Massive veterans group used intel, satelllite images to direct Afghan interpreters around Taliban checkpoints", Fox News.

August 22, 2021. "Welcoming the Stranger: The Dignity and Promise of Afghan Refugees", by Acton Institute.

August 21, 2021. "Baby passed over gate in iconic Kabul image returned to parents", Coffee or Die Magazine.

August 21, 2021. "ISIS terror threat forces US military to establish alternate routes to Kabul airport", CNN Politics.

August 21, 2021. "A 'Digital Dunkirk' to Evacuate Afghan Allies", by Amy Mackinnon, Foreign Policy.

August 21, 2021. "As a sea of humanity fights to escape the Taliban, an Afghan interpreter and his family make it to safety", by Jeff Schogol, Task & Purpose.

August 21, 2021. "Kabul airport mayhem and evacuation scramble", by Stuart Ramsay, Sky News.

August 20, 2021. "Pentagon Tells Airlines: Be Ready to Fly Afghan Evacuees to United States", by Marcus Weisgerber, Defense One. This could involve the activation of the Civil Air Reserve Fleet.

August 20, 2021. "US Can Airlift 9K People Daily From Kabul, But Only 2K Made It Out in Last 24 Hours", International Business Times.

August 20, 2021. "Nine Afghan girl robotics team members safe in Qatar", BBC News.

August 20, 2021. "Here's How the US Could Get Afghanistan Evacuees to the United States More Quickly", by Marcus Weisgerber, Defense One. Augmenting the evacuation process by using contract commerical aircraft from the Middle East intermediate transit points to the US could free up more C-17s for the Kabul to ME leg.

August 19, 2021. "State Dept. will not charge for evacuation flights from Afghanistan", by Laura Kelly, The Hill.

August 19, 2021. "Defense Contractors Told Not to Personally Assist 'Friends and Former Colleagues' Stuck in Afghanistan", Daily Caller.

August 19, 2021. "US diplomats sent memo urging swift evacuation of Afghan allies weeks before Taliban takeover", Washington Examiner.

August 18, 2021. "US friends try to rescue brother in arms in Afghanistan", by Alez Sanz and Tammy Webber, Associated Press.

August 18, 2021. "US 'cannot ensure safe passage' to Kabul airport amid reports of Taliban interference", Washington Examiner.

August 17, 2021. "Team America has success evacuating Afghans, seeks help as requests grow", Military Times.

August 17, 2021, "Afghan contractor details his family's escape from Kabul", ABC News.

August 17, 2021. "Steps to Protect Your Online Identity from the Taliban: Digital History and Evading Biometric Abuses", Human Rights First.

August 17, 2021. "Chaos, desparation at Kabul airport as Biden defends withdrawal from Afghanistan", Reuters.