US Helicopters Rescued 169 Americans Outside Airport; More Ops Could Follow
Biden “will mobilize every resource necessary” to save more, but U.S. has yet to test Taliban checkpoints. Meanwhile, fuel-strained air operations resume.
By Jacqueline Feldscher and Tara Copp
August 20, 2021 04:42 PM ET
President Joe Biden is considering sending U.S. troops on rescue missions throughout Kabul to help get Americans home, and one major operation outside the airport gates has already airlifted 169 to safety.
On Thursday, three U.S. CH-47 Chinook helicopters were dispatched to rescue Americans who had gathered at the nearby Baron Hotel, near Hamid Karzai International Airport.
The original plan was for those Americans to “gather themselves up and walk through” the gate, said Pentagon spokesman John Kirby. But a large crowd gathered in front of the hotel, and it wasn’t deemed safe.
https://www.defenseone.com/policy/2021/08/biden-could-send-troops-help-americans-reach-kabul-airport/184731/
