Today's D Brief: Austin, Blinken in Qatar; Panjshir resistance crushed?; ISI visits Taliban in Kabul; Pill for PTSD?; And a bit more.
By Ben Watson and Jennifer Hlad
September 7, 2021 10:40 AM ET
The D Brief
SecDef Austin, SecState Blinken are in the Middle East today trying to negotiate a way home for the remaining U.S. citizens and Afghans fleeing Taliban control. One path forward could involve rolling back sanctions on Taliban officials in exchange for the safe passage of the two groups of travelers, the Wall Street Journal reports from Qatar, where “There are currently 4,000 Afghan evacuees,” after 41,000 or so have already travelled to the states.
ICYMI: Qatar continues playing an outsized role in America’s extended departure from Afghanistan—from hosting negotiations with the Taliban in Doha under POTUS45, to helping with the evacuation efforts under POTUS46; and, of course, Qatar has hosted U.S. aircraft supporting regional combat operations going back to at least POTUS43.
But not so fast on any new international departures from Kabul, because no one’s leaving the country from that airport until the Taliban announce their government, group spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid reportedly said Tuesday, according to Khaama Press.
https://www.defenseone.com/threats/2021/09/the-d-brief-september-07-2021/185145/
