Category: Middle East

21 Americans Aboard Qatari Flight, Not Everyone Chose to Evacuate Afghanistan: Price

The U.S. State Department confirmed that 39 Americans were invited on the first commercial flight allowed to take off from Kabul’s airport on Sept. 9, although not everyone ultimately chose to depart Afghanistan, citing different reasons. “We can confirm that, of the 39 we invited, 10 U.S. citizens and 11 Lawful Permanent Residents were on-board the…


Taliban Takeover of Afghanistan Emboldens Extremists: UK Anti-Terror Chief

The Taliban takeover of Afghanistan has “heartened and emboldened” Islamic extremists and the UK is vigilant to the increased terror threats, Britain’s domestic intelligence chief said on Friday. Talking to the BBC’s Today programme on the eve of the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Ken McCallum, director-general of the MI5 intelligence agency, also…


Conrad Black: Can the US Recover from Its Botched Afghanistan Withdrawal?

As doubts about America’s leadership grow among its allies, can the United States recover from its botched withdrawal from Afghanistan? We sit down with Conrad Black, once one of the world’s leading newspaper publishers and author of several presidential biographies. What can the United States learn from its eminent statesmen of yesteryear? And should the…


Report: Taliban Has Banned Women’s Sports in Afghanistan

SYDNEY—Australia’s SBS TV has quoted a Taliban spokesperson as saying that women’s sports—and women’s cricket specifically—will be banned by his group in Afghanistan. “In cricket, they might face a situation where their face and body will not be covered. Islam does not allow women to be seen like this,” the network quoted Ahmadullah Wasiq, the…


Psaki Defends Barring Flights Holding US Citizens From Leaving Afghanistan

White House press secretary Jen Psaki defended the Biden administration’s decision to block evacuation flights holding American citizens from departing Afghanistan because they included people who haven’t been through security protocols. “We’re not going to allow flights that have hundreds of people who we don’t know who they are, who haven’t been through security protocols,…


Taliban Let Flight Take Off From Kabul for First Time Since US Withdrawal

The Taliban terrorist group on Thursday allowed a flight to take off from Kabul’s airport for the first time since U.S. troops withdrew from the country late last month. The Qatar Airways plane left Hamid Karzai International Airport on Thursday evening local time. Details about the flight, including whether it was a commercial or charter flight,…


Taliban Lets Flight Leave Kabul for First Time Since US Withdrawal

The Taliban terrorist group has allowed a flight to take off from Kabul’s airport for the first time since U.S. troops withdrew from the country late last month. The Qatar Airways plane left Hamid Karzai International Airport on the evening of Sept. 9 local time. Details about the flight, including whether it was a commercial or charter…


First Flight From Kabul Since US Withdrawal Lands in Qatar

The first flight allowed to take off from Kabul’s airport since U.S. troops withdrew from the country late last month safely landed in nearby Qatar, U.S. officials said. The Qatar Airways plane left Hamid Karzai International Airport on the evening of Sept. 9 local time and landed in Qatar several hours later. Emily Horne, spokesperson for the…


Exiled Ghani Apologizes to Afghan People

Former Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, who fled Kabul as Taliban forces reached the outskirts of the city last month, apologized on Wednesday for the abrupt fall of his government but denied that he had taken millions of dollars with him. In a statement posted on Twitter, Ghani said he had left at the urging of…


Pentagon Chief: Al Qaeda Expected to Try and ‘Regenerate’ in Afghanistan

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Thursday that al-Qaeda terrorists may attempt to reconstruct itself in Afghanistan following the Taliban takeover of the country and now that the United States has withdrawn its troops. “I think the whole community is kind of watching to see what happens and whether or not al Qaeda has the ability…