Sec. Blinken: ‘We Believe There Are Still a Small Number of Americans ... Who Remain in Afghanistan and Want to Leave’
EXCERPT:
BLINKEN: "Let me talk briefly about the Americans who remain in Afghanistan. We made extraordinary efforts to give Americans every opportunity to depart the country, in many cases talking and sometimes walking them into the airport. Of those who self-identified as Americans in Afghanistan who are considering leaving the country, we have thus far received confirmation that about 6,000 have been evacuated or otherwise departed. This number will likely continue to grow as our outreach and arrivals continue. We believe there are still a small number of Americans, under 200, and likely closer to 100, who remain in Afghanistan and want to leave. We’re trying to determine exactly how many. We’re going through manifests and calling and texting through our lists, and we’ll have more details to share as soon as possible. Part of the challenge with fixing a precise number is that there are longtime residents of Afghanistan who have American passports and who were trying to determine whether or not they wanted to leave.”
