you and hamid karzai and abdullah abdullah all say, "we must engage. a national dialogue. "we hope to achieve a new political settlement "in which there is a sharing of power." well, you tell me, after two weeks, do you get any indication from the taliban at all that they are willing to share power? first of all, what is the alternative that we have? do we have to engage in war again, another cycle of violence, or should we give a chance to talking to them? and particularly, when you hear words of assurances that we need to hold them to, let's say hold them to their words so that they're delivered upon. so it's not a stooge thing. it's a responsible thing which we are doing. and secondly...secondly, it's only been two weeks that kabul just as unexpectedly and suddenly fell and it was a shock to us. it's been a pleasant shock to the taliban as well. they did not expect that. they were not ready for that. we are ready to give them days so that they discuss things amongst themselves. we just saw a statement by the taliban spokesperson that the past three

there with my hamid karzai.re with my hamid karzai. what to expect taliban to look _ my hamid karzai. what to expect taliban to look like. _ my hamid karzai. what to expect taliban to look like. we - taliban to look like. we expected to be an emirates but do expect government leaders or government ministers, rather, in the same way we can see other countries?— in the same way we can see other countries? cabinet may be the same. _ other countries? cabinet may be the same, however, _ other countries? cabinet may be the same, however, the - other countries? cabinet may be the same, however, the power, | the same, however, the power, the same, however, the power, the seat of the power may be different. there are speculations and discussions amongst taliban leaders that they will not come within emirates but one of a surer, like they do in iran, someone dealing with the administration of the government. let us remind the was that the international community have not been agreeing with this establishment of the taliba

dr abdullah abdullah, hamid karzai and many other _ karzai and many other politicians who belong to thein kabul, when ashraf ghani left, and they became a bridge between social groups, and the taliban. it started out about safety and security and it is getting into different effects. it will be interesting to see what the taliban is going to put on the table and how others will react. is it going to be inclusive enough? will it be acceptable and embrace all of society? 0r acceptable and embrace all of society? or is it going to be a 2—stage approach where on one hand you have a transition system and on the other hand you work with others to order. all of this is been discussed right now and the hope is that they realise there is difference in afghanistan but i'd only go so far than action and deeds. i'd only go so far than action and deede— i'd only go so far than action and deeds. , , , and deeds. the message seems fairly clear _ and deeds. the message seems fairly clear that _ and deeds. the message seems fairly clear that the _ and deeds. the message seems fairly clear that the likes

troops are at hamid karzai international airport. there are some 3,000 troops on the ground right now. we've just learned in the past few minutes that secretary of defense lloyd austin approved another 1,000 troops. so it will be a total of 6,000 troops that either are in-country or on their way to afghanistan. their primary mission is clear. it is to secure the airport such that u.s. embassy staff and their workers can get out. there have been security incidents at or near the airport according to a defense official we recently spoke with. but -- and this is a key point here to make -- u.s. forces on the ground there have not been fired upon, and they have not fired upon anybody. so although there have been security incidents at or near the airport, they have not, as of this moment, involved u.s. troops. but there is a crush of civilians, including afghans, at the airport trying to get out of the country, and that contributes to the chaos and to the situation on the ground there. everything rests on hamid karzai international airpor

we are improving our throughput at the hamid karzai international airport and we think we'll be able to continue to try to improve that. that's the goal. but what you're talking about is -- would be an expenditure of resources and personnel as well as an increase most likely to the threat that they're under to try to go back and, as you put it, retake bagram air base, which is the size of a small city. and i understand a lot of people have views and opinions about this. it was closed down as part of the retro grade. it was always supposed to be closed down as part of the retro grade. it was the last base to be turned over to the afghans. and even as recently as three weeks ago, before we actually had to conduct an noncombatant evacuation the leaders ran a table top exercise on what it would be like to run an effective operation out of hamid karzai international and we're running that play. it's not without its challenges for sure but we're doing that now and that's the focus on making sure we can get as many people out as possible using hamid karzai international airport. jen, the nu

there has been an explosion outside of the hamid karzai international airport.nd the really only exit point for the evacuation flights we've seen in recent days. pentagon press secretary john kirby tweeting moments ago we can confirm an explosion outside of kabul airport. casualties are unclear at this time. we will provide additional details when we can. we also learned moments ago that president biden has been briefed on that explosion outside of kabul airport. a white house official tells cnn. and we are waiting on a pentagon press briefing which will happen in about 30 minutes from now. the back ground on this, as you look at a live picture from the kabul airport, that in recent days and yesterday we reported the u.s. has been very concerned about a credible threat stream about potential terror attacks targeting the gates to the airport and the crowds around those gates. the u.s. believing that terror groups had both the capability and the planning to carry out such attacks. there is still no attribution for these attacks or as we said, any confirmation abou

there are 5,800 troops at hamid karzai international airport.ome for security for the most important piece of real estate in the country right now. but for many others, this is a humanitarian mission. the military has come with food, water and medical supplies. here, something as simple as water, large clear plastic bottles, something that's small has an impact on those fleeing for their lives, especially after hours of waiting in the summer heat of afghanistan. a father passes his child to a marine for medical help. the marines say the infant was treated and reunited with the family at the airport. >> having prepared and partially executed a neo, a nonckcombatan operations like we're seeing now, so many have continued adaptation to changing circumstances. >> reporter: here, another child passed to marines. a picture that underscores how important afghan feel it to leave the country they once new. powerful pictures of the crowd and pictures of the people. and it is a difficult mission, one the white house acknowledged is a dangerous one. under p

as of this morning, last heard near hamid karzai international airport. we're in the final moments there. five rockets seemed to have been fired in its direction. initial reports suggesting once again they believe possibly isis-k may have been behind this. at this stage, no reports of casualties, but it adds to the general fever pitch, frankly, around that final moments of u.s. departure on the airport. it's unclear when it may be. we had a horrific 48 hours behind us in terms of the number of blasts heard in kabul. yesterday there was a drone strike on a compound in kabul. the u.s. saying it was defensive. they believe they were under imminent threat and they saw secondary explosions as a result of the drone strike. but after having initially said there were no indication of civilian casualties, they have said it's possible. we're assessing the results of the strike, which we know disrupted an imminent isis-k threat. it may have caused additional casualties. it's unclear what may have happened. we're nvlging further. we would be deeply saddened by any po

embassy is operating out of hamid karzai international airport.assisting in this security mission that we have there. i won't speak for their intentions one way or another going forward, but there's not going to be -- when the mission is over and when we are leaving the airport, the airport will not be the united states -- our responsibility anymore. how it gets managed going forward will be something that the taliban, who are now in kabul, will have to manage on their own and i assume with the international community. but that won't be an american responsibility. >> just one more. how many individuals on terror watch lists have been screened or found at any screening points at qatar, ramstein or in the u.s.? >> i don't know. we'll have to take that question and get back to you. >> on behalf of the afghan people thank you very much for your hard job and good job actually. >> thank you. >> afghan people, they are happy, but some of them, they are not eligible for siv visa, p1, p2, but still have a serious problem. they are not in kabul. they are hi

i think if we think about the future of afghanistan, all these leaders, like hamid karzai and amrullahand sit and discuss, and find some solution and work with taliban to have a strong government, because we really need to solve the afghanistan problem between all these leaders and afghan people. kamila sidiqi, i thank you so much for talking to us from bonn, in germany. thank you. you're welcome. thank you so much. hello. after what's been a relatively cloudy and relatively cool week so far for many of us, the weather is set to change a little bit through friday and into the weekend. it will briefly turn a little bit warmer. it will also start to turn a lot wetter because low pressure is pushing in from the west. this frontal system bringing rain very early on on friday across northern ireland. that will push eastwards over the coming days. but ahead of that weather front, we draw in a southerly wind, bringing some slightly warmer air in our direction. but many of us are going to start off on quite a cloudy note on friday. for england, wales and scotland, most places will be dry, just

i think if we think about the future of afghanistan, all these leaders, like hamid karzai and amrullahd sit and discuss and find some solution and work with taliban to have a strong government, because we really need to solve the afghanistan problem between all these leaders and afghan people. kamila sidiqi, i thank you so much for talking to us from bonn in germany. thank you. you're welcome. thank you so much. hello. it feels a little bit like our weather has been sulking so far this week — kind of stuck in a rut of grayness and lingering cloud. it's not in a great hurry to get out of that position through today, either. we did see some sunshine on wednesday across central and eastern england, and i'm hopeful we will see some for at least a time today — this break in the clouds ahead of a weak weather front coming in from the west. so through the morning, some sunnier skies working their way eastwards, perhaps something a bit brighter behind that band of showery rain further west for the afternoon. but still, a lot of cloud for many of us, and temperatures a little down on where they

an attack outside of the gates of hamid karzai international airport. the pentagon is calling this a complex attack. and then, a second explosion rocked the area by the hotel. >> john: that hotel is part of an american rescue operation just days ago. at least, 13 people are dead as result of the attacks. the kabul hospital saying at least, 16 have been injured. listen here. >> word has been out for the last few days and understanding something of this nature. the first thing that came to mind and one of my first runs to the gate to take people across is this would be a perfect scene -- scenario for a suicide bombing and cause mayhem. one person with luggage exposed could cause ma hem. and unfortunately, this has occurred this afternoon. the first thing that came to mind is this an ideal scenario for a suicide bombing. but nothing happened until today. as i said, the last couple of days, the word out was that isis was planning something like this. >> sandra: jennifer griffin is at the pentagon. >> john: some brand-new video coming into our news room. we

quite but the message seems fairly clear that the likes of dr abdullah abdullah and maybe hamid karzaig some sort of influential role within that government. can i just ask you, and presumably they are pushing the importance of maintaining the role of women as they stand in afghanistan today? yes, of course. one of the topics, one of the main issues that has been part of the discussions, will be part of the discussions has to do with with gendered rights, has to do with certain liberties, such as media rights, freedom of expression, some gains of the last few years in afghanistan. all of those have to be on the table, have to be discussed, and they have to come up with a solution that works for all afghans. right, and that's a good point and it would have to work from the taliban's perspective as well as the others. i've got one last thing i did want to ask you. joe biden has been pretty firm up till now about august 31st as the deadline. now, a little bit of room for manoeuvre that perhaps it could be extended but can you see a situation in which the taliban would accept that? so far

they will move to hamid karzai international airport in kabul within the next 24-48 hours. two of the battalions are u.s. marines and one is an army battalion. the next move will consist of a joint u.s. army-air force support element of around 1000 personnel to facilitate the processing of siv applicants. initial elements of this will arrive in qatar and cutting day -- incoming days. the third movement is to deploy one infantry brigade combat team out of fort to kuwait, where they will be prepared if needed to provide additional security at the airport. we anticipate those forces will reach kuwait within the next week. these forces are being deployed to support the orderly and safe reduction of civilian personnel at the request of the state department tend to help facilitate an accelerated process of working through siv applicants. this is a temporary mission with a narrow focus. as with all deployment of our troops into harm's way, our commanders have the right of self-defense and any attack on them can and will be met with a forceful and appropriate response. as ned price

i think if we think about the future of afghanistan, all these leaders, like hamid karzai and amrullahind some solution and work with taliban to have a strong government, because we really need to solve the afghanistan problem between all these leaders and afghan people. kamila sidiqi, i thank you so much for talking to us from bonn, in germany. thank you. you're welcome. thank you so much. hello. we are going to see some rain lingering across eastern and northern reaches of uk for the remainder of saturday, but the prospect for the remainder of the weekend and into next week are looking a lot drier and clearer. this is the area of low pressure that brought in the rain on saturday. it will take a while for us to pull these fronts to the east, there will be some late brightness towards the southwest, i think, for wales and perhaps the southeast of england too. look out for isolated thundery showers when we see the sun come out. the heaviest persistent rain will be across northern england and southern scotland through the end of the evening. overnight, most of the rain will clear away. w

we appreciate the role the turks have played with hamid karzai international airport. i know president erdogan addressed this in public comments over the past day or so. i will leave it at that. thank you all very much. i appreciate it. [no audio] ♪ [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org] 8 this year marks the 20th anniversary of the september 11 attacks. join us for live coverage from new york, the pentagon, and shanks hill, pennsylvania, -- beginning 7:00 a.m. eastern saturday, september 11th, online at c-span.org, or on the radio app or on c-span. following yesterday's attacks at the kabul airport, house minority leader kevin mccarthy is calling on speaker nancy pelosi to bring the house back into session to address u.s. efforts in afghanistan. this news conference from earlier today is about 20 minutes. podcast. >> following yesterday's attack at the kabul airport, house minority leader kevin mccarthy is calling on speaker meant -- nancy pelosi to bring the house back i

embassy is operating out of hamid karzai international airport. the turks are on the ground at the airport assisting in the security mission we have. i will not speak for their intentions one way or another going forward. there is not going to be -- when the mission is over and when we are leaving the airport, the airport -- the united states -- it is not our responsibility anymore. how it gets managed going forward will be something that the taliban, who are now in kabul, will have to manage on their own. i assume with the international community. that will not be an american response ability. >> how many individuals on terror watch lists have been found at any screen points, either in qutar, rahmstein, or in the u.s.? mr. kirby: i don't know. we will have to get back to you. >> on behalf of the young kim people thank you for your -- the afghan people thank you for your hard job. the afghan people, some are not eligible for a visa. they have a serious problem. they are not in kabul. they are hiding. they move from one place to the other place. th

we appreciate the role the turks have played with hamid karzai international airport. i know president erdogan addressed this in public comments over the past day or so. i will leave it at that. thank you all very much. i appreciate it. [no audio] >> c-span is your unfiltered view of government. we're funded by these television companies and more, including buckeye broadband. ♪ buckeye broadband supports c-span as a public service, along with these other television providers, giving you a front row seat to democracy. >> following yesterday's attack at the kabul airport, house minority leader kevin mccarthy is calling on speaker nancy pelosi to bring the house back into session to address u.s. efforts in afghanistan. his news conference from earlier today is about 20 minutes. >> following yesterday's attack at the kabul airport, house minority leader kevin mccarthy is calling on speaker meant -- nancy pelosi to bring the house back into session to address u.s. efforts in afghanistan. his news conference from earlier today is about 20 minutes.

there are 5800 troops at hamid karzai international airport. some for security over the most important piece of real estate in the country right now, but for many others, this is a humanitarian mission. the military has come with food, water, and medical supplies. here, something as simple as water, large clear plastic bottles, something that's small has an impact on those fleeing for their lives, especially after hours of waiting in the summer heat of afghanistan. a father passes his child to a marine for medical help. the marine had the infant treated and reunited to the family at the airport. >> having prepared and partially executed a meal, nio, a non-combatant, adaptation to changing circumstances. >> reporter: another child passed to marines to underscore how important afghans feel it is to leave the country they once knew. powerful images like this helped defined this evacuation effort. pictures in the crowd and pictures of the people. it is a difficult mission, one the white house acknowledged is a dangerous one. under pressure from the

it's got two airfields compared to hamid karzai's international airport which only has one.son why you'd want to have it. and i'd also be curious to know who recommended to the president that bagram should be closed and given up to know because ultimately the president decides even though he took the recommendation, that's his decision. but the reality is you'd have to surge troops into afghanistan, which could possibly be another risk. you could have even more american casualties on your hands. i mean, how many more innocent afghans will die in that? so i mean that's the risk of going back in and retaking everything. >> also, jim, how would it have complicated the air bridge and getting people there? you know bagram much better than i do. my memories are of this vast space, and you're right. we're now limited to one major runway. it has nothing but space out there, and it did have a hardened perimeter. i remember the drive out there, the junk yards on the right some of them with turrets of russian tanks. but also i remember it being an hour north of the city, more than what

official is telling cnn that just recently as many as five rockets were fired at hamid karzai internationalarce but reporting is as many as five of these rockets were fired at the hamid karzai airport in kabul, kabul international airport. and were engaged by u.s. defense systems there at the airport. still very light on the details as they say. a fluid situation. we'll bring you more details as we get them. all right. quick break when we come back hurricane ida may be losing steam. the damage though far from over. more on the storm's movement and what is in store when we come back. aare packed with air but not planters nuts. our dry roasted peanuts have an incredible ratio of size to substance a delicious, salty, crunchy ratio. planters. a nut above. ♪ ♪ life can be a lot to handle. ♪this magic moment,♪ but there's plenty of magic in all that chaos. ♪so different and so new.♪ ♪was like any other...♪ (man) go on, girl, go on and get help! that's it, girl! [heartwarming music] (man) ah! (burke) smart dog. with farmers crashassist, our signal app can tell when you've been in a crash and can s

how many are at hamid karzai airport and are there other personnel who do not at the airport but in other parts of the city? i am wondering about a breakdown, how many american personnel are at the airport, how many have left, how many might be at the city. mr. price: as you know, we typically do not offer breakdowns like that. we said last night, the americans who had been operating at the embassy had been safely relocated to hamid karzai international airport. it is worth noting that our efforts to reduce the civilian footprint of our embassy, it did not start last week or the week before or last month. april 27, the u.s. embassy went on departure. since april 27, we have conducted several drawdowns to responsibly reduce the size of our civilian footprint. the size of our embassy prior to that ordered departure was much larger, certainly larger than it was a week or two ago. this has been a safe -- we do not offer numbers when it comes to this. it has been a deliberate drawdown of u.s. personnel. my colleague will be briefing, so i am going to cede the floor to him. we will see you tomo

there are hamid karzai airport is open, and commercial flights are going in and out, and it does not, and i don't want to convey the sense that every lift of every individual is going to be done on the military aircraft though they will be made available to support and it is not a limiting factor. and finally, i want to foot stomp on something that i said yesterday, it is a specifically tailored mission to help with the safe removal of personnel in, civilian personnel in kabul as well to help with the special immigration process by the state department that is what we are focused on. as i am able to get more information, and i will provide it to you with the understand that there are operational security concerns, and i won't be able to provide every level of detail as you want, but we will be as transparent as we can. bob? >> you are mentioning the bulk of thettalions will be there by the end of the weekend and is that when the operation will , bob, it has begun. i can't speak to the timing of the state department with respect to their reduction. we wanted to make sure that we were i

personnel have relocated to a facility at the hamid karzai international airport. officials today said the u.s. is put 1g,000 more american troops into kabul to aid if the mass evacuations of u.s. personnel. now, i'm the last person to criticize joe biden's decision to go through with this withdrawal from afghanistan. i support it. but it is botched execution and wishful thinking and it's failure to anticipate the speed of the taliban's advance against demoralized afghan soldiers working for a weak government. made even weaker by corruption. the biden administration failed to prepare for the humanitarian crisis that is unfolding now. for months, the administration has struggled just to evacuate 2,000 interpreters and family members who aided the u.s. coalition in afghanistan. but as many as 100,000 of them have sought asylum. and as the taliban noose tightens around kabul, the number is growing. yet the big lie of america's unstoppable greatness, our military power persists. you can hear it tonight in the voices of experts who argue this were was winnable for a lit

embassy in kabul issued a warning to american citizens, not to travel to hamid karzai international airport until specifically told to. it comes after a president biden press conference, the first time he spoke to report ners ten days since afghanistan fell to the taliban during the biden administration has said quote they have no indication that americans have not been able to get to the airport due to taliban checkpoints. the president revealed that the united states has 6,000 troops on the ground aiding evacuation efforts, although he doesn't have an exact number of how many americans still remain in afghanistan. he also said this administration is committed to evacuating all americans out of the country by august 31st. although that date should be viewed more as a goal than a firm exit date. and that he views evacuating all of the brave afghans who aided americans during the two decades long war, as almost equally important. meanwhile, in afghanistan, and especially in kabul and in and around the airport, the hamid karzai international airport, chaotic scenes continue to play out as the

military aircraft have evacuated more than 79,000 civilians from hamid karzai international airport.ricans and more than 73 73,500 third-country nationals and afghan civilians. this last category includes special immigrant visas, consular staff, at-risk afghans and their families. in total, u.s. and coalition aircraft combined to evacuate more than 123,000 civilians, which were all enabled by u.s. military service members who were securing and operating the airfield. on average, we have evacuated more than 7,500 civilians per day over the 18 days of the mission, which includes 16 full days of evacuations, and more than 19,000 on a single day. these numbers do not include the roughly 5,000 service members and their equipment that were sent to afghanistan to secure the airfield and who were withdrawn at the conclusion of our mission. the numbers i provided represent a monument accomplishment, but they do not do justice to the determination, the grit, the flexibility and the professionalism of the men and women of the u.s. military and our coalition partners who were able to rapidly com

. >> jon: hkia is the hamid karzai international airport.embers former taliban? >> they are. isis-k is an affiliate of the islamic state, the group that was headquartered in syria, iraq. they started getting taliban members to join their groups in the 2015, 16 time frame. while the groups are enemies, but there is suspicion that there are personal relationships between the taliban and isis-k. make no mistake that the taliban and al qaeda are joined at the hip as well. this is terrorist groups that are operating in afghanistan. one of them is going to head the next government. really difficult situation for the united states. as i have said many times before, we wanted to get out of this business in afghanistan, it looks like now we are back in it. >> jon: we also closed the gates to the bagram airfield which was really the -- provided the life blood of our operations in afghanistan. that along with kandahar airfield. why did we do that? and was it a mistake? >> so i think, you know, this is a fair criticism, and so, you know, it is okay to q

outside the abby gate of the hamid karzai international airport in kabul. since then, we have not been able to confirm if there are any casualties and, if so, how many. we are waiting a pentagon briefing set to start any minute now that might begin to answer some of these questions. we've watched several flights take off from the airport in the intervening time. we've heard from our reporters on the ground, both in washington and london, about the possibility that this was something that intelligence was aware of. in fact, americans had been warned against. other western citizens had been warned against this possibility and told to stay away from that gate. we still have clint watts with us. clint, to me, this also highlights how much more difficult this air lift is going to be as we get into the final days, as the pentagon starts to, in the term of art, retrograde the forces that have been conducting this air lift, protecting this airfield, to evacuate your rear guard, as it were seems even more dangerous than what they've been doing the last week or so. >

of america's most wanted terrorists — but also moderate figures such as the former president, hamid karzais of people are continuing their attempt to flee the country. our correspondent, danjohnson, is following developments from delhi. there is still chaos outside the airport, and no real solution to that, no clear way forward for how the foreign forces, the nations that are trying to get people out are going to overcome the crush, the crowds and the taliban checkpoints. and then we've got these talks happening now between the most senior leaders of the taliban and some other political figures across afghanistan. dialogue, discussions about how they're going to form a power structure, a government for the future, and inclusive government, the taliban spokesman put it out there, effective second—in—command, mullah baradar, they're in kabul talking to people like hammond karzai, in kabul talking to people like hamid karzai, the previous president of the country after the us invasion, a moderate voice. and also america's most wanted terrorist, $5 million bounty on his head, yet he could be a

military aircraft have evacuated more than 79,000 civilians from hamid karzai international airport.ians this last category has consular staff, special vias, and at-risk afghans and their families combined to evacuate more than 123,000 civilians which were all enabled by u.s. military service members securing and operating the airfield on average we evacuated more than 7,500 civilians a day, which includes 16 full days of evacuations. more than 19,000 on a single day. these numbers do not include the roughly 5,000 service members and their equipment that were sent to afghanistan to secure the airfield and who were withdrawn at the conclusion of our mission. the numbers i provided represent a monumental accomplish meant, but they do not do justice to the determination, grit and flexibility and the professionalism of the men and women of the u.s. military and our coalition partners who rapidly combined effort and evac waded so many under such different conditions as such, i think it's important to provide you with i hope will be valuable context. when the president directed the complet

the last c-17 lifted off from hamid karzai international airport and the last manned aircraft is now clearing the airspace above afghanistan. >> reporter: central command's general frank mackenzie says the diplomatic sequel now begins, led by secretary of state tony blinken who insists the commitment to afghanistan remains. >> a new chapter of america's engagement with afghanistan has gun. >> reporter: the final hours were, u.s. officials say, the most dangerous. after a massive suicide bombing last week by isis-k that left scores dead including 13 american service americans. early monday morning five rockets were fired at the kabul airport. isis claimed responsibility. the pentagon says its antirocket defense system engaged and no casualties were reported. the vehicle used to launch the rockets turn to ash. it came just hours after u.s. central command said a drone targeted an isis vehicle with a large amount of explosive. the air strike was in a residential kabul neighborhood. >> there was a second explosion that assessed that what was there was going to be used in a high profile a

that's the focus is on making sure that we can get as many people out as possible using hamid karzai international airport. the numbers are showing that it's working. nobody is taking it for granted. don't want to be predictive about tomorrow but it's working. do you have anything to add to that? ok. reporter: the august 31 question is august 31, extending that deadline is it an option for the u.s. anymore? is it wholly dependent on whether the taliban would let a u.s. presence remain in afghanistan past that date? >> our focus is on getting this done by the end of the month, tara. what we do here at the build, the pentagon, is options. our job is to provide the president, the commander in chief, options. as you heard the secretary say, if he gets to a point, he and chairman milley, they believe they get to a point where they believe they need to provide that advice and counsel to the president about an extension he'll do that. you heard the secretary say himself if he had more time on the clock, he would use more time on the clock. but we're focused on getting this done by the end o

building ran a tabletop exercise on what it would be like to run an effective operation out of hamid karzai airport come and we are running that play now. it is not without its challenges for sure, but we are doing that now, and that is the focus, making sure we can get as many people out as possible, using hamid karzai international airport. the numbers are showing that it is working. don't want to be predictive about tomorrow, but it is working. host: jeremy butler, what do you think? guest: first off, i have been watching every one of these press conferences that the print gone -- that the pentagon has been doing at the state department, and i want to give credit to the administration for the frequency with which they are doing that. we might night like -- we might not we might not like everything we are hearing from them, but they do continue to give regular and frequent updates to the country as to what is happening. two point -- one, this idea about using the bagram air base goes back to the frustration have had, which is that we should have been doing this evacuation months, weeks, e

hate to say this, that's a terrorist organization. >> what do you think about your former boss hamid karzaiith taliban leaders? was it a good idea? >> you see, jake, in some point, i mean, i disagree with some of his choices that he made that he started talking to the taliban at the time when i was in the palace. i remember that these peace talks at that time, even i think at that time the united states didn't even want to have a peace deal with the taliban. so i do not agree with some of his choices that he made at the time. but right now the situation in the country, he doesn't have any choice to sit down with them and kind of find out what to do next so they can save the country. i know that everybody's talking about the afghan army didn't fight for their country. please, let's remember for the past 20 years more than 100,000 afghan forces sacrificed their lives, you know, also the u.s. military officers, they sacrificed their lives. so let's not disrespect those lives and make sure that not to blame one side and say who did this. there are a lot of questions that need to be answered, it

. >> president biden delivered remarks from the white house on the terror attack at hamid karzai international airport in afghanistan. president biden: it has been a tough day. this evening in kabul, as you know, terrorists attacked as we pres. biden: it has been a tough day. this evening in kabul, as you all know, terrorists attacked, as we have been talking about and worried about. the intelligence community has assessed, has undertaken an attack by a group known as isis-k. they took the lives of american service members standing guard at the airport, and wounded several others seriously. they also wounded a number of civilians, and civilians were killed, as well. i have been engaged all day in constant contact with military commanders here in washington and the pentagon, as well as in afghanistan and doha. and my commanders here in washington and in the field have been on this with great detail. you have had a chance to speak to some so far. the situation on the ground is still evolving, and i'm constantly being updated. these american service members who gave their lives, it's an overused

look, the hours are ticking by at hamid karzai airport, as you say, wolf. we are getting to the point within the coming hours, we should expect, obviously, to see u.s. troops, the 5,000 or so who are there, beginning to board planes, beginning to pack up their equipment. they need to go. it is going to take them some period of time to get out of there, and it is inevitable, at some point in the not too distant future, they will start that packing up and leaving process. wolf? >> they only have three days left or so to pack up and get out. barbara, we're also learning more about some of these, you know, really brave 13 american service members who lost their lives at that terrorist bombing. first of all, what can you tell us about these men and women? >> reporter: you know, the work they were doing was so dangerous, and everybody knew it. they were as protected as could be, the pentagon says, but everybody knew, you know, they were having to search people coming into the airport. that means putting your hands literally, running your hands over the person in

we still have american soldiers who are targets at hamid karzai airport, we are going to do our best to secure it but nothing technically has changed from tonight to tomorrow. >> shannon: we still have thousands of service members there who are under even increased -- mark, to the point that the president keeps pointing to, the military and the pentagon, and saying that's where he got the advice and he was trying to go with the consensus and make a decision as a commander in chief, if that's the case and this was their best-case scenario -- i don't think anybody can imagine that it was -- are you surprised there haven't been any resignations or firings? do you think there will be any? because the american people see these images and the poll numbers are tanking. i mean, this is firing up a lot of folks. whether they voted for this president or not. >> i agree with everything you said there. we need to -- this needs to be we the people demanding that weather this decision was made by the military leadership and those who are advising the president need to be held accountable as well a

. >> reporter: all ten were able to navigate the treacherous journey through the gates of hamid karzai were in the. these are photos that her family took along the way. we're concealing their identity because she is concerned for their safety while in transit but got great news a few days ago they made it to ramstein air base in germany. >> they're safe and alive. >> reporter: it's nothing less than a miracle that all ten made it out together and she says it's thanks to two men who worked tirelessly to help. powers and aiken. aiken talked with his fellow marines by cell phone as the family was at the gates of the airport. >> i told them i was a marine that served in afghanistan in 2010, the family was close with a close friend of mine, they were in danger and asked marine to marine if there was any way to get them out of there safely. >> if he was not there i would not be able. the whole family including myself needs to give them a new life. >> reporter: all are being processed germany and expects them to come to the u.s. to live with her in dublin. she will be celebrating when they do

what happens if there is combat at hamid karzai airport? what happens then? those are things that clearly the white house hasn't thought through where they are not at least letting us know what those answers might be. >> sandra: and biden will apparently get another briefing from his national security team a bit later on today. trace, great to be with you on this friday afternoon. thanks to everyone for joining us. i'm sandra smith. >> trace: i'm trace gallagher in for john roberts. "the story" begins with martha maccallum right now. ♪ ♪ >> martha: thank you, guys. good afternoon, everybody. i am martha maccallum and afghanistan is spinning out of control, that from the u.n. secretary general speaking moments ago. this is obviously a very fast-moving situation, and it changes literally by the hour with regard to the u.s. embassy and kabul. a lot of questions about what the u.s. position should be there at this point as the taliban threatens to topple the afghan capital next in their relentless rampage across the country. the united states officials telling fo

military presence in afghanistan and that's possibly explains the heightened tension around hamid karzaiinterpreter. >> me and my family because -- but fortunately i escaped from them. it's very, very dangerous. >> we know how many, nick, how many people will be left behind? if they'll get the chance to get out? >> reporter: i think one of the major problems with the whole sib operation is not only how slowly it was operated for years to the point where a federal judge complained about it. the point is now we don't know how many people really are eligible. because they haven't been able to apply. the criteria for applying is a priority, too, on the applications status is potentially represents a wide swath of afghans who worked for ngos and media, et. cetera. it can increase to the tens of thousands of people who are eligible. 117,000 last figures probably gone up a little bit now at the number evacuated. extraordinary flights. it's remarkable effort. the question is how many of those were sib applicants? there's been a lot of talk about the separate channel for entry into the airport ru