Tennessee Representative Mark Green (R-07-TN) said after the suicide bomber attacks, it is time to extend the Taliban’s August 31 withdrawal deadline “indefinitely.” Green says that the attacks from terrorists broke the safe passage agreement between the Taliban and the United States. Green, a former military veteran who helped in the Iraq mission to capture Saddam Hussein, called the situation “disgusting.”
The Taliban broke the safe passage agreement—now is the time to extend the Aug 31 deadline indefinitely. With @VarneyCo on @FoxBusiness: pic.twitter.com/ugdvZ8HL3G
— Rep. Mark Green (@RepMarkGreen) August 26, 2021
The Pentagon Defense and other military officials held a press conference on Thursday afternoon and they explained what occurred in Afghanistan early Thursday morning. General Kenneth McKenzie shared that the Taliban were guarding several checkpoints near Abbey Gate at the Kabul airport and the Marines guarding a final checkpoint before reaching the airport.
The suicide bomber detonated once they reached the Marines, after passing through several Taliban checkpoints. The generals and military officials stated that at this time, they are unsure if the Taliban were responsible for the incident.
Green said in an interview with Fox Business that this was “absolutely” what should have been “expected to happen.” He said that in his opinion one of the biggest mistakes was concentrating all of the United States military forces in one location. Green explained that the “multinational terrorist organizations” are “extremely organized.”
“If you were planning on how to screw it up, this is exactly how you would do it.” Green said, sharing his feelings of sorrow and depression over what is going on in Afghanistan.
Green said he puts the blame on President Joe Biden. He said Biden is the one “setting the troop caps” which led to troops stationed in Afghanistan being unable to man Bagram Air Base.
Green said, “The generals did what they were told to do and advised the president not to do that, but he did it anyway.” He went on to say there “will absolutely be” Americans who are left in Afghanistan if officials stick to the August 31 withdrawal deadline set by Taliban leaders. Green also said he believes this has the potential to develop into a hostage situation.
Green called the incident a “failure of the Taliban to keep their promise.” He said that the Taliban promised that they would ensure safe and secure passage for Americans and American allies and they “failed.”
He said that what happened sets a precedent to tell the Taliban that the United States will not be gone from Afghanistan until every American and ally is evacuated. He said, “Come on, Mr. President. Let’s use this incident to get every American out of there.” Green does not believe that the president will do so, however.
He said he believes the president is either “lying or has no idea what is actually going on.”
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Hayley Tschetter is a reporter with The Minnesota Sun | Star News Network. Follow Hayley on Twitter or like her Facebook page. Send news tips to [email protected].
