The U.S. administration is still attempting to right its last act in Afghanistan, an attack that killed 10 people, including seven children, nearly a year later.
In the final days of the U.S. exit from Afghanistan, a U.S. airstrike targeting an ISIS-K terrorist instead killed charity worker Zemari Ahmadi and his family.
After first calling it a “righteous strike” and asserting that no civilians were killed, the Pentagon accepted its error and pledged to relocate Ahmadi’s family and the staff of the relief organization he worked for.
Since then, eleven of the 144 people who merit this type of aid have been resettled by the U.S. government. Brett Max Kaufman, a senior staff attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union who represents Ahmadi’s family members and coworkers, asserts the following.
Thirty-two individuals are still in Afghanistan, awaiting evacuation.
Afghanistan Drone Strike
On September 13, 2021, Amal Ahmadi, 32, holds a photograph of his murdered brother Zemerai Ahmadi in the family home in Kabul, Afghanistan.
“The fact that some members of Zemari’s family have begun to rebuild their lives in America is unquestionably excellent news. However, the government has not done enough, and many of our clients continue to be in risk “Kaufman said in a statement.
The individuals who are not in Afghanistan or the United States are undergoing relocation processing in Albania, Doha, and Kosovo.
The first of the eleven family members to arrive in the United States arrived in May, while the last arrived in July.
“The Department of Defense, in collaboration with other U.S. Government departments and agencies, is continuing to respond to the August 29, 2021 attack in Kabul, Afghanistan,” said acting Pentagon Press Secretary Todd Breasseale.
“In order to safeguard the safety and security of the family members, as well as their privacy, we are unable to give any details regarding these efforts at this time.”
As the U.S. government worked through the procedure, the organizations representing Ahmadi’s family remained silent. However, in anticipation of the one-year anniversary, they have decided to inform the public that there are still individuals in risk in Afghanistan.
The strike that killed Ahmadi and his family members was the consequence of intelligence indicating that a white Toyota Corolla-driving ISIS-K terrorist was plotting an attack on the Kabul airport. Two days ago, a terrorist attack by ISIS-K at the Abbey Gate at the airport murdered 13 American service members and almost 200 Afghan civilians.
The commander of U.S. forces in the Middle East during the Afghanistan evacuation, Gen. Kenneth McKenzie, held a press conference weeks later to admit that the strike was a regrettable error.
In October of 2021, Dr. Colin Kahl, the Undersecretary of Defense for Policy, met virtually with Dr. Steven Kwon, the founder and president of NEI, which hired Ahmadi.
According to a readout provided at the time by Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby, Kahl stated that the strike was a mistake and promised sympathy compensation as well as assistance for Ahmadi’s family members who desired to relocate to the United States.
Kwon stated, in a statement to CBS News on Tuesday, “After months of frustration and lack of progress, a significant portion of the vulnerable population in Afghanistan has been evacuated. Nonetheless, I continue to fear for the people — including Zemari’s family members and our NEI coworkers — who are currently stranded in Afghanistan without a plan or timetable to leave.”
Attorney Kaufman of the ACLU stated in an interview that the priority is getting the surviving individuals out of Afghanistan and resettled, after which conversations on condolence money will proceed.