US gives first public look inside Texas base housing Afghan refugees: LIVE UPDATES
The media was given access to the screening process for Afghan refugees evacuated to the U.S. and being held at Fort Bliss, Texas, during a three-hour tour on Friday. Bliss is one of eight U.S. military installations housing Afghans. Nearly 10,000 Afghan evacuees are staying at the base while they undergo medical and security checks before being resettled in the United States.
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The body of a U.S. Marine killed in a suicide bombing in Afghanistan has returned home to Massachusetts on the 20th anniversary of the attacks that led to the war.
Sgt. Johanny Rosario Pichardo, 25, was among the U.S. service members and Afghans killed in the Aug. 26 bombing near the Kabul airport.
Gov. Charlie Baker, Boston Mayor Kim Janey and U.S. Sen. Edward Markey paid their respects to her family as the body arrived Saturday at Boston’s Logan International Airport.
President Biden on Saturday again defended the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, arguing that the vast majority of Americans wanted to get out -- and asking "How else could you get out?"
Biden was speaking to reporters in Shanksville, Pa., on the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks and was asked about whether the withdrawal of the U.S. forces at the end of August marks a new phase for the country.
"If you had told anybody that we were going to spend $300 million a day for 20 years to try to unite the country after we got [Usama] bin Laden, after al Qaeda was wiped out there," he said. "Can al Qaeda come back? Yeh but guess what? It's already back in other places."
Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Mark Milley honored the 20-year anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks Saturday at the Pentagon, reflecting on the sacrifices made in response to the deadly day and assuring Americans "your sacrifice was not in vain."
"One thing I am certain of for every soldier, sailor, airmen and Marine, for every CIA officer, for every FBI agent, for every cop and fireman, you did your duty, your service mattered, your sacrifice was not in vain," he said from the Pentagon. "Let us resolve here yet again today on this hallowed ground, to never forget, to never forget those who were murdered by terrorists, never forget those who rushed to save their lives."
The general reflected on the U.S. War on Terror that has since ensued and acknowledged that the U.S. faces the same threats from extremism today, as it did 20 years ago.
FILE - In this July 24, 2021 file photo, Former President Donald Trump speaks on a variety of topics to supporters at a Turning Point Action gathering in Phoenix. Credit: AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin
Former President Donald Trump released a video honoring the Americans who died on 9/11 on the 20th anniversary of the terrorist attacks, while also slamming President Biden’s handling of the U.S.’s withdrawal from Afghanistan.
"This is a very sad day. September 11 represents great sorrow for our country. Many things were displayed that day, including most importantly the bravery of our police, fire and first responders of every kind. The job they did was truly unbelievable. We love them and we thank them," Trump said in a video message Saturday.
The former president then launched into an attack on Biden, who "was made to look like a fool" during the U.S.’s withdrawal from Afghanistan last month.
EXCLUSIVE: Former Vice President Mike Pence, reflecting on Sept. 11, 2001, told Fox News on Friday that the "failings" of the Biden administration in Afghanistan "cannot diminish the heroism and service" of U.S. military men and women, saying the security of the United States in the last 20 years is a "tribute to the sacrifice" of this "generation of heroes."
During an exclusive interview with Fox News, the former vice president shared a message to military families who have lost loved ones, as well as active duty and veteran members of the U.S. armed forces.
"We are going to mark tomorrow, 20 years to the day since 9/11, without having had a major terrorist attack on American soil," Pence said. "That is owing, entirely, to the men and women who stepped forward to defend freedom in Afghanistan and in the War on Terror."
White House press secretary Jen Psaki speaks at a press briefing at the White House in Washington, Thursday, Sept. 9, 2021. Credit: AP Photo/Andrew Harnik
The White House said on Friday that the U.S. has temporarily suspended flights of Afghan evacuees into the country after four measles cases among recent arrivals.
It said the move was made "out of an abundance of caution."
"‘Operation Allies Welcome’ flights into the United States have been temporarily paused at the request of the [Centers for Disease Control] and out of an abundance of caution because of four diagnosed cases of measles among Afghans who recently arrived in the United States," White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki told reporters.
She said that individuals are being quarantined and that the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has begun full contact tracing.
The U.S. government's account of a drone strike launched against a suspected terrorist in Afghanistan toward the end of the military withdrawal from Kabul is being challenged by a report suggesting the victim was not a threat to the United States.
According to a New York Times report, the drone attack that American officials said killed an ISIS terrorist carrying a bomb in a car toward U.S. troops may have killed a man with no ties to ISIS and who was carrying water to family members.
American military officials announced late last month that the drone strike was in response to an imminent threat by suspected suicide bombers.
The Times says that after reviewing video evidence and interviewing more than a dozen of the driver’s friends and family members in Kabul, it has doubts about the U.S. version of events.
Click here to read more on Fox News.
A man walks with a child through Fort Bliss' Doña Ana Village where Afghan refugees are being housed, in New Mexico, Friday, Sept. 10, 2021. The Biden administration provided the first public look inside the U.S. military base where Afghans airlifted out of Afghanistan are screened, amid questions about how the government is caring for the refugees and vetting them. (AP Photo/David Goldman)
The Biden administration allowed reporters to see inside Fort Bliss in Texas where refugees evacuated from Afghanistan are being screened and held before being relocated.
“Every Afghan who is here with us has endured a harrowing journey and they are now faced with the very real challenges of acclimating with life in the United States,” Liz Gracon, a senior State Department official, told reporters.
The three-hour tour was the first time the media has been granted broad access to one of the eight U.S. military installations housing Afghans but reporters weren't allowed to speak with evacuees.
Nearly 10,000 Afghan evacuees are staying at the base while they undergo medical and security checks before being resettled in the United States.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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