McCaul calls for more interviews with Biden officials on ‘chaotic and deadly’ pull out of Afghanistan
The House Foreign Affairs Committee wants to question nine key State Department officials about President Biden’s “messy and deadly” Afghanistan pullout.
The motion by R-Texas committee chair Michael McCaul comes two years after the US military ended its 20-year presence in Afghanistan, when its capital, Kabul, fell to Taliban militants in a lightning-fast offensive.
McCaul wrote in a statement that the nine officials “have important information critical to uncovering how and why the Biden administration’s withdrawal from Afghanistan led to a shameful surrender to the Taliban, the deaths of 13 U.S. soldiers (sic) and the injury of 45 others – all that could have been prevented.
“It was an absolute disaster of epic proportions,” he continued. “…The committee will continue to interview other current and former administration officials involved in the planning and execution of the withdrawal.”
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The US looks back two years after the military pulled out of Afghanistan after two decades. (Aamir Qureshi/AFP via Getty Images/File)
Those summoned include Ross Wilson, former acting US ambassador to Afghanistan, Suzy George, Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s chief of staff, and Zalmay Khalilzad, former US envoy for reconciliation in Afghanistan.
McCaul asked her to schedule the transcribed interviews with the committee by Sept. 7, just days before members of the House of Representatives return from their six-week August break.
Fox News Digital reached out to the State Department for comment but did not immediately receive a response.
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House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Mike McCaul has investigated the chaotic pullout from Afghanistan. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images/File)
On Tuesday, McCaul chaired a committee discussion with the families of the 13 US soldiers who were killed outside Kabul’s then-Hamid Karzai International Airport in the final days of the pullout. The Pentagon concluded last year that a suicide bomber was responsible for the blast that killed 11 Marines, one Army man and one Marine.
He informed them that the committee would meet today with Ambassador Dan Smith, who has been assigned to lead the State Department’s review of the deduction in late 2021.
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Bereaved loved ones took turns sharing how the loss of their loved one affected them and their families. Many accused the Biden administration of mismanaging the operation and later tried to “lie and cover up their failures,” according to one Marine’s mother.
“I can only give you my promise,” McCaul told them. “I will not back down on this investigation. I will fight with every fiber.” [of] my essence and leave no stone unturned until we have the full truth of how the heck this happened.
Gold Star families spoke at a roundtable of the House Foreign Affairs Committee on Tuesday. (screenshot)
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The Pentagon responded to the roundtable in a statement on Tuesday, expressing “deepest condolences” and gratitude to the service members who lost their lives, but also defending the actions of US officials on the day.
“US military commanders on the ground in Afghanistan made the best decisions and provided their best military advice based on what was known at the time, and leaders took appropriate action in response to reported threat flows,” a Pentagon spokesman said . “The investigation at the tactical level concluded that the attack on Abbey Gate could not be prevented without compromising the mission to maximize the number of evacuees and those responsible on the ground followed the correct measures and procedures.”