State Department Report Unveils Catastrophic Failings in Afghanistan Withdrawal

Thousands of Afghans and their families, desperate to flee the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan, gather at Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul in August 2021. (Lance Cpl. Nicholas Guevara/AP)

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDXE3GDgbHCbkkN4OjSCSIHzadZ0Z9S2X

In a scathing State Department report released on Friday, the agency’s crisis management and awareness before and during the fall of Afghanistan came under heavy scrutiny. The findings are sure to be amplified by Republicans and other critics who have long accused bureaucratic lethargy of contributing to the chaos and violence that unfolded nearly two years ago, marking one of the darkest moments of the Biden administration.

The report highlights the failure of both President Biden and his predecessor, Donald Trump, to fully grasp the ramifications of a U.S. military pullout on the stability of the Afghan government. Additionally, standard summer diplomatic rotations leading up to Kabul’s collapse left the U.S. evacuation in the hands of personnel who had little experience, some having been in the country for only a few days or weeks.

The critical missteps exposed in the report provide fresh evidence of the mayhem that thrust Afghanistan into the clutches of the oppressive Taliban regime. The aftermath resulted in the loss of many Afghan lives and 13 U.S. service members, leading to a significant dip in Biden’s approval ratings. The timing of the report’s release, just ahead of a long holiday weekend, is likely to fuel anger from those who believe the administration has attempted to downplay scrutiny of its actions during the spring and summer of 2021. Notably, the State Department redacted significant portions of the report, citing security concerns. The analysis primarily focuses on actions and reforms within the agency itself, separate from accounts produced by the White House or the Pentagon regarding the final chapter of the 20-year war.

At various levels, the report targets failings that contributed to the debacle. Officials at the top showed “insufficient senior-level consideration of worst-case scenarios and how quickly those might follow” after the decision to withdraw the U.S. military from Afghanistan was confirmed.

Before the Afghan government’s collapse, it was unclear who held the lead in preparations for a full evacuation, hindering the State Department’s participation in planning, despite the military’s prior efforts on the matter.

As the Taliban closed in on Kabul during the full withdrawal, the Biden administration’s communication caused the evacuation to descend into chaos and danger. The constantly changing policy guidance from Washington about who was eligible for relocation added to the confusion, failing to account for crucial realities on the ground. This exacerbated an already messy situation where independent individuals and organizations tried organizing rescue missions for Afghans, diverting resources from a more systematic effort by U.S. personnel on the ground.

Lower-level issues also contributed to the chaos. A COVID-19 outbreak at the embassy in June 2021 resulted in a strict lockdown, further complicating collaboration and receiving classified briefings during the intense military pullout.

The State Department’s failure to extend the standard one-year hardship rotations of its diplomats in response to the country’s instability made the embassy exceptionally vulnerable during Kabul’s collapse. Much of the staff had either recently turned over or were still on their way to Afghanistan.

The Afghanistan exit involved a frantic and deadly two-week evacuation from Kabul in August 2021, successfully rescuing over 120,000 people through an extraordinary airlift effort led by the U.S. military. However, tens of thousands who had supported the American war effort over two decades were left behind, marred by tragedy, including a gruesome suicide bombing, a flawed U.S. drone strike killing innocent civilians, and deadly surging crowds.

The report also acknowledges “differences in style and decision-making” between the Trump and Biden administrations, emphasizing the relative lack of an interagency process under Trump and the intense interagency process during the early period of Biden’s administration. The latter included a focus on identifying eligible Afghans who had worked with the U.S. government, striving to facilitate their evacuation from the country.