1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:00,000 2 00:00:06,740 --> 00:00:08,684 Good morning . Everyone , I'll get 3 00:00:08,684 --> 00:00:11,480 right into our operational update for 4 00:00:11,480 --> 00:00:15,300 today . Yesterday . U . S . Military 5 00:00:15,300 --> 00:00:18,960 forces conducted and over the horizon 6 00:00:18,960 --> 00:00:22,710 counterterrorism operation against an 7 00:00:22,850 --> 00:00:26,360 ISIS K . Planner uh and facilitator . 8 00:00:27,140 --> 00:00:29,390 The airstrike occurred in the Nangarhar 9 00:00:29,390 --> 00:00:32,650 province of Afghanistan . I can confirm 10 00:00:32,650 --> 00:00:35,330 as more information has come in that 11 00:00:35,330 --> 00:00:38,380 too high profile ISIS targets were 12 00:00:38,380 --> 00:00:41,890 killed and one was wounded and we know 13 00:00:41,890 --> 00:00:45,790 of zero civilian casualties . Without 14 00:00:45,800 --> 00:00:48,770 specifying any future plans . I will 15 00:00:48,770 --> 00:00:50,881 say that we will continue to have the 16 00:00:50,881 --> 00:00:52,960 ability to defend ourselves and to 17 00:00:52,960 --> 00:00:55,730 leverage over the horizon capability to 18 00:00:55,730 --> 00:00:59,350 conduct counterterrorism operations as 19 00:00:59,350 --> 00:01:03,160 needed . We continue to evacuate 20 00:01:03,170 --> 00:01:05,003 american citizens and vulnerable 21 00:01:05,003 --> 00:01:07,350 afghans out of Kabul . In fact , there 22 00:01:07,350 --> 00:01:11,240 are approximately 1400 individuals at 23 00:01:11,240 --> 00:01:13,018 the Kabul airport who have been 24 00:01:13,018 --> 00:01:15,960 screened and manifested for flights 25 00:01:15,970 --> 00:01:18,980 today . As I said yesterday , we have 26 00:01:18,980 --> 00:01:21,050 the ability to include evacuees on 27 00:01:21,050 --> 00:01:23,650 military airlift out of Afghanistan 28 00:01:23,660 --> 00:01:27,230 until the very end . This is a massive 29 00:01:27,240 --> 00:01:29,860 military diplomatic security and 30 00:01:29,860 --> 00:01:32,082 humanitarian undertaking for the United 31 00:01:32,082 --> 00:01:34,760 States and our allies . And so I'll 32 00:01:34,760 --> 00:01:36,990 give you a specific update of the last 33 00:01:36,990 --> 00:01:40,940 24 yesterday . 32 US military aircraft , 34 00:01:40,960 --> 00:01:44,160 27 C 17 S and five C one thirties 35 00:01:44,200 --> 00:01:46,770 departed with approximately 4000 36 00:01:46,770 --> 00:01:50,120 personnel Combined with 34 coalition 37 00:01:50,120 --> 00:01:52,970 aircraft departures . An additional 38 00:01:52,970 --> 00:01:56,520 2800 personnel left Kabul for 39 00:01:56,520 --> 00:02:00,020 various intermediate staging basis . 66 40 00:02:00,020 --> 00:02:02,131 flights left out of Kabul yesterday . 41 00:02:02,131 --> 00:02:05,820 In that 24 hour period with 6800 42 00:02:05,830 --> 00:02:09,260 evacuees . Today , I can report an 43 00:02:09,260 --> 00:02:11,371 updated total evacuation that is more 44 00:02:11,371 --> 00:02:15,170 than 117,000 , the vast 45 00:02:15,170 --> 00:02:18,040 majority of which are afghans of this . 46 00:02:18,040 --> 00:02:21,860 Total number . Approximately 5400 47 00:02:21,870 --> 00:02:25,680 are American citizens . This is an 48 00:02:25,680 --> 00:02:27,902 incredible number of people who are now 49 00:02:27,902 --> 00:02:30,400 safer . Thanks to the heroism of the 50 00:02:30,400 --> 00:02:32,450 young men and women who are putting 51 00:02:32,450 --> 00:02:34,450 their lives on the line each day to 52 00:02:34,450 --> 00:02:37,360 evacuate american and vulnerable 53 00:02:37,360 --> 00:02:41,030 afghans out of kabul , threats to our 54 00:02:41,030 --> 00:02:43,980 forces into this operation remain real 55 00:02:44,230 --> 00:02:46,280 and significant . I'm sure you can 56 00:02:46,280 --> 00:02:48,113 appreciate that . And now as the 57 00:02:48,113 --> 00:02:50,490 military mission begins to end in kabul , 58 00:02:50,650 --> 00:02:52,483 thousands of service members are 59 00:02:52,483 --> 00:02:54,706 working across the globe and within the 60 00:02:54,706 --> 00:02:56,428 United States to complete this 61 00:02:56,428 --> 00:02:59,020 incredibly important mission out of the 62 00:02:59,020 --> 00:03:01,180 UK . Um A . R six flights will 63 00:03:01,180 --> 00:03:04,040 transport about 2000 afghans to the 64 00:03:04,040 --> 00:03:06,750 United States . Since August 20 , the 65 00:03:06,750 --> 00:03:10,290 Yukon Naor has received nearly 30,000 66 00:03:10,300 --> 00:03:13,670 vulnerable Afghans and evacuees . A 67 00:03:13,670 --> 00:03:15,837 good example of how we're building out 68 00:03:15,837 --> 00:03:18,003 capacity as we execute this incredibly 69 00:03:18,003 --> 00:03:20,226 important mission . A flight from Italy 70 00:03:20,226 --> 00:03:22,392 will fly to philadelphia International 71 00:03:22,392 --> 00:03:25,750 Airport the second us onward location 72 00:03:25,760 --> 00:03:28,520 to receive flights as North com 73 00:03:28,520 --> 00:03:30,742 Commander General Van Herck said in his 74 00:03:30,742 --> 00:03:32,850 brief yesterday , our total capacity 75 00:03:32,850 --> 00:03:35,700 across multiple U . S . Installations 76 00:03:35,750 --> 00:03:38,600 is approximately 21,000 and growing 77 00:03:38,690 --> 00:03:40,801 were steadily working to increase the 78 00:03:40,801 --> 00:03:44,060 capacity to 50,000 by september 15th . 79 00:03:45,740 --> 00:03:47,907 Right now we are hosting approximately 80 00:03:47,907 --> 00:03:50,950 8000 Afghan applicants at Fort McCoy , 81 00:03:50,960 --> 00:03:54,070 Fort Bliss , Fort Lee and Joint Base 82 00:03:54,080 --> 00:03:57,500 McGuire Dix Ling Lakehurst a 83 00:03:57,500 --> 00:03:59,990 dedicated team of military civilian 84 00:03:59,990 --> 00:04:02,380 contract personnel are working closely 85 00:04:02,380 --> 00:04:04,047 with numerous agencies , both 86 00:04:04,047 --> 00:04:06,269 government and non government to ensure 87 00:04:06,269 --> 00:04:08,269 further requirements and additional 88 00:04:08,269 --> 00:04:11,090 capabilities are available . We will 89 00:04:11,090 --> 00:04:13,560 keep you updated on this on this effort . 90 00:04:14,040 --> 00:04:16,070 South com continues to conduct 91 00:04:16,070 --> 00:04:18,750 humanitarian relief operations in Haiti 92 00:04:19,140 --> 00:04:21,420 and North . Um , while simultaneously 93 00:04:21,420 --> 00:04:23,400 executing evacuation flights is 94 00:04:23,400 --> 00:04:26,020 postured to support fema as the lead 95 00:04:26,020 --> 00:04:28,180 federal agency and preparing for 96 00:04:28,180 --> 00:04:31,890 Tropical storm ida . Lastly , I want to 97 00:04:31,890 --> 00:04:34,057 share that . The Department of Defense 98 00:04:34,057 --> 00:04:36,223 will shortly announce the names of the 99 00:04:36,223 --> 00:04:38,334 13 service members who were killed in 100 00:04:38,334 --> 00:04:40,860 service to their country . We grieve 101 00:04:40,860 --> 00:04:42,971 with the Gold Star families , friends 102 00:04:42,971 --> 00:04:44,693 and loved ones of our fallen . 103 00:04:47,140 --> 00:04:49,140 They will be remembered and revered 104 00:04:49,140 --> 00:04:51,084 among americans who have served in 105 00:04:51,084 --> 00:04:53,640 Afghanistan in operations . Freedom 106 00:04:53,640 --> 00:04:57,360 sentinel and enduring freedom . Yeah . 107 00:05:01,340 --> 00:05:03,451 Okay , I don't have anything to add . 108 00:05:03,451 --> 00:05:05,507 So we'll go right to questions bob . 109 00:05:05,507 --> 00:05:07,673 Thank you john couple questions on the 110 00:05:07,673 --> 00:05:10,460 strike last night in Afghanistan . 111 00:05:10,940 --> 00:05:14,230 General Taylor just said that two high 112 00:05:14,230 --> 00:05:16,230 profile targets were killed and one 113 00:05:16,230 --> 00:05:19,210 wounded . Uh , initial announcements I 114 00:05:19,210 --> 00:05:21,780 think said one , this was all the same 115 00:05:21,780 --> 00:05:23,891 strike . Was it a single strike ? And 116 00:05:23,891 --> 00:05:26,002 can you explain anymore about whether 117 00:05:26,002 --> 00:05:27,790 these individuals were directly 118 00:05:27,790 --> 00:05:29,790 involved in the thursday bombing at 119 00:05:29,790 --> 00:05:32,170 Kabul airport ? So it was without 120 00:05:32,170 --> 00:05:35,290 getting into too much tactical detail 121 00:05:35,290 --> 00:05:38,420 in terms of munitions used . I would 122 00:05:38,420 --> 00:05:42,400 tell you it was a single mission and uh , 123 00:05:42,410 --> 00:05:46,410 to get these targets and as 124 00:05:47,100 --> 00:05:49,267 the assessments and information flowed 125 00:05:49,267 --> 00:05:52,770 over time . Uh , we were able to 126 00:05:52,770 --> 00:05:56,000 recognize that another was killed as 127 00:05:56,000 --> 00:05:58,870 well uh and and and one wounded . So I 128 00:05:58,870 --> 00:06:01,170 mean battle damage assessment as you 129 00:06:01,170 --> 00:06:03,281 know sometimes takes time information 130 00:06:03,281 --> 00:06:05,392 comes in as we have more clarity . We 131 00:06:05,392 --> 00:06:07,503 wanted to be transparent about that . 132 00:06:07,503 --> 00:06:09,837 But the planner facilitator description , 133 00:06:09,837 --> 00:06:11,726 does that mean they were involved 134 00:06:11,726 --> 00:06:13,892 directly in the kabul airport attack ? 135 00:06:13,892 --> 00:06:15,670 They were ISIS K . Planners and 136 00:06:15,670 --> 00:06:17,910 facilitators . Uh And that's enough 137 00:06:17,910 --> 00:06:21,600 reason there alone , I won't speak 138 00:06:21,600 --> 00:06:24,570 to the details of this , of these 139 00:06:24,570 --> 00:06:27,190 individuals are what their specific 140 00:06:27,200 --> 00:06:29,640 roles might be . But as the general 141 00:06:29,640 --> 00:06:32,170 said , we have the ability and the 142 00:06:32,170 --> 00:06:34,170 means to carry out over the horizon 143 00:06:34,170 --> 00:06:36,392 counterterrorism capabilities and we're 144 00:06:36,392 --> 00:06:38,559 gonna we're gonna defend ourselves and 145 00:06:38,559 --> 00:06:40,781 just leave it at that . Thank you . I'd 146 00:06:40,781 --> 00:06:40,000 like to ask you another question about 147 00:06:40,010 --> 00:06:42,232 just about the airport situation at the 148 00:06:42,232 --> 00:06:44,343 moment . Is it true that only U . S . 149 00:06:44,343 --> 00:06:46,566 Passport holders are being allowed onto 150 00:06:46,566 --> 00:06:48,788 the airport now through the gates . Any 151 00:06:48,788 --> 00:06:50,899 U . S . Passport holder that wants to 152 00:06:50,899 --> 00:06:53,220 get in , you can get in and we are 153 00:06:53,220 --> 00:06:55,880 still if I'm wrong here , I don't think 154 00:06:55,880 --> 00:06:57,547 I'm wrong . Well we are still 155 00:06:57,547 --> 00:07:01,380 processing and getting on planes . S 156 00:07:01,380 --> 00:07:03,710 ivy applicants as well as vulnerable 157 00:07:03,710 --> 00:07:05,710 afghans were being allowed onto the 158 00:07:05,710 --> 00:07:08,110 airport as far as I know . Yeah . Okay 159 00:07:08,120 --> 00:07:09,953 thank you . I don't think that's 160 00:07:09,953 --> 00:07:12,120 changed . Can you give us the names of 161 00:07:12,120 --> 00:07:14,009 the two individuals killed in the 162 00:07:14,009 --> 00:07:16,340 strike ? No we're not going to release 163 00:07:16,340 --> 00:07:18,400 the names because we're not gonna 164 00:07:18,400 --> 00:07:20,400 release the names . Um and if I can 165 00:07:20,400 --> 00:07:22,344 just go back to Thursday's suicide 166 00:07:22,344 --> 00:07:24,420 bombing , um there appeared to be 167 00:07:24,420 --> 00:07:26,642 images and reports from the ground that 168 00:07:26,642 --> 00:07:28,864 some of the Afghan civilians killed may 169 00:07:28,864 --> 00:07:30,920 have been shot by the marines at the 170 00:07:30,920 --> 00:07:32,864 gate at this point in time . Since 171 00:07:32,864 --> 00:07:34,698 we're 48 hours . Do you have any 172 00:07:34,698 --> 00:07:36,920 evidence that the marines or any of the 173 00:07:36,920 --> 00:07:39,087 U . S . Troops may have shot , injured 174 00:07:39,087 --> 00:07:41,370 or wounded ? We don't we can't confirm 175 00:07:41,370 --> 00:07:44,160 that uh , certainly not a position to 176 00:07:44,160 --> 00:07:46,271 deny it either . We are investigating 177 00:07:46,271 --> 00:07:48,271 this and as we get more information 178 00:07:48,271 --> 00:07:50,493 that we can reliably communicate to you 179 00:07:50,493 --> 00:07:53,260 about this incident , we will um , 180 00:07:54,040 --> 00:07:57,080 yeah , formation , another dire warning 181 00:07:57,080 --> 00:07:59,302 saying , don't approach the gates , Did 182 00:07:59,302 --> 00:08:02,250 this airstrike have anything to do with 183 00:08:02,260 --> 00:08:04,700 that potential for future attack . Can 184 00:08:04,700 --> 00:08:06,811 you talk about what capabilities ISIS 185 00:08:06,811 --> 00:08:08,780 might have lost um , in this storm 186 00:08:08,780 --> 00:08:11,780 strike ? Well , a couple of things , uh , 187 00:08:11,780 --> 00:08:14,002 I'll let the State Department speak for 188 00:08:14,002 --> 00:08:16,169 the advisory they sent out , uh , that 189 00:08:16,169 --> 00:08:18,280 is not uncommon for them to do that , 190 00:08:18,280 --> 00:08:20,002 particularly in a country like 191 00:08:20,002 --> 00:08:22,058 Afghanistan . And they're constantly 192 00:08:22,058 --> 00:08:24,280 watching uh , the threat environment as 193 00:08:24,280 --> 00:08:26,336 are we and they're doing the prudent 194 00:08:26,336 --> 00:08:29,530 responsible thing to inform americans 195 00:08:29,540 --> 00:08:31,910 there in Kabul about what's best for 196 00:08:31,910 --> 00:08:34,077 their own safety . But again , I think 197 00:08:34,077 --> 00:08:36,243 that the State Department speak to the 198 00:08:36,243 --> 00:08:38,354 rationale there , obviously , again , 199 00:08:38,354 --> 00:08:40,577 they're they're they're doing what they 200 00:08:40,577 --> 00:08:42,521 believe they need to do to to keep 201 00:08:42,521 --> 00:08:44,521 people safe . I'm not going to talk 202 00:08:44,521 --> 00:08:46,810 about specific capabilities , ISIS may 203 00:08:46,810 --> 00:08:48,977 have lost in this strike , they lost a 204 00:08:48,977 --> 00:08:51,199 planner and they lost a facilitator and 205 00:08:51,199 --> 00:08:53,254 they've got one wounded . Uh and the 206 00:08:53,254 --> 00:08:55,421 fact that two of these individuals are 207 00:08:55,421 --> 00:08:57,477 no longer walking on the face of the 208 00:08:57,477 --> 00:08:59,532 earth . That's a good thing . It's a 209 00:08:59,532 --> 00:09:01,143 good thing for the people of 210 00:09:01,143 --> 00:09:03,254 Afghanistan and it's a good thing for 211 00:09:03,254 --> 00:09:02,620 our troops and our forces at that 212 00:09:02,620 --> 00:09:04,731 airfield . And I think I'm just going 213 00:09:04,731 --> 00:09:06,787 to leave it there and to follow up . 214 00:09:06,787 --> 00:09:08,787 Can you discuss the level of threat 215 00:09:08,787 --> 00:09:08,450 right now ? At the airport , we've seen 216 00:09:08,450 --> 00:09:11,550 a number of allies , Uhh bring their 217 00:09:11,560 --> 00:09:13,727 evacuation operations to close early . 218 00:09:13,727 --> 00:09:15,782 Will the us still stay there through 219 00:09:15,782 --> 00:09:18,350 the 31st ? We are going to complete 220 00:09:18,350 --> 00:09:20,517 this mission by the end of the month . 221 00:09:20,517 --> 00:09:22,517 We've said that nothing has changed 222 00:09:22,517 --> 00:09:24,628 about the timeline for us and we will 223 00:09:24,628 --> 00:09:27,020 do this as safe and orderly way as 224 00:09:27,020 --> 00:09:29,810 possible . And that includes being able 225 00:09:29,810 --> 00:09:31,977 to continue to evacuate right up until 226 00:09:31,977 --> 00:09:34,199 the end . But what about the threats at 227 00:09:34,199 --> 00:09:36,199 the airport ? Can you describe what 228 00:09:36,199 --> 00:09:38,143 they threats are still very real . 229 00:09:38,143 --> 00:09:39,921 They're very dynamic and we are 230 00:09:39,921 --> 00:09:42,199 monitoring them literally in real time . 231 00:09:42,199 --> 00:09:44,366 And as I said yesterday , we're taking 232 00:09:44,366 --> 00:09:46,588 all the means necessary to make sure we 233 00:09:46,588 --> 00:09:48,810 remain focused on that threat stream uh 234 00:09:48,810 --> 00:09:50,588 and doing what we can for force 235 00:09:50,588 --> 00:09:53,060 protection . A couple of questions 236 00:09:53,060 --> 00:09:54,949 first for you , john have U . S . 237 00:09:54,949 --> 00:09:57,190 Troops begun retrograde withdrawal from 238 00:09:57,190 --> 00:09:59,079 the airport . We have a gun retro 239 00:09:59,079 --> 00:10:01,134 grading . You say anything about the 240 00:10:01,134 --> 00:10:03,190 number who have left . No I cannot . 241 00:10:03,190 --> 00:10:05,468 And then General taylor for you please . 242 00:10:05,468 --> 00:10:07,880 The numbers of military aircraft who 243 00:10:07,890 --> 00:10:09,890 have left are relatively consistent 244 00:10:09,890 --> 00:10:11,890 with where they've been for several 245 00:10:11,890 --> 00:10:13,946 days but the number of passengers on 246 00:10:13,946 --> 00:10:16,057 them is down from where it was . Does 247 00:10:16,057 --> 00:10:15,560 that mean that the U . S . Is now 248 00:10:15,560 --> 00:10:17,338 starting to move some equipment 249 00:10:17,338 --> 00:10:19,338 military equipment on this or their 250 00:10:19,338 --> 00:10:21,671 planes that are going out just not full ? 251 00:10:21,671 --> 00:10:23,800 As we said , you know our mission to 252 00:10:23,810 --> 00:10:27,210 continue evacuating Those as required 253 00:10:27,220 --> 00:10:30,100 and to meet the mission requirement by 254 00:10:30,100 --> 00:10:32,980 August 31 is what the commanders are 255 00:10:32,980 --> 00:10:34,869 executed . So does that mean that 256 00:10:34,869 --> 00:10:37,036 you're starting to take some equipment 257 00:10:37,036 --> 00:10:39,202 out on these aircraft or does it or do 258 00:10:39,202 --> 00:10:41,369 you not have enough passengers ? There 259 00:10:41,369 --> 00:10:40,980 is equipment leaving on those flights 260 00:10:40,980 --> 00:10:43,040 to that was originally planned . And 261 00:10:43,040 --> 00:10:45,850 then if I could ask one more since then 262 00:10:45,940 --> 00:10:48,051 have there been any attacks ? General 263 00:10:48,051 --> 00:10:50,218 Mackenzie talked about how the Taliban 264 00:10:50,218 --> 00:10:52,051 had thwarted some attacks before 265 00:10:52,051 --> 00:10:54,273 thursday's attack . Have there been any 266 00:10:54,273 --> 00:10:56,384 other cases that you're aware of that 267 00:10:56,384 --> 00:10:58,273 the Taliban have actually stopped 268 00:10:58,273 --> 00:11:00,384 Attackers from getting in towards the 269 00:11:00,384 --> 00:11:02,607 airport . I don't have specific reports 270 00:11:02,607 --> 00:11:04,829 of that other than as you can see as we 271 00:11:04,829 --> 00:11:07,200 just talked the security of the base is 272 00:11:07,200 --> 00:11:09,200 the most important thing that we're 273 00:11:09,200 --> 00:11:11,170 doing to allow us to continue our 274 00:11:11,170 --> 00:11:14,660 mission Even so john uh 275 00:11:15,240 --> 00:11:17,184 you said the threat at the airport 276 00:11:17,184 --> 00:11:19,550 remains active and dynamic ? Uh huh . 277 00:11:20,540 --> 00:11:22,860 Is it fair to say that whether or not 278 00:11:23,430 --> 00:11:27,060 those people killed last night deserved 279 00:11:27,070 --> 00:11:29,181 me on the face of the earth and now , 280 00:11:29,181 --> 00:11:32,750 Okay , the threat at the airport 281 00:11:33,340 --> 00:11:36,970 remains unchanged . I wouldn't say that 282 00:11:36,970 --> 00:11:39,020 it remains unchanged . I didn't say 283 00:11:39,020 --> 00:11:41,020 that . I said it remains active and 284 00:11:41,020 --> 00:11:43,680 dynamic and it does . Is it as serious 285 00:11:43,680 --> 00:11:45,791 as it was yesterday ? It is a serious 286 00:11:45,791 --> 00:11:49,680 threat ? I'm not sure well how 287 00:11:49,680 --> 00:11:51,791 any potential terrorist threat can be 288 00:11:51,791 --> 00:11:54,040 anything other than serious or that we 289 00:11:54,040 --> 00:11:56,262 shouldn't take it seriously seriously . 290 00:11:56,262 --> 00:11:59,480 Yesterday you denied the Taliban 291 00:11:59,480 --> 00:12:03,330 claimed that they had assumed uh 292 00:12:03,340 --> 00:12:06,060 responsibility for security of some 293 00:12:06,060 --> 00:12:08,880 parts of the airport . Is that still 294 00:12:08,880 --> 00:12:12,690 the case that the Taliban do not 295 00:12:12,990 --> 00:12:16,260 provide security at the airport itself ? 296 00:12:16,640 --> 00:12:18,807 That is still the case . Is that going 297 00:12:18,807 --> 00:12:20,918 to remain the case until the under at 298 00:12:20,918 --> 00:12:23,420 some point , do they have to move into 299 00:12:23,420 --> 00:12:26,020 the airport to keep the crowds at bay 300 00:12:26,030 --> 00:12:28,197 while those last planes take off ? I'm 301 00:12:28,197 --> 00:12:30,308 not going to talk about the specifics 302 00:12:30,308 --> 00:12:32,770 as we get closer to the end , we let me 303 00:12:32,770 --> 00:12:36,270 just say this as clearly as I can . 304 00:12:36,530 --> 00:12:40,410 We will maintain the ability to 305 00:12:40,410 --> 00:12:43,860 defend ourselves and our operations all 306 00:12:43,860 --> 00:12:46,320 the way through . Yeah , Lucas , john 307 00:12:46,320 --> 00:12:48,487 did the Taliban in any way provide any 308 00:12:48,487 --> 00:12:50,598 intelligence or any support with this 309 00:12:50,598 --> 00:12:52,820 drone strike that killed those two ISIS 310 00:12:52,820 --> 00:12:52,720 terrorists ? I'm not going to talk 311 00:12:52,720 --> 00:12:54,831 about intelligence matters one way or 312 00:12:54,831 --> 00:12:56,942 the other rule it out . I'm not gonna 313 00:12:56,942 --> 00:12:59,164 talk about intelligence matters one way 314 00:12:59,164 --> 00:13:01,220 or the Taliban supporting this drone 315 00:13:01,220 --> 00:13:03,640 strike anyway , we had uh useful 316 00:13:03,650 --> 00:13:06,290 intelligence on our own to conduct this 317 00:13:06,290 --> 00:13:08,850 strength , Do you consider the Taliban 318 00:13:08,850 --> 00:13:10,683 and the Haqqani network separate 319 00:13:10,683 --> 00:13:14,560 entities ? That's they look it's 320 00:13:14,570 --> 00:13:17,480 uh I'm not gonna give you a break down 321 00:13:17,480 --> 00:13:19,860 here , a characterization of the 322 00:13:19,860 --> 00:13:23,260 taliban or Connie Lucas . Um were you 323 00:13:23,260 --> 00:13:25,316 gotta remember what we're focused on 324 00:13:25,316 --> 00:13:27,482 here and that's on getting more people 325 00:13:27,482 --> 00:13:29,204 out and getting our troops out 326 00:13:29,204 --> 00:13:31,260 completing this mission . Uh And I'm 327 00:13:31,260 --> 00:13:34,360 I'm not sure uh what Benefit it does 328 00:13:34,360 --> 00:13:36,582 for me to try to characterize one group 329 00:13:36,582 --> 00:13:38,638 or another . We know that the people 330 00:13:38,638 --> 00:13:40,749 that the deputy leader of the Taliban 331 00:13:40,749 --> 00:13:42,582 is surging Haqqani who has a $10 332 00:13:42,582 --> 00:13:44,638 million dollars bounty on his head , 333 00:13:44,638 --> 00:13:46,860 people should know . Is there are these 334 00:13:46,860 --> 00:13:49,082 separate entities or we know that there 335 00:13:49,082 --> 00:13:51,304 are there is a certain amount of matter 336 00:13:51,304 --> 00:13:53,471 of commingling here . I mean there's a 337 00:13:53,471 --> 00:13:55,582 marbling , if you will of Taliban and 338 00:13:55,582 --> 00:13:55,580 Haqqani . What I'm pushing back a 339 00:13:55,580 --> 00:13:57,302 little bit on you Lucas is the 340 00:13:57,302 --> 00:13:59,358 relevance of that discussion to what 341 00:13:59,358 --> 00:14:01,358 we're trying to do today , which is 342 00:14:01,358 --> 00:14:03,469 complete and evacuation safely And to 343 00:14:03,469 --> 00:14:05,850 get our troops uh and our forces at at 344 00:14:05,850 --> 00:14:07,920 the airport out safely . That's what 345 00:14:07,920 --> 00:14:10,031 we're focused on every major one more 346 00:14:10,031 --> 00:14:12,087 question . Every major newspaper and 347 00:14:12,087 --> 00:14:14,142 television news outlet has said that 348 00:14:14,142 --> 00:14:16,309 the US military brass recommend to the 349 00:14:16,309 --> 00:14:18,198 president to leave 2500 troops in 350 00:14:18,198 --> 00:14:20,198 Afghanistan not pull out . Have you 351 00:14:20,198 --> 00:14:22,031 asked any of those outlets for a 352 00:14:22,031 --> 00:14:24,142 correction ? I'm sorry , say that one 353 00:14:24,142 --> 00:14:26,280 again . Every major newspaper and 354 00:14:26,290 --> 00:14:28,500 television news outlet has reported 355 00:14:28,510 --> 00:14:31,160 that top pentagon brass and the Defense 356 00:14:31,160 --> 00:14:33,271 Secretary to the head of US forces in 357 00:14:33,271 --> 00:14:35,160 the Middle East Afghanistan , the 358 00:14:35,160 --> 00:14:37,327 Chairman of Joint Chiefs , recommended 359 00:14:37,327 --> 00:14:39,549 to the president at 2500 U . S . Troops 360 00:14:39,549 --> 00:14:41,660 should have stayed in Afghanistan not 361 00:14:41,660 --> 00:14:43,716 been pulled out . Have you asked any 362 00:14:43,716 --> 00:14:45,827 news outlet for a correction to those 363 00:14:45,827 --> 00:14:47,993 stories ? Thanks for repeating it . We 364 00:14:47,993 --> 00:14:50,160 don't make it a habit to talk publicly 365 00:14:50,160 --> 00:14:52,860 one way or the other . Right , wrong up 366 00:14:52,860 --> 00:14:55,680 down more or less about the advice and 367 00:14:55,680 --> 00:14:57,847 counsel that pentagon leaders give the 368 00:14:57,847 --> 00:14:59,958 commander in chief . What about doing 369 00:14:59,958 --> 00:15:03,620 the record louis um has there been 370 00:15:03,620 --> 00:15:06,960 another helicopter evacuation recently ? 371 00:15:09,240 --> 00:15:11,129 No , I don't think there has been 372 00:15:11,129 --> 00:15:14,460 nothing . Can I follow up in on the 373 00:15:14,460 --> 00:15:16,940 discussion about the drone strike 374 00:15:17,080 --> 00:15:20,230 yesterday ? It's been characterized as 375 00:15:20,240 --> 00:15:23,970 being retaliation as being Reprisal um 376 00:15:23,980 --> 00:15:27,660 for the bombing at the airport . Is 377 00:15:27,660 --> 00:15:29,771 that accurate ? Or was this something 378 00:15:29,771 --> 00:15:31,882 that as part of your over the horizon 379 00:15:31,882 --> 00:15:33,771 counterterrorism planning you are 380 00:15:33,771 --> 00:15:37,170 already targeting . This 381 00:15:37,170 --> 00:15:40,800 was a little bit of both . I mean , we 382 00:15:40,800 --> 00:15:43,190 have the ability to conduct over the 383 00:15:43,190 --> 00:15:45,357 rising counterterrorism capabilities , 384 00:15:45,357 --> 00:15:47,246 we've talked about that . Um this 385 00:15:47,246 --> 00:15:50,650 certainly fits in that mold , but 386 00:15:51,540 --> 00:15:55,310 uh it's not coincidence That had 387 00:15:55,310 --> 00:15:58,040 happened just a couple of days after we 388 00:15:58,040 --> 00:16:01,630 lost 13 brave service members . And can 389 00:16:01,630 --> 00:16:03,574 I ask again , you're calling one a 390 00:16:03,574 --> 00:16:05,950 planner and another a facilitator . I 391 00:16:05,950 --> 00:16:08,061 believe that you're saying that one ? 392 00:16:08,061 --> 00:16:10,061 That's correct , Right . That's the 393 00:16:10,061 --> 00:16:09,480 characterization of these two 394 00:16:09,480 --> 00:16:11,660 individuals . What is the difference I 395 00:16:11,660 --> 00:16:14,260 mean ? And what what makes them targets ? 396 00:16:15,240 --> 00:16:17,640 Obviously . Thanks for the question . 397 00:16:17,640 --> 00:16:20,820 But that is the clarification uh plan 398 00:16:20,820 --> 00:16:24,440 or facilitator uh that are those that 399 00:16:24,760 --> 00:16:28,240 would have the ability to facilitate or 400 00:16:28,250 --> 00:16:31,030 help planning attacks . Uh and that as 401 00:16:31,030 --> 00:16:33,150 we said , give us the ability and the 402 00:16:33,150 --> 00:16:35,039 authority we had to conduct those 403 00:16:35,039 --> 00:16:36,872 missions . Were they involved in 404 00:16:36,872 --> 00:16:40,690 planning an imminent attack ? Um We're 405 00:16:40,690 --> 00:16:42,468 not gonna go into uh you know , 406 00:16:42,468 --> 00:16:45,050 detailed uh intelligence information 407 00:16:45,050 --> 00:16:47,050 that led to the that attack or that 408 00:16:47,050 --> 00:16:50,510 strike or future operations . Yeah , 409 00:16:51,240 --> 00:16:54,920 couple of things on the strike . You 410 00:16:54,930 --> 00:16:57,150 know , the first thing you call them 411 00:16:57,160 --> 00:16:59,460 high profile . Could you explain to us 412 00:16:59,840 --> 00:17:02,470 but not senior . So and then I have a 413 00:17:02,470 --> 00:17:04,580 follow up on the strike . What makes 414 00:17:04,580 --> 00:17:06,191 you say they're high profile 415 00:17:08,140 --> 00:17:11,120 based on the intelligence collected and 416 00:17:11,120 --> 00:17:14,680 activities in the past . That was the 417 00:17:14,680 --> 00:17:17,240 classification and used for those 418 00:17:17,250 --> 00:17:19,472 general taylor . Can you just clarify , 419 00:17:19,472 --> 00:17:22,450 were you actually targeting both of 420 00:17:22,450 --> 00:17:25,100 these individuals or were you targeting 421 00:17:25,100 --> 00:17:27,580 one and the other one that happened to 422 00:17:27,580 --> 00:17:30,450 be there and got struck ? We have the 423 00:17:30,450 --> 00:17:32,617 intelligence that led us to the target 424 00:17:32,617 --> 00:17:36,320 area that allowed for that strike to 425 00:17:36,320 --> 00:17:38,580 happen with the buddha as briefed . 426 00:17:38,590 --> 00:17:41,600 Were you targeting two individuals in 427 00:17:41,600 --> 00:17:43,830 this strike ? We had intelligence that 428 00:17:43,840 --> 00:17:46,990 allowed us to conduct that strike on 429 00:17:47,270 --> 00:17:49,950 those multiple individuals , john if I 430 00:17:49,950 --> 00:17:53,080 could ask you also . So now you have 431 00:17:53,090 --> 00:17:55,960 done this strike , What is the 432 00:17:55,970 --> 00:17:59,060 assessment or feeling about 433 00:17:59,600 --> 00:18:03,310 the impact of this strike on ISIS 434 00:18:03,320 --> 00:18:07,060 K . In Afghanistan ? Do you , 435 00:18:07,440 --> 00:18:10,350 have you degraded them in any fashion ? 436 00:18:10,740 --> 00:18:12,796 Can you explain that if they're high 437 00:18:12,796 --> 00:18:14,962 profile ? Have you deterred ? Have you 438 00:18:14,962 --> 00:18:17,780 degraded what is your conclusion about 439 00:18:17,790 --> 00:18:20,430 what the impact of this strike actually 440 00:18:20,430 --> 00:18:23,750 has been in ? They have to they have 441 00:18:23,750 --> 00:18:26,420 two high profile planners or facility 442 00:18:26,420 --> 00:18:28,531 11 planet one facilitator that are no 443 00:18:28,531 --> 00:18:30,910 longer on their mustard role . So they 444 00:18:30,910 --> 00:18:34,780 have lost uh some capability 445 00:18:34,790 --> 00:18:38,780 to plan and to conduct uh 446 00:18:38,790 --> 00:18:41,600 missions that . But Barbara make no 447 00:18:41,600 --> 00:18:45,170 mistake , nobody's writing this off and 448 00:18:45,170 --> 00:18:47,500 saying , well , we got them so we don't 449 00:18:47,500 --> 00:18:49,556 have to worry about ISIS K anymore . 450 00:18:49,640 --> 00:18:52,650 Not the case . As I said earlier , the 451 00:18:52,660 --> 00:18:55,110 threat stream is still active , still 452 00:18:55,110 --> 00:18:57,277 dynamic . We're still laser focused on 453 00:18:57,277 --> 00:18:59,221 that and force protection . And we 454 00:18:59,221 --> 00:19:01,388 aren't thinking for a minute that what 455 00:19:01,388 --> 00:19:03,930 happened yesterday gets us into clear , 456 00:19:03,940 --> 00:19:06,430 not a minute . But do we believe that 457 00:19:06,430 --> 00:19:09,110 we hit valid targets ? Bad guys who can 458 00:19:09,110 --> 00:19:11,443 do bad things and can plan bad missions . 459 00:19:11,443 --> 00:19:13,610 Absolutely . And do we think that that 460 00:19:13,610 --> 00:19:15,777 will have some impact on their ability 461 00:19:15,777 --> 00:19:17,999 going forward ? Absolutely . What ? And 462 00:19:17,999 --> 00:19:20,166 how much ? We're just going to have to 463 00:19:20,166 --> 00:19:22,110 we're just gonna keep watching the 464 00:19:22,110 --> 00:19:21,560 intelligence going forward . I don't 465 00:19:21,560 --> 00:19:23,980 know if you can answer . But does the 466 00:19:23,980 --> 00:19:27,670 United States have a sense even if you 467 00:19:27,670 --> 00:19:30,710 can't say names . Do you have any sense 468 00:19:30,720 --> 00:19:32,887 of who is in command devices ? K right 469 00:19:32,887 --> 00:19:34,880 now . I'm not going to get into 470 00:19:34,890 --> 00:19:37,620 specific or charts and intelligence 471 00:19:37,620 --> 00:19:39,510 about what we know about the 472 00:19:39,510 --> 00:19:41,740 organization . Obviously we put a lot 473 00:19:41,740 --> 00:19:43,740 of time and effort into learning as 474 00:19:43,740 --> 00:19:46,690 much as we can and I think I just for 475 00:19:46,790 --> 00:19:48,901 security purposes , I'm just going to 476 00:19:48,901 --> 00:19:52,570 leave it at that . Well . So what about 477 00:19:52,580 --> 00:19:54,524 the attack itself , first of all , 478 00:19:54,524 --> 00:19:56,580 where did the unmanned aircraft come 479 00:19:56,580 --> 00:19:58,802 from ? Was it a reaper drone , predator 480 00:19:58,802 --> 00:20:01,024 drone . Can you give us any information 481 00:20:01,024 --> 00:20:03,136 on their over the horizon ? Okay . So 482 00:20:03,136 --> 00:20:05,191 no specific information you can take 483 00:20:05,191 --> 00:20:07,413 over the horizon . And then was there , 484 00:20:07,413 --> 00:20:09,247 were there were reports that the 485 00:20:09,247 --> 00:20:11,302 targets were in a vehicle , Was that 486 00:20:11,302 --> 00:20:13,247 accurate ? And was there any other 487 00:20:13,247 --> 00:20:16,200 damage to assist infrastructure ? As I 488 00:20:16,200 --> 00:20:18,533 think the general said right at the top , 489 00:20:18,533 --> 00:20:20,644 we're gonna be loath to release a lot 490 00:20:20,644 --> 00:20:22,978 of tactical level B . D . A detail here . 491 00:20:23,030 --> 00:20:25,141 Going to preserve as much flexibility 492 00:20:25,141 --> 00:20:27,120 as we can . So I think you can 493 00:20:27,120 --> 00:20:29,064 understand at least I hope you can 494 00:20:29,064 --> 00:20:31,231 understand that . We're just not going 495 00:20:31,231 --> 00:20:30,960 to be able to answer a lot of that 496 00:20:30,970 --> 00:20:32,970 detailed stuff right now . And then 497 00:20:32,970 --> 00:20:35,137 just to follow up , what are you doing 498 00:20:35,137 --> 00:20:37,560 about the ISIS K cells in Kabul itself 499 00:20:37,840 --> 00:20:39,729 Because clearly these attacks are 500 00:20:39,729 --> 00:20:41,896 coming from Kabul , it's possible that 501 00:20:41,896 --> 00:20:43,840 terrorists have gone underground . 502 00:20:43,840 --> 00:20:45,840 Obviously you can't target the city 503 00:20:45,840 --> 00:20:48,062 itself with airstrikes right now . What 504 00:20:48,062 --> 00:20:50,229 I would tell you is we're watching the 505 00:20:50,229 --> 00:20:52,118 threats team very carefully laura 506 00:20:52,118 --> 00:20:53,951 clearly they have the ability to 507 00:20:53,951 --> 00:20:56,173 operate inside Kabul . We're mindful of 508 00:20:56,173 --> 00:20:58,118 that . Um and we're watching it as 509 00:20:58,118 --> 00:21:00,010 closely as we can . Um and we're 510 00:21:00,020 --> 00:21:04,010 obviously uh trying to make 511 00:21:04,010 --> 00:21:08,000 sure that we have available to us as 512 00:21:08,000 --> 00:21:10,330 much information in context as possible 513 00:21:10,650 --> 00:21:13,700 so as to prepare for any future attacks . 514 00:21:14,280 --> 00:21:16,450 And that's certainly we have to assume 515 00:21:16,940 --> 00:21:19,850 could come from or be 516 00:21:20,540 --> 00:21:23,730 planned out of or sourced out of uh 517 00:21:23,740 --> 00:21:26,490 places that they might have established 518 00:21:26,490 --> 00:21:29,720 themselves in Kabul . I think that's 519 00:21:29,720 --> 00:21:31,942 really as far as we're going to be able 520 00:21:31,942 --> 00:21:34,109 to go right now . And if I can ask the 521 00:21:34,109 --> 00:21:36,164 general a couple questions about the 522 00:21:36,164 --> 00:21:38,109 airport and when are we officially 523 00:21:38,109 --> 00:21:40,442 handing the airport over to the taliban ? 524 00:21:40,442 --> 00:21:42,609 Is the taliban going to be running the 525 00:21:42,609 --> 00:21:44,776 airport ? Are they going to be running 526 00:21:44,776 --> 00:21:46,776 it with the Qataris ? And the Turks 527 00:21:46,776 --> 00:21:48,720 says I believe has been reported . 528 00:21:48,720 --> 00:21:50,690 We're going to continue uh run the 529 00:21:50,690 --> 00:21:53,750 airport up until the end And those 530 00:21:53,760 --> 00:21:56,710 details as they continue to be worked 531 00:21:56,710 --> 00:21:58,821 out will come forward . But right now 532 00:21:58,821 --> 00:22:00,932 we will continue to run that airfield 533 00:22:00,932 --> 00:22:03,250 to make sure that we can execute our 534 00:22:03,250 --> 00:22:05,472 operations and are some of the gates to 535 00:22:05,472 --> 00:22:07,472 the airport welded shut as has been 536 00:22:07,472 --> 00:22:09,472 reported , there are gates that are 537 00:22:09,472 --> 00:22:11,694 closed Absolutely right now . But as we 538 00:22:11,694 --> 00:22:13,750 said earlier , we do have gates that 539 00:22:13,750 --> 00:22:15,472 are continued to be open as we 540 00:22:15,472 --> 00:22:17,417 coordinate and still work with the 541 00:22:17,417 --> 00:22:20,160 Department of State uh to get people uh 542 00:22:20,640 --> 00:22:23,410 in for evacuation . Thank you . 543 00:22:24,560 --> 00:22:26,050 Howard Altman . 544 00:22:30,040 --> 00:22:32,151 Hey first of all I want to express my 545 00:22:32,151 --> 00:22:34,262 condolences to the families that lost 546 00:22:34,262 --> 00:22:37,620 loved ones in Kabul . Um there despite 547 00:22:37,620 --> 00:22:41,200 this massive effort to evacuate folks , 548 00:22:41,210 --> 00:22:43,630 there were a number of organizations uh 549 00:22:43,640 --> 00:22:46,220 including you know current and former 550 00:22:46,230 --> 00:22:48,397 military that it feels there's a level 551 00:22:48,397 --> 00:22:50,508 of frustration and not be able to get 552 00:22:50,508 --> 00:22:52,563 people out and they're working uh in 553 00:22:52,563 --> 00:22:54,841 many ways been many reports about that . 554 00:22:54,841 --> 00:22:56,590 My question is is D . O . D . 555 00:22:56,590 --> 00:22:59,140 Cooperating with any of these 556 00:22:59,140 --> 00:23:01,473 organizations . Can you talk about that ? 557 00:23:01,473 --> 00:23:03,860 And then what is your message to these 558 00:23:03,870 --> 00:23:06,037 organizations ? Are they helping , are 559 00:23:06,037 --> 00:23:08,310 they hindering and given what you know 560 00:23:08,310 --> 00:23:10,366 about how this is unfolding , should 561 00:23:10,366 --> 00:23:14,090 they continue their operations ? Well , 562 00:23:14,090 --> 00:23:18,030 it's certainly not not for us to tell 563 00:23:18,030 --> 00:23:20,950 them to stop caring about individuals 564 00:23:20,950 --> 00:23:23,228 that they know that are in Afghanistan . 565 00:23:23,228 --> 00:23:26,970 Howard . Um We are as you might imagine . 566 00:23:26,970 --> 00:23:29,480 I mean we are working off many 567 00:23:29,480 --> 00:23:32,780 different streams of information about 568 00:23:32,790 --> 00:23:35,580 various vulnerable afghan groups . Not 569 00:23:35,580 --> 00:23:38,960 to mention uh applicants in the special 570 00:23:38,960 --> 00:23:41,016 immigrant visa program and of course 571 00:23:41,016 --> 00:23:43,500 american citizens um and I don't want 572 00:23:43,500 --> 00:23:45,722 to speak for the State Department . But 573 00:23:45,722 --> 00:23:48,140 the State Department is really uh been 574 00:23:48,140 --> 00:23:51,420 liaising with a lot of outside groups 575 00:23:51,860 --> 00:23:55,770 to help identify those who who need to 576 00:23:55,770 --> 00:23:58,520 be evacuated . We are primarily 577 00:23:58,520 --> 00:24:02,290 responsible for helping provide that 578 00:24:02,300 --> 00:24:04,920 secure area at the airport for them to 579 00:24:04,920 --> 00:24:07,087 be able to get through the process and 580 00:24:07,087 --> 00:24:09,198 get through to properly manifest them 581 00:24:09,198 --> 00:24:11,531 and to get them on flights out of there . 582 00:24:11,531 --> 00:24:13,642 But look , I mean uh I think a lot of 583 00:24:13,642 --> 00:24:16,740 us are getting emails and calls and 584 00:24:16,740 --> 00:24:19,470 texts from um from friends and 585 00:24:19,470 --> 00:24:21,730 colleagues . Many of them are veterans 586 00:24:21,740 --> 00:24:25,060 who are passing information to us to to 587 00:24:25,060 --> 00:24:28,410 try to help uh get additional people 588 00:24:28,410 --> 00:24:31,270 out . And uh and we're doing the best 589 00:24:31,270 --> 00:24:33,710 we can when we are contacted uh to get 590 00:24:33,710 --> 00:24:36,080 that information in the right stream to 591 00:24:36,080 --> 00:24:38,302 the right people on the ground there at 592 00:24:38,302 --> 00:24:40,413 the airport to continue to facilitate 593 00:24:40,413 --> 00:24:42,950 movement . Uh And as the general said , 594 00:24:42,960 --> 00:24:45,127 we're gonna try to facilitate movement 595 00:24:45,127 --> 00:24:47,660 of evacuees right up until the very end . 596 00:24:48,040 --> 00:24:51,570 If these efforts helped and or 597 00:24:51,580 --> 00:24:54,310 they adding to the confusion and it's 598 00:24:54,310 --> 00:24:56,740 DLD cooperate or help them in any way ? 599 00:24:56,740 --> 00:24:58,740 Can you specify ? I think certainly 600 00:24:58,740 --> 00:25:00,740 howard to the degree that they have 601 00:25:00,740 --> 00:25:02,962 brought to light uh information that we 602 00:25:02,962 --> 00:25:05,940 can act upon to get additional people 603 00:25:05,940 --> 00:25:07,884 out ? Of course that's that's been 604 00:25:07,884 --> 00:25:11,080 helpful and we certainly share the 605 00:25:11,090 --> 00:25:13,560 concerns that these these groups have 606 00:25:13,560 --> 00:25:15,560 for these individuals , we feel the 607 00:25:15,560 --> 00:25:17,782 same obligation that they do to it . So 608 00:25:17,782 --> 00:25:19,838 to the degree they have been able to 609 00:25:19,838 --> 00:25:22,400 help us latch on and identify then Yes , 610 00:25:22,400 --> 00:25:25,380 that's been helpful . Gordon ? Just a 611 00:25:25,390 --> 00:25:28,960 few different things . One question uh 612 00:25:28,970 --> 00:25:30,900 with the Taliban , it's not an 613 00:25:30,900 --> 00:25:33,011 intelligence question , but was there 614 00:25:33,011 --> 00:25:34,956 any kind of coordination , Did you 615 00:25:34,956 --> 00:25:36,900 share any information prior to the 616 00:25:36,900 --> 00:25:38,990 strike On the ISIS targets with the 617 00:25:39,000 --> 00:25:41,450 Taliban ? one question everyone . No . 618 00:25:42,140 --> 00:25:45,060 Yeah , easy question answered . Uh , 619 00:25:45,070 --> 00:25:48,050 and turning to the 620 00:25:49,230 --> 00:25:51,600 preparations for folks coming back , Is 621 00:25:51,600 --> 00:25:53,544 there a number , a total number of 622 00:25:53,544 --> 00:25:56,530 people you have evacuated ? You have on 623 00:25:56,530 --> 00:25:59,810 domestic basis here plus 624 00:26:00,040 --> 00:26:03,090 those kind of in on the step to come 625 00:26:03,100 --> 00:26:05,670 back with all the different hugs plus 626 00:26:05,670 --> 00:26:07,670 the basis . You have a total number 627 00:26:07,670 --> 00:26:09,559 there . I don't have it with me . 628 00:26:09,559 --> 00:26:11,726 Gordon ? I think you heard General Van 629 00:26:11,726 --> 00:26:13,892 Herck yesterday ? We've got just under 630 00:26:13,892 --> 00:26:17,130 7000 , s ivy applicants , uh , at US 631 00:26:17,130 --> 00:26:19,019 military installations across the 632 00:26:19,019 --> 00:26:21,910 country . He's opened up additional uh , 633 00:26:21,920 --> 00:26:23,920 installations to try to get us to a 634 00:26:23,920 --> 00:26:26,380 capacity of Maybe as much as 50,000 if 635 00:26:26,380 --> 00:26:28,602 we need it , I think . But he gave that 636 00:26:28,602 --> 00:26:30,880 number yesterday . And I think I would , 637 00:26:30,880 --> 00:26:32,991 I don't I don't think that number has 638 00:26:32,991 --> 00:26:36,230 changed appreciably over uh , Over the 639 00:26:36,240 --> 00:26:39,160 last 24 hours before I 640 00:26:40,140 --> 00:26:42,307 jump off there . Let me just check and 641 00:26:42,307 --> 00:26:46,110 see if I've got an updated a number in 642 00:26:46,120 --> 00:26:49,960 europe . I got to hear someone I think , 643 00:26:55,540 --> 00:26:56,540 Right , 644 00:26:59,440 --> 00:27:01,551 no , I don't think I've got it across 645 00:27:01,551 --> 00:27:05,230 europe . So we'll have to um , we'll 646 00:27:05,230 --> 00:27:07,397 have to come back to you on that . And 647 00:27:07,397 --> 00:27:09,341 then two other quick ones . Do you 648 00:27:09,341 --> 00:27:13,070 expect the troops to come into dover as 649 00:27:13,070 --> 00:27:16,700 soon as today . Okay . What I can tell 650 00:27:16,700 --> 00:27:20,670 you is that the remains of the 13 651 00:27:21,820 --> 00:27:24,080 individuals who were killed are on 652 00:27:24,080 --> 00:27:26,191 their way back to the United States . 653 00:27:26,191 --> 00:27:28,840 But I am not at liberty to give you a 654 00:27:28,840 --> 00:27:31,690 precise arrival . Final clarification 655 00:27:31,700 --> 00:27:34,660 uh , struck in the target from last 656 00:27:34,660 --> 00:27:36,980 night was a planner and a facilitator 657 00:27:36,980 --> 00:27:39,100 or they are both considered kind of 658 00:27:39,100 --> 00:27:41,460 both . I didn't quite understand . Mhm . 659 00:27:42,640 --> 00:27:45,100 The capabilities of those struck and 660 00:27:45,100 --> 00:27:48,500 killed last night were a facilitator 661 00:27:48,510 --> 00:27:51,970 and planners . We're not gonna get into 662 00:27:51,980 --> 00:27:54,147 this one . Was this this one with this 663 00:27:54,147 --> 00:27:56,350 uh keep kind of planning facilitators 664 00:27:56,350 --> 00:27:58,406 and planners . Are you aware of them 665 00:27:58,406 --> 00:28:00,800 before ? Because we're not going to 666 00:28:00,810 --> 00:28:03,140 discuss the intelligence that led up to 667 00:28:03,380 --> 00:28:05,602 then . It with the intelligence that we 668 00:28:05,602 --> 00:28:07,824 had allowed us to conduct that strike . 669 00:28:07,824 --> 00:28:09,602 You can't say if they were even 670 00:28:09,602 --> 00:28:11,769 individuals who are already on the U . 671 00:28:11,769 --> 00:28:13,991 S . Radar as we had intelligence on the 672 00:28:13,991 --> 00:28:16,980 target set That led us as we continue 673 00:28:16,980 --> 00:28:20,000 to work up that to conduct that strike 674 00:28:20,010 --> 00:28:21,843 one more on the over the horizon 675 00:28:21,843 --> 00:28:24,066 efforts . If I'm not mistaken , we look 676 00:28:24,066 --> 00:28:26,177 back in the last time we saw that the 677 00:28:26,177 --> 00:28:28,399 us announced a counter terror strike in 678 00:28:28,399 --> 00:28:30,566 Afghanistan was February of 2020 . Are 679 00:28:30,566 --> 00:28:32,566 you aware of any other particularly 680 00:28:32,566 --> 00:28:34,677 specific against Taliban but specific 681 00:28:34,677 --> 00:28:36,566 cT strikes since february 2020 in 682 00:28:36,566 --> 00:28:38,343 Afghanistan . I don't have that 683 00:28:38,343 --> 00:28:40,399 information readily . General , with 684 00:28:40,399 --> 00:28:42,399 all due respect . The reason you're 685 00:28:42,399 --> 00:28:42,030 getting questions about the 686 00:28:42,030 --> 00:28:44,141 intelligence is two days before Kabul 687 00:28:44,141 --> 00:28:46,252 fell . Intelligence did not show that 688 00:28:46,252 --> 00:28:48,308 the country is about the fall of the 689 00:28:48,308 --> 00:28:50,474 Taliban . That's where we're receiving 690 00:28:50,474 --> 00:28:50,290 questions about the intelligence of 691 00:28:50,300 --> 00:28:52,700 this target . Just how serious these 692 00:28:52,700 --> 00:28:54,867 ISIS fighters were . No , I understand 693 00:28:54,867 --> 00:28:57,550 that and I understand that people are 694 00:28:57,550 --> 00:29:00,030 not going to go into the details of the 695 00:29:00,030 --> 00:29:02,510 intelligence that goes into the attack 696 00:29:02,510 --> 00:29:04,677 on U . S . Troops at the Kabul airport 697 00:29:04,677 --> 00:29:06,780 in the next few days . Uh the 698 00:29:06,780 --> 00:29:09,630 intelligence that we had was good 699 00:29:09,630 --> 00:29:11,519 enough allowed us to conduct that 700 00:29:11,519 --> 00:29:13,686 strike . And as mr Kirby said , we now 701 00:29:13,686 --> 00:29:16,260 have two members of ISIS K that are no 702 00:29:16,260 --> 00:29:18,890 longer able to facilitate or plan a tax 703 00:29:18,890 --> 00:29:21,112 planning attacks on US troops . I'm not 704 00:29:21,112 --> 00:29:24,600 gonna go into that johnny Yeah , the 705 00:29:24,610 --> 00:29:26,666 secretary and the president to greet 706 00:29:26,666 --> 00:29:28,888 the casket took over . I don't have any 707 00:29:28,888 --> 00:29:30,888 schedule announcements to make with 708 00:29:30,888 --> 00:29:34,080 respect to that . I'm a little unclear 709 00:29:34,080 --> 00:29:36,490 on what I think each of you said when 710 00:29:36,490 --> 00:29:38,657 you were talking about the presence of 711 00:29:38,657 --> 00:29:40,712 the taliban at the airport , are you 712 00:29:40,712 --> 00:29:43,440 saying that there are no Taliban on the 713 00:29:43,440 --> 00:29:46,680 airfield beginning to transition to 714 00:29:46,680 --> 00:29:49,013 control on either the civilian military . 715 00:29:49,013 --> 00:29:50,902 So what , this was some reporting 716 00:29:50,902 --> 00:29:53,950 yesterday that the taliban were in 717 00:29:53,950 --> 00:29:56,440 control of the gates and then there was 718 00:29:56,440 --> 00:29:58,496 reporting that we were shutting down 719 00:29:58,496 --> 00:30:00,718 all evacuation operations in the course 720 00:30:00,718 --> 00:30:03,130 of the day . And my point yesterday was 721 00:30:03,140 --> 00:30:05,362 those are not true . We're not shutting 722 00:30:05,362 --> 00:30:07,307 down evacuation operations . We're 723 00:30:07,307 --> 00:30:09,362 gonna continue going to the end . We 724 00:30:09,362 --> 00:30:12,300 are still in charge of the airport and 725 00:30:12,310 --> 00:30:14,421 we are still in charge of security at 726 00:30:14,421 --> 00:30:17,000 the airport . And what what has , what 727 00:30:17,000 --> 00:30:19,111 was true a few days ago is still true 728 00:30:19,111 --> 00:30:21,056 today the taliban have checkpoints 729 00:30:21,056 --> 00:30:24,710 around the airport in a loose perimeter 730 00:30:24,710 --> 00:30:26,877 if you will . But they are not manning 731 00:30:26,877 --> 00:30:29,430 gates . They are not they are not at 732 00:30:29,440 --> 00:30:32,430 the airport doing security roles or 733 00:30:32,430 --> 00:30:34,880 anything like that at the airport at 734 00:30:34,880 --> 00:30:37,500 the airport . Okay . Just going back to 735 00:30:37,500 --> 00:30:40,230 the drone strike . Uh you can give 736 00:30:40,230 --> 00:30:42,341 specific names of countries , but did 737 00:30:42,341 --> 00:30:44,940 you notify any countries through which 738 00:30:44,940 --> 00:30:46,996 the drone we have had to fly through 739 00:30:46,996 --> 00:30:49,960 before the strike and which committees 740 00:30:49,970 --> 00:30:52,081 on the hill ? Did you notify prior to 741 00:30:52,081 --> 00:30:55,230 the strike ? If at all ? I don't as far 742 00:30:55,230 --> 00:30:58,450 as I know there was no 743 00:30:59,240 --> 00:31:02,570 notifications that that did or needed 744 00:31:02,570 --> 00:31:05,020 to happen uh beforehand the countries 745 00:31:05,020 --> 00:31:07,020 or the committee , no notifications 746 00:31:07,020 --> 00:31:09,290 that were uh needed to be done 747 00:31:09,300 --> 00:31:12,240 beforehand . Yes . You're not revealing 748 00:31:12,240 --> 00:31:14,407 the names of these individuals but you 749 00:31:14,407 --> 00:31:16,351 know them right . And you know the 750 00:31:16,351 --> 00:31:18,407 nationality of these individuals who 751 00:31:18,407 --> 00:31:20,629 were killed don't strike yesterday . We 752 00:31:20,629 --> 00:31:22,740 know who they are . You know that you 753 00:31:22,740 --> 00:31:24,796 know that one who are window wounded 754 00:31:24,796 --> 00:31:26,851 was planner or facilitated ? I don't 755 00:31:26,851 --> 00:31:28,907 have that information . And one more 756 00:31:28,907 --> 00:31:31,129 question during your conversations with 757 00:31:31,129 --> 00:31:33,240 the Taliban , have they given you any 758 00:31:33,240 --> 00:31:35,462 assistance are indicated that they will 759 00:31:35,462 --> 00:31:37,296 not let Afghanistan be used as a 760 00:31:37,296 --> 00:31:39,240 launching pad for terrorist attack 761 00:31:39,240 --> 00:31:41,184 against the U . S . Is friends and 762 00:31:41,184 --> 00:31:43,351 allies . You say that one again during 763 00:31:43,351 --> 00:31:45,684 the conversation the Taliban leadership . 764 00:31:45,684 --> 00:31:47,518 Have they indicated or given any 765 00:31:47,518 --> 00:31:49,740 assurance to you that they will not let 766 00:31:49,740 --> 00:31:51,907 Afghanistan to be used as a logic path 767 00:31:51,907 --> 00:31:54,129 for terrorist attack against US Friends 768 00:31:54,129 --> 00:31:56,184 and allies . They made assurances as 769 00:31:56,184 --> 00:31:58,860 part of the Doha agreement about 770 00:31:58,870 --> 00:32:01,840 affiliation with Al Qaeda and about 771 00:32:01,850 --> 00:32:04,210 terrorism terrorist groups operating 772 00:32:04,210 --> 00:32:06,099 from Afghanistan . They said that 773 00:32:06,099 --> 00:32:08,154 publicly . They said that as part of 774 00:32:08,154 --> 00:32:10,210 the Doha agreement , do you have any 775 00:32:10,210 --> 00:32:12,210 indication of the level or types of 776 00:32:12,210 --> 00:32:14,321 foreign fighters that may have flowed 777 00:32:14,321 --> 00:32:16,720 into Afghanistan in recent days and 778 00:32:16,720 --> 00:32:19,540 weeks ? I do not thank you . Okay . I 779 00:32:19,550 --> 00:32:21,661 think we're gonna call it a day now . 780 00:32:21,661 --> 00:32:23,772 We're gonna call it a day Lucas Lucas 781 00:32:23,772 --> 00:32:25,939 Lucas . I appreciate it very much . If 782 00:32:25,939 --> 00:32:27,939 there is a very much prisoners were 783 00:32:27,939 --> 00:32:27,680 released and thank you all of the 784 00:32:27,690 --> 00:32:29,980 talent is that evidence that the 785 00:32:29,980 --> 00:32:31,450 taliban IsIS might be in .