This archive report was first published on 31 August 2021.
As the situation in Afghanistan continues to deteriorate, lawmakers have grown increasingly frustrated with the administration's handling of evacuations. In response, they have taken matters into their own hands, turning to their own connections to foreign officials, private organizations, and individuals navigating private charter flights in and out of the country.
Concerned donors have given millions to an effort called Operation Flyaway, led by the firm Raven Advisory, to assist with evacuations. This effort has compiled a list of over 4,000 Afghans whom Americans were seeking to help. Veterans' groups have also sprung into action, organizing volunteer efforts to assist with evacuations, which many have dubbed a 'digital Dunkirk.'
Some individuals have taken it upon themselves to try to rescue Afghans they know personally from their time overseas. Together with congressional offices, an informal support network has arisen to fill the gaps in the administration's efforts.
‘It's inspiring,’ said Representative Michael Waltz, a former Green Beret who served in Afghanistan. ‘But at the same time, I think it's a real testament to how badly the administration has dropped the ball.'
The frustration is bipartisan, with lawmakers from both parties expressing their concerns. Representative Andy Kim, a Democrat from New Jersey, recently met with a top State Department official to discuss the situation. When he asked for the best phone number the family he was working to evacuate could call for help, he was told that no such number exists.
‘I was told no such number exists,’ Mr. Kim wrote on Twitter. His office has received over 6,000 requests for help, many of them spearheaded by veterans or national security officers trying to assist Afghans with whom they had worked.
‘I tell them that I can make no promises here, but they feel what I feel, which is we have to try and not just sit on our hands,’ Mr. Kim said.
