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Washington, D.C. – House Foreign Affairs Committee Lead Republican Michael McCaul has published his interim report entitled, “A ‘Strategic Failure’: Assessing the Administration’s Afghanistan Withdrawal.” The 115 page report examines the Biden administration’s decisions and actions in detail, from the announcement of the president’s decision to withdraw to the months following that decision, the resulting Taliban seizure of power, the chaotic and deadly evacuation, and the long-term impact the withdrawal has had on the United States’ standing in the world and our allies in the aftermath. You can find a breakdown of the top takeaways from the report here.

“This interim report proves much of the deadly chaos during the evacuation from Afghanistan could have been prevented if the State Department and NSC had properly prepared for the expected fallout from President Biden’s decision to unconditionally withdrawal from the country against the advice of his senior military advisors and NATO allies,” stated Rep. McCaul. “As a result of their failure to plan, America’s adversaries have been emboldened and Afghanistan is once again a safe haven for terrorists who want to attack the United States. The State Department’s refusal to provide this committee with any of the requested information related to the withdrawal and the resulting evacuation will not stop me or any other Committee Republicans from continuing this investigation until all our questions are answered and people are held accountable. We owe this to the American people, and especially to our brave service men and women who served in Afghanistan and lost friends there.”