The Embassy of the United States of America in Kabul was the official
diplomatic mission
A diplomatic mission or foreign mission is a group of people from a state or organization present in another state to represent the sending state or organization officially in the receiving or host state. In practice, the phrase usually deno ...
of the
United States of America
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territo ...
to the
Islamic Republic of Afghanistan
The Islamic Republic of Afghanistan was a presidential republic that ruled Afghanistan from 2004 to 2021. The state was established to replace the Afghan interim (2001–2002) and transitional (2002–2004) administrations, which were formed ...
. The embassy was housed in a
chancery located on Great Massoud Road in the
Wazir Akbar Khan
Wazīr Akbar Khān (Pashto/Dari: ; 1816-1847), born Mohammad Akbar Khān () and also known as Amīr Akbar Khān (), was an Afghan prince, general, emir for a year, and finally wazir/heir apparent to Dost Mohammad Khan until his death in 1847. ...
neighborhood of the Afghan capital,
Kabul
Kabul (; ps, , ; , ) is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. Located in the eastern half of the country, it is also a municipality, forming part of the Kabul Province; it is administratively divided into 22 municipal districts. Acco ...
, and was built at a cost of nearly $800 million. On August 15, 2021, in the face of a
Taliban
The Taliban (; ps, طالبان, ṭālibān, lit=students or 'seekers'), which also refers to itself by its state (polity), state name, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a Deobandi Islamic fundamentalism, Islamic fundamentalist, m ...
advance on Kabul, embassy staff relocated to makeshift but secure facilities at
Hamid Karzai International Airport
, nativename-r =
, image = Flightline at Kabul International Airport.jpeg
, caption = The flightline at Kabul International Airport in January 2012
, IATA = KBL
, ICAO = OAKB
, ...
.
Kabul fell and the chancery building officially closed late August 15.
The embassy did not have an official
Senate-confirmed ambassador
An ambassador is an official envoy, especially a high-ranking diplomat who represents a state and is usually accredited to another sovereign state or to an international organization as the resident representative of their own government or sov ...
at the time of the Taliban takeover; the final head of the mission in Afghanistan was
Chargé d'Affaires
A ''chargé d'affaires'' (), plural ''chargés d'affaires'', often shortened to ''chargé'' (French) and sometimes in colloquial English to ''charge-D'', is a diplomat who serves as an embassy's chief of mission in the absence of the ambassador ...
Ross Wilson. On August 31, 2021, the embassy suspended operations in Afghanistan and transferred operations to
Doha
Doha ( ar, الدوحة, ad-Dawḥa or ''ad-Dōḥa'') is the capital city and main financial hub of Qatar. Located on the Persian Gulf coast in the east of the country, north of Al Wakrah and south of Al Khor, it is home to most of the coun ...
,
Qatar
Qatar (, ; ar, قطر, Qaṭar ; local vernacular pronunciation: ), officially the State of Qatar,) is a country in Western Asia. It occupies the Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it sh ...
, with former deputy chief of mission
Ian McCary
Ian or Iain is a name of Scottish Gaelic origin, derived from the Hebrew given name (Yohanan, ') and corresponding to the English name John (given name), John. The spelling Ian is an Anglicization of the Scottish Gaelic forename ''Iain''. It is a ...
serving as Chargé d'Affaires. The U.S. Interests Section at the Embassy of Qatar in Kabul was established as the
protecting power
A protecting power is a country that represents another sovereign state in a country where it lacks its own diplomatic representation. It is common for protecting powers to be appointed when two countries break off diplomatic relations with e ...
of the U.S. in Afghanistan on December 31.
History
Initially, Afghanistan was served concurrently by the legation to Iran (Persia), with
William H. Hornibrook serving as the first minister to the country. A legation in Kabul was established in 1942, which was elevated to an embassy in May 1948.
Louis G. Dreyfus
Louis Goethe Dreyfus Jr. (1889 – 1973) was an American diplomat.
As an experienced diplomat, he served as both minister and ambassador to Afghanistan at differing times; his career at the Department of State ultimately lasted more than 40 ye ...
, who previously served as Minister Plenipotentiary from 1941 to 1942, then became the
U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan
The United States ambassador to Afghanistan is the official diplomatic representative of the United States to Afghanistan. In the wake of the 2021 fall of Kabul to the Taliban, the U.S. Embassy in Kabul transferred operations to Doha, Qatar. S ...
, serving from 1949 to 1951.
In 1979, then-ambassador
Adolph Dubs
Adolph Dubs (August 4, 1920 – February 14, 1979), also known as Spike Dubs, was an American diplomat who served as the United States Ambassador to Afghanistan from May 13, 1978, until his death in 1979. He was killed during a rescue attem ...
was
kidnapped and ultimately assassinated under mysterious circumstances. It was closed in 1989, before the start of the long
civil war
A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country).
The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...
followed by the
Taliban
The Taliban (; ps, طالبان, ṭālibān, lit=students or 'seekers'), which also refers to itself by its state (polity), state name, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a Deobandi Islamic fundamentalism, Islamic fundamentalist, m ...
takeover. A U.S. liaison office was opened after the U.S.-led
Operation Enduring Freedom
Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) was the official name used synonymously by the U.S. government for both the War in Afghanistan (2001–2014) and the larger-scale Global War on Terrorism. On 7 October 2001, in response to the September 11 at ...
in late 2001 before the embassy was reopened in 2002. A new complex was under construction until early 2006, when
U.S. President
The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States ...
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...
along with
Afghan President
The president of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan was constitutionally the head of state and head of government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan (2004–2021) and Commander-in-Chief of the Afghan Armed Forces.
On 15 August 2021, as ...
Hamid Karzai
Hamid Karzai (; Pashto/ fa, حامد کرزی, , ; born 24 December 1957) is an Afghan statesman who served as the fourth president of Afghanistan from July 2002 to September 2014, including as the first elected president of the Islamic Repub ...
held an inauguration ceremony. The
U.S. State Department planned to spend another $500 million to further expand its premises, which was scheduled to be completed in 2014. However, the U.S. State Department extended the completion date to July 2016. The final cost of the chancery was $792 million.
Operation Enduring Freedom
During the very early phases of Operation Enduring Freedom, a small detachment of U.S. Marines from Kilo Battery
3rd Battalion 10th Marines, accompanied by a four-man Marine Scout/Sniper team fro
3rd Battalion, 6th Marines attached to the
26 MEU, who specialized in Embassy Reinforcement was tasked with retaking the U.S. Embassy in Kabul in early December 2001. This unit was part of one of the longest amphibious operations in
Marine Corps
Marines, or naval infantry, are typically a military force trained to operate in littoral zones in support of naval operations. Historically, tasks undertaken by marines have included helping maintain discipline and order aboard the ship (refle ...
history starting the assault from
LCAC
LCAC may refer to:
Hovercraft
* A generic term for an air cushioned landing craft, taken from US Navy designation "Landing Craft, Air Cushion".
** Landing Craft Air Cushion, a US Navy hull classification symbol for the Landing Craft Air Cushion-c ...
's into Pakistan then moving on to
Bagram Airfield
Bagram Airfield-BAF, also known as Bagram Air Base , is located southeast of Charikar in the Parwan Province of Afghanistan. It is under the Afghan Ministry of Defense. Sitting on the site of the ancient Bagram at an elevation of above sea leve ...
before the airfield was fully secured by U.S. and Coalition troops. The Marines set up camp inside of a factory building and secured local transportation in the form of Afghan private buses driven by Marines to disguise their pending assault on the Embassy. They left in the early morning and secured and held the embassy until
Diplomatic Security Service
The Diplomatic Security Service (DSS or DS) is a security and law enforcement agency that acts as the operational division of the Bureau of Diplomatic Security, which is a branch of the United States Department of State. Its primary mission is ...
s arrived to properly handle the sensitive information that was still locked in the embassy and to measure the compound's suitability for a continued U.S. presence on the site. Later that month, The Marines from this unit were the first Marines to raise the U.S. flag since the embassy was closed in 1989. This was the same flag that had flown over the U.S. Embassy in Kabul that day when it closed in 1989.
September 2011 attack
Heavily armed
Taliban insurgents wearing
suicide vest
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Mental disorders (including depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, personality disorders, anxiety disorders), physical disorders (such as chronic fatigue syndrome), and subs ...
s struck various buildings in Kabul on 13 September 2011, and at least 7 people were killed and 19 wounded. The U.S. embassy was among the buildings targeted and several Afghan visa applicants who were waiting at the embassy were wounded. No embassy personnel were hurt in the incident.
The United States blamed the
Pakistani Army
The Pakistan Army (, ) is the land service branch of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The roots of its modern existence trace back to the British Indian Army that ceased to exist following the Partition of British India, which occurred as a result ...
and its
Inter-Services Intelligence
The Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI; ur, , bayn khadamatiy mukhabarati) is the premier intelligence agency of Pakistan. It is responsible for gathering, processing, and analyzing any information from around the world that is deemed relevant ...
(ISI) spy network for the attack.
Another deadly attack at an annex to the embassy occurred later the same month.
April 2012 attack
As part of a nationwide series of coordinated attacks, Taliban elements attacked the embassy on April 15, 2012. The attack was defeated by Afghan security forces. Gen
John Allen, commander of the
International Security Assistance Force
' ps, کمک او همکاري '
, allies = Afghanistan
, opponents = Taliban Al-Qaeda
, commander1 =
, commander1_label = Commander
, commander2 =
, commander2_label =
, commander3 =
, comman ...
, stated he was "enormously proud" of the response mounted by
Afghan security forces
The Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF), also known as the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces (ANDSF), were the military and internal security forces of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan.
Structure
The Afghan National Security For ...
. He added: "No one is underestimating the seriousness of the attacks, and we'll work hard to determine the circumstances that led to today's events."
September 2019 attack
On September 11, 2019, a rocket exploded at the embassy, marking an attack on the 18th anniversary of the September 11 attacks.
COVID-19 outbreak June 2021
The third wave of the
COVID-19 pandemic in Afghanistan
The COVID-19 pandemic in Afghanistan is part of the worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 () caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (). The virus was confirmed to have spread to Afghanistan when its index case, in ...
resulted in the infection of 159 embassy workers by June 22, 2021. There were several
medical evacuation
Medical evacuation, often shortened to medevac or medivac, is the timely and efficient movement and en route care provided by medical personnel to wounded being evacuated from a battlefield, to injured patients being evacuated from the scene of a ...
s and at least one death. A mid-June report described
COVID-19
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...
as "surging" in the embassy, which was then subject to
COVID-19 lockdowns
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a number of non-pharmaceutical interventions colloquially known as lockdowns (encompassing stay-at-home orders, curfews, quarantines, and similar societal restrictions) have been implemented in numerous countrie ...
.
Remote work
Remote work, also called work from home (WFH), work from anywhere, telework, remote job, mobile work, and distance work is an employment arrangement in which employees do not commute to a central place of work, such as an office building, ware ...
was mandated for all staff, as was adherence to
social distancing requirements.
U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan 2021
On 14 April 2021,
President Biden announced his intention to
withdraw all regular US troops from Afghanistan by 11 September 2021. On 27 April, the State Department ordered employees at the Kabul embassy to leave if their "function
ould Ould is an English surname and an Arabic name ( ar, ولد). In some Arabic dialects, particularly Hassaniya Arabic, ولد (the patronymic, meaning "son of") is transliterated as Ould. Most Mauritanians have patronymic surnames.
Notable p ...
be performed elsewhere." The move was not expected to reduce embassy capability. At the time, the
2021 Taliban offensive
A military offensive by the Taliban insurgent group and other allied militants led to the fall of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan based in Kabul and marked the end of the nearly 20-year-old War in Afghanistan, that had begun following the ...
had not yet begun.
The departure of U.S. military forces from
Afghanistan
Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...
was set to see approximately 650 Marines remain to protect diplomats and the embassy, which would remain open, indefinitely. Additionally, some would aid in guarding
Hamid Karzai International Airport
, nativename-r =
, image = Flightline at Kabul International Airport.jpeg
, caption = The flightline at Kabul International Airport in January 2012
, IATA = KBL
, ICAO = OAKB
, ...
in
Kabul
Kabul (; ps, , ; , ) is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. Located in the eastern half of the country, it is also a municipality, forming part of the Kabul Province; it is administratively divided into 22 municipal districts. Acco ...
, considered a "critical requirement to keeping any U.S. diplomatic staff in Afghanistan." Airport security was initially to be delegated to
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
post-withdrawal, before the rapid Taliban offensive saw Kabul threatened within days.
Navy
A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral zone, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and ...
Rear Adm. Peter Vasely led the embassy's 650-strong security mission.
On 2 July,
Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin
Lloyd James Austin III (born August 8, 1953) is a retired United States Army four-star general who, since his appointment on January 22, 2021, has served as the 28th United States secretary of defense. He is the first African American to serv ...
approved
U.S. Forces Afghanistan Forward, a new command for troops remaining in Afghanistan for embassy
and airport security. Vasely became the senior U.S. military officer in Kabul and the command's leader; he is supported by
Defense Security Cooperation Management Office Afghanistan in
Qatar
Qatar (, ; ar, قطر, Qaṭar ; local vernacular pronunciation: ), officially the State of Qatar,) is a country in Western Asia. It occupies the Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it sh ...
and reports to
US Central Command
The United States Central Command (USCENTCOM or CENTCOM) is one of the eleven unified combatant commands of the U.S. Department of Defense. It was established in 1983, taking over the previous responsibilities of the Rapid Deployment Joint Tas ...
(the military
command
Command may refer to:
Computing
* Command (computing), a statement in a computer language
* COMMAND.COM, the default operating system shell and command-line interpreter for DOS
* Command key, a modifier key on Apple Macintosh computer keyboards
* ...
responsible for the
Middle East
The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabian Peninsula, Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Anatolia, Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Pro ...
), commander
General
A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of highest military ranks, high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry.
In some usages the term "general officer" refers t ...
Kenneth F. McKenzie Jr.
Kenneth Franklin McKenzie Jr. (born 1956 or 1957) is a retired United States Marine Corps general who served as the 14th commander of the United States Central Command from March 28, 2019 to April 1, 2022. He served as Director of the Joint Staff ...
[
On 7 August, the embassy issued a security alert urging all Americans to immediately leave Afghanistan due to increased security threats from the ongoing Taliban offensive and a reduction of staff at the embassy. The embassy offered repatriation loans to U.S. citizens to fly out of the country on commercial airlines. As a result of the Taliban’s continuing offensive, the State Department considered an evacuation of the embassy. In an effort to avoid having to evacuate the embassy, U.S. negotiators reportedly sought assurances from the Taliban that they will not attack the embassy if they overrun Kabul.
Embassy officials reportedly clashed with Pentagon officials on whether or not to reduce the American diplomatic footprint as military forces withdrew.
]
Partial evacuation of embassy compound
On 12 August, the State Department announced a partial evacuation of the embassy. 3,000 U.S. soldiers and Marines were temporarily deployed to Kabul to evacuate an unspecified number of the 4,000 embassy staff, 1,400 of whom were U.S. citizens
Citizenship of the United States is a legal status that entails Americans with specific rights, duties, protections, and benefits in the United States. It serves as a foundation of fundamental rights derived from and protected by the Constitut ...
. State Department spokesman
A spokesperson, spokesman, or spokeswoman, is someone engaged or elected to speak on behalf of others.
Duties and function
In the present media-sensitive world, many organizations are increasingly likely to employ professionals who have receiv ...
Ned Price
Edward "Ned" Price (born November 22, 1982) is an American political advisor and former intelligence officer serving as spokesman for the United States Department of State since 2021. He worked at the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) from 2006 ...
stressed that the embassy would "remain open" with a "core diplomatic presence" remaining. In the event that Taliban forces assault the embassy mid-evacuation, a contingency force of 3,500 soldiers was sent to Kuwait
Kuwait (; ar, الكويت ', or ), officially the State of Kuwait ( ar, دولة الكويت '), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated in the northern edge of Eastern Arabia at the tip of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to the nort ...
.
On 13 August, Price stated that the Taliban had agreed not to attack diplomatic facilities, although he stressed that the U.S. was "not going to trust anything the Taliban says" and would verify intentions through intelligence. Embassy staff were ordered to destroy classified documents
Classified may refer to:
General
*Classified information, material that a government body deems to be sensitive
* Classified advertising or "classifieds"
Music
*Classified (rapper) (born 1977), Canadian rapper
*The Classified, a 1980s American ro ...
, electronics, and equipment, as well as American flags
The national flag of the United States of America, often referred to as the ''American flag'' or the ''U.S. flag'', consists of thirteen equal horizontal stripes of red (top and bottom) alternating with white, with a blue rectangle in the ...
that could be " misused" for propaganda purposes. Citing unnamed officials, POLITICO
''Politico'' (stylized in all caps), known originally as ''The Politico'', is an American, German-owned political journalism newspaper company based in Arlington County, Virginia, that covers politics and policy in the United States and intern ...
reported that the Defense Department was preparing for a full evacuation and closure of the embassy and that USCENTCOM
The United States Central Command (USCENTCOM or CENTCOM) is one of the eleven unified combatant commands of the U.S. Department of Defense. It was established in 1983, taking over the previous responsibilities of the Rapid Deployment Joint Tas ...
saw such an event as "inevitable."
Evacuation to Hamid Karzai International Airport
On August 14, soldiers and Marines already in Kabul enhanced security of Hamid Karzai International Airport for use by evacuating diplomatic staff and Special Immigrant Visa
The Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) programs are programs for receiving a United States visa. The program is administered under the '' Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008, Public Law 110-181'', which was signed into law on January 28, 20 ...
(SIV) Afghan embassy workers and translators. Military evacuation planes began flying out daily and the number of evacuated SIV recipients (Afghans that helped Americans and are at risk of Taliban retaliation) was increased. Spokesman Price stated that, as a contingency, embassy operations could be moved to the airport. President Biden additionally deployed a further 1,000 troops from the 82nd Airborne to Kabul to provide additional security.
Also on 14 August, the State Department requested help by humanitarian groups in identifying Afghans in need of evacuation. As of the weekend of August 14–15, informal groups of American NGOs
A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from government. They are typically nonprofit entities, and many of them are active in h ...
, Afghanistan veterans, and former officials and diplomats began attempting to evacuate local Afghans awaiting official State Department evacuations or SIV application processing. Individuals leveraged connections with Congresspeople and then State
State may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Literature
* ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State
* ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States
* ''Our S ...
and Defense Department officials to help evacuees, seeing the formal process as too bureaucratic and slow. The embassy's consular section also began soliciting information from non-diplomatic Americans citizens seeking evacuation from Afghanistan.[
By early August 15, Taliban forces surrounded Kabul and sent unarmed fighters to negotiate a "peaceful transfer of power."][ Taliban spokesmen claimed to be in ongoing negotiations with the Afghan government and said their fighters had been ordered not to enter the city.] On the same day, according to the BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
"fled the embassy" for heavily-secure Hamid Karzai Airport.
Military helicopters made repeat trips to ferry all U.S. diplomats and officials from the embassy to the airport, firing
. Troops, contractors, and civilians also awaited for evacuation at the airport. The "core diplomatic presence" the State Department stated it would keep in Afghanistan on August 12 was moved to a new secure location in Hamid Karzai Airport.