Another evacuation flight leaves Afghanistan with 28 US citizens on board

Twenty-eight US citizens and seven lawful permanent residents were evacuated from Afghanistan on Friday, the US State Department said on Saturday afternoon.

“We can confirm that a Qatar Airways charter flight departed Kabul yesterday with 28 US citizens and 7 lawful permanent residents on board,” Ned Price, spokesperson for the department, said in a statement. “We are grateful to the Qatari authorities, who continue to coordinate these flights with us. We will continue to help US citizens and Afghans affiliated with the US government to leave Afghanistan. The international community welcomes the cooperation of the Taliban on these flights, and we will continue our commitment to ensure that American citizens and Afghans enjoy full freedom of movement.

It was not clear how many others were on the flight, and the State Department did not disclose where the plane landed.

The theft occurs exactly one week after a evacuation flight left the Taliban-controlled country with 19 US citizens on board. A day earlier, the Taliban authorized a flight carrying Americans and other foreign nationals to leave the country for the first time since the withdrawal of US forces last month.

Last week, two US citizens and 11 legal residents also took a “land route” out of the country. “We gave them advice, worked to facilitate their safe passage, and embassy officials greeted them once they crossed the border,” Blinken said at the time.

We did not know which border they were going to.

US forces left Afghanistan on August 31, ending a 20-year war. In the weeks leading up to the final withdrawal, U.S. citizens, Afghan citizens who assisted U.S. forces during the war, and other foreign nationals rushed to flee the country before the Taliban regained control.

It is not known how many Americans still remain in Afghanistan. Before evacuation flights resumed, Blinken estimated that around 100 U.S. citizens who wanted to leave were still in the country. He said US officials were in contact with each of them.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.