Denies Preparing Military Flights, US Increases Charter Flights For Evacuation From Afghanistan

United States Department of State spokesman Ned Price. (Wikimedia/Commons US Department of State)

JAKARTA - The United States has no plans to resume military-led evacuation flights from Afghanistan, but is working to ensure existing charter or charter flights become more frequent, the State Department said on Thursday.

"The idea that we are restarting evacuation flights, as we had before August 31, is inaccurate," State Department spokesman Ned Price said at a briefing.

The Wall Street Journal previously reported Washington would restart evacuation flights before the end of the year, citing an unnamed State Department official.

"Charter flights are routine. Our goal is to make them more routine, to provide a level of automation to these operations so we can facilitate the departure of Americans, legal permanent residents and others," Price continued.

The United States' two-decade occupation of Afghanistan, ending in hastily organized airlifts in August, saw more than 124,000 civilians including Americans, Afghans and others evacuated when the Taliban took over. However, thousands of other US-allied Afghans who are at risk of Taliban persecution are left behind.

President Joe Biden and others in his administration have vowed to continue efforts to get them out.

Several hundred people have been evacuated on charter flights, organized by veterans' groups, and some facilitated by the United States. Washington has also helped some people to leave Afghanistan by land.

Ned Price added that since August 31, the United States has facilitated the departure of 129 US citizens and 115 legal permanent residents.

"Our goal is to ensure that working with our partners that these flights become more frequent," he said.