So far, White House stands by Aug. 31 end to Afghanistan evacuations, despite growing concerns

White House and Pentagon officials remain committed to ending the U.S. evacuation mission from Afghanistan one week from today despite increasing pressure from lawmakers and advocacy groups who worry that thousands of vulnerable individuals will still be trapped in the country then.

The Associated Press reported on Tuesday that President Joe Biden has asked his national security team to draft contingency plans should an extension be needed, but has opted for now to keep the Aug. 31 deadline to withdraw all U.S. forces from the country in place.

The issue of the looming deadline for U.S. forces to pull out of the Kabul airport has received international scrutiny in recent days, as thousands of individuals seeking to flee the country amass outside the airfield.

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White House officials said that about 21,600 people were evacuated from Kabul in a 24-hour period between Monday morning and Tuesday, a significant increase from the slow pace of flights out last week. Since late July, U.S. efforts have relocated almost 64,000 people.

But outside advocates say tens of thousands more — including some American citizens — still remain in the country.

On Monday, following a congressional briefing on Afghanistan, House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff, D-Calif., said that it was “very unlikely” that everyone seeking to escape Taliban rule will be out of the country by the Aug. 31 deadline.

“It’s hard for me to imagine all of that can be accomplished between now and the end of the month,” he told reporters.

“I am encouraged to see the numbers of people evacuated increasing … Nonetheless, given the logistical difficulties of moving people to the airport, and the limited number of work arounds, it’s hard for me to see that being fully complete.”

About 30 Republican lawmakers held a rally outside the Capitol on Tuesday morning to demand the Biden administration extend the deadline, saying that the president would “have blood on his hands” if any Americans or Afghan allies were left behind.

When asked if they were worried such a move could endanger American military personnel, numerous members said the risk was worth the mission.

“American lives are at risk right now,” said Rep. Brad Wenstrup, R-Ohio and an Army reservist who deployed to Iraq in 2005. “President Biden set a date of Aug. 31. That was supposed to be his deadline, but now it’s [the Taliban’s] deadline. And they have totally turned the tables.”

But House Armed Services Committee Chairman Adam Smith, D-Wash., said after his latest briefing on the withdrawal timeline that he was confident Aug. 31 was a realistic and responsible deadline.

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“I’m very confident we’ll get as many as it is possible to get out,” he told reporters.

“There’s a contingency to go past the 31st. It would be malpractice if there wasn’t … but is there a [military] risk to keeping troops past the 31st? Absolutely there is.”

A senior administration official said on Tuesday that U.S agencies are conducting background and health checks on all individuals who have been evacuated from Afghanistan. Overseas military bases will take some of those individuals, while foreign partners in Europe and Asia have agreed to act as processing stations while that work is done.