Michael McCall, the new chairman of the House of Commons international affairs committee, has announced that he has demanded a series of documents from Foreign Secretary Anthony Blinken, specifically intelligence reports and communications with the Taliban.
Republicans, who now control the US House of Representatives, on Friday launched a parliamentary inquiry into the chaotic withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan in 2021, during which 13 US servicemen were killed in a bomb attack- kamikaze.
Michael McCall, the new chairman of the House of Commons international affairs committee, has announced that he has demanded a series of documents from Foreign Secretary Anthony Blinken, specifically intelligence reports and communications with the Taliban.
“It is absurd and outrageous that the Biden administration has repeatedly refused to grant our request to see (the documents) and continues to withhold information about the withdrawal,” said Michael McCall.
Should the refusals continue, the committee will not hesitate to move to “compulsory” procedures, he warned, implying subpoenas.
Democratic President Joe Biden has ordered the withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan to proceed, ending the longest war America has ever been involved in, in August 2021.
But the chaos that prevailed in this operation and the return of the Taliban to power sparked fierce criticism against him.
Thirteen US servicemen were killed on August 26, 2021 in a bombing outside the Kabul airport that killed a total of 173.
Donald Trump’s administration negotiated the withdrawal of US forces from Afghanistan while the real estate tycoon was in the White House, but the Republican party initially criticized the way his successor Joe Biden handled the operation.
The State Department did not respond to a request for comment on Friday, but said it had made more than 150 briefings to members of Congress between the withdrawal and August 2021, according to US media.
The war in Afghanistan, launched in response to the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on New York and the Pentagon, has killed more than 2,500 US troops and more than 3,500 troops from other NATO nations and US allies, according to the US Department of Defense.
RES-EMP
Read the News today and get the latest news.
Follow Skai.gr on Google News and be the first to know all the news.
With a wealth of experience honed over 4+ years in journalism, I bring a seasoned voice to the world of news. Currently, I work as a freelance writer and editor, always seeking new opportunities to tell compelling stories in the field of world news.
