With apologies for (re)stating the obvious, but in the event any of you are contacted for comment or interacting with people promoting current false narratives:
— the assertion that Afghans evacuated during the NEO then entered the States without vetting is 100% false. It’s accurate that people were not necessarily vetted before being manifested from HKIA for flights to interim locations like Al-Udeid in Qatar, UAE or other countries. However, all Afghans were vetted full-scale by DHS at least once before they were permitted to fly to US and be processed by CBP for entry into the US.
— Afghans who arrived in the States as a result of the NEO were then vetted again before being released from the temporary facilities (set up at DoD bases) for resettlement in the U.S.
— individuals who failed vetting the first time were not permitted to enter the US. They were initially retained at the interim location to which they had been transported, and then relocated to a facility in Kosovo (with full consent of the Kosovar govt).
— individuals who failed vetting after initial admittance into the US (due to subsequent derog or more thorough review) were removed from the US and relocated to Kosovo. My recollection is that at least a couple agreed to be relocated back to Afghanistan immediately; other subsequently agreed to return after spending time in Kosovo.
You will recall the criticism the prior administration received for not moving more quickly in the Fall of 2021 to admit more Afghans, enable more Afghans to depart AFG, etc.
There was considerable discussion, as we were standing up CARE and undertaking other crash relocation efforts, on how we could speed the process — but always without compromising or compressing the vetting process for entry into the U.S. I would hazard a guess that at least some of the most strident current critics of “admitting terrorists” were among those pressing for truncated, but expedited processes in Sept-Nov 2021.