our nato brethren said we'll come to the aid of the united states. the number of casualties our allies have had, the british, the australians, the canadians, they've had a lot of sacrifice too. and i think we need to thank them, we need to be grateful to them. we need to have them be involved in this exit in as graceful a way as possible. i think our allies understand that. they want everything to go as well as possible. they want to heal the breach and move on. >> you're absolutely right, we fought side by side in the trenches in europe, on the beaches of normandy, all the way through the present day. our thanks to our starting line, phil rucker, rick stengel, dr. celine gounder, thanks for starting the week off with us. >>> coming up, what's the chance moderate democrats would want to sink their own president's congressional agenda? and why should you care? we'll put that question to our political experts. >>> and later, she warned that the internet is a petri dish for conspiracy theories and utter nonsense about the virus dressed up as news and in

. >> reporter: these men all worked for nato as construction workers, cooks, interpreters. >> we've tried for more than past six years in a long line. >> reporter: many here feel abandoned an betrayed fazia koofi is a women's rights activist and envoy to taliban peace talks. she survived two assassination attempts given the situation right now, how do you see the future for women in afghanistan everyone i have spoken to about this has gotten emotional, everyone >> they're not afraid of the b-56 or the b-52 they're afraid of the women. >> kelly, good to have you with us. the taliban advances are getting closer and closer to kabul. how much pressure does the capital appear to be under >> nbc news has confirmed half of afghanistan's 34 provincial capitals are under taliban control, and there are reports of heavy fighting on kabul's doorstep in logar province, just 50 miles away lester >> all right, kelly, continue to stay safe. the stunning advance of the taliban has the president under pressure to do more to stop it. peter alexander has that >> reporter: president biden tonight publicly sil

many nato allies are saying they're also desperately trying to get their people out of kabul. politicians saying they simply were not consulted on a policy decision that puts their own national security interests at risk effectively president biden abandoned the afghan people and allies. merkel speaking out made it clear the allies could not stand alone in afghanistan without the u.s. they were fundamentally dependent on the decisions of the u.s. government and that this was not a decision they would have taken in this way. what is so confusing to other allies and politicians who are speaking out is that president biden promised to recommit to global engagement and campaigned on rebuilding alliances and now they feel he is doing the opposite and they are saying how can president biden who ep to build an alliance to counter china and russia when this has been so badly mismanaged. the u.s. has given up seven bases and significant presence in central asia. the head of nato is speaking in the last 10 minutes and seemed to back up president biden when he said it is a failure of the

and nato's relies on mobility, here out numbers and out of ammo in a operation in north, they, merged with hands up, surrounded by heavily armed taliban what are heard urging them to surrender. [ sound of gunfire ] then gunned down in cold blood, amid cries of god is great. more than 20 of afghanistan's most capable warriors executed in seconds. their crumbled bodies still warm, pools of blood seeping into ground, the u.s. had abandoned. >> they believe that they can conquer and they believe their jihadist literature will prevail. lara: they believe they have won. >> they believe they are winning. lara: afghanistan vice president did not follow president ghani on his escape plan to a foreign land ubut he headed north to join his people and talk up arms. unwilling he said to surrender to terrorists or live under tyranny. this is a difficult moment for you, is there a sense of betrayal? >> i will not put my pride on my palm and go to the americans and say, stay longer. i won't. lara: for weeks following 9/11 u.s. warplanes pounded taliban and al qaeda targets from the skies, based own i

. >> afghanistan has been a joint effort to nato allies. they went in together and leaving together. we are united with closest partners, execute mission at hand call into question the men, to claim that they ran. those who have never fought for the colors should be careful about those who have. dan: that was in the uk, chairman of the foreign affairs committee and headlines everywhere. the german lawmaker, fundamental damage has been done to our relationship from european allies, you think joe biden that somehow? >> who's going to be rebuilding the alliance so back to see him because i don't know if he doesn't send out mean tweets doesn't demand that they pay up, it turns out a non- leader of your alliance is worse than anything else. i don't cut much talk to the europeans, they always sort of have the members of alliance anyway, so much political caveat on the navy and australia great troops but they couldn't leave the base of the day, this was our fight where i disagree with them, is america's prerogative to make the call. for them inste

and this was totally unnecessary with a small force with nato's' help we were holding, hadn't had a casualty for 18 months and allow these people to have additional time to do this horrible thing, according to the taliban, and that's go school and get used to a culture where there might be a little bit of hope. this is -- you also told me, too is important. it still can be saved. if you combine with the militias, 912,500 elite forces still left with the sitting government, you can still taliban taliban like 2001, correct? >> the taliban are out in the open now, they are exposed. in 2001 we have less than 100 special forces embedded with them but they're critical for calling in american air power. right now biden unexplainablably has given them one bomber per night. that's like throwing a band-aid at sucking chest wound. if we put serious american air power with a very small group on the ground, we could take the taliban down within weeks. brian: i think about all of you guys that suffered so much and gave so much to watch it thrown in the street because someone didn't take the time to listen

president trump who negotiated with nato to make sure there were 5,000 nato troops there as well. kabul was free and the situation was under control. we have got to get back to that situation at least long enough to get back to evacuation of our citizens. we need to get them to safety as soon as possible. judge jeanine: if we don't, we'll be the ugly americans. we'll be people information whom people put their lives on the line and ended up dying. robert o'brien, thanks for being with us. just as i thought. milly knew. he knew from the trump administration. as afghanistan fell to the taliban. one afghan journalist spoke out amidst the chaos. her powerful message and lara logann >> i'm very upset today. i didn't expect overnight all the taliban come. they took my flag, this is my flag. judge jeanine: that brave reporter nazira karimi will never stop fighting for the afghanistan she loves. thank you for being here tonight. you are a respected journalist and reporter. and someone we have seen on television pleading with the president. what is it that is happening in afghanistan that

we've gotten the g-7 together, nato together. the u.n. security council together, we had 113 countries put out a clear understanding of the taliban's requirements to let people leave the country. chris: respectful hey -- look, i'm not questioning whether or not the allies have a right to complain. i'm not questioning whether or not al-qaida has a presence. the president said al-qaida is gone, it's not gone. the president said he's not heard any criticism from the allies. there's been a lot of criticism from tall -- if the allies. words matter. the words of the president matter most. >> all i can tell you is what i heard. again, this is a powerfully emotional time for allies and partners, as it is for me, as it is for us. i've also heard this. i heard across the board, deep appreciation and thanks from allies and partners for everything that we've done to bring our allies and partners out of harm's way. this has been a remarkable part of the effort. i've seen them stand up, step up to help out including as i said agreements with more than

according to nato though, right now all civilian flights are stopped, only u.s. military aircraft are allowed to take off from the airport in kabul, and the other scenes really playing out as a worse case scenario for the biden administration. you saw those images,sal ya zero a rah inside the presidential palace as the taliban poke to the world saying they were dethe claireing victory after months of fighting afghan security forces and this week and a half of a major offensive in the north and south of the country taking over areas of land and provincial capitals. there is just one provincial capital standing out just north of kabul. other than that, the taliban has taken over the entirety the of afghanistan, and we do know ghaani left the country today over fears of his safety. it's anyone's guess what comes after this, but the taliban within the coming hours certainly going to start implementing sharia law and their new vision for the people of afghanistan, vastly different from what people have seen over the past several years. many worry it will be a very dar

and that's not a promise that the united states made, but it's also a promise that our nato allies have made. it's a promise that neighboring countries should fulfill, and we have to do everything to make sure there is a multinational coalition leading this effort to save not just our allies but everybody afghani who is afraid for their lives, especially young women and, you know, vulnerable men as well. >> yeah. i mean it's infuriating to hear these people who voted against allowing more visas for afghan allies -- they literally voted against it. lauren boebert was one of 16 republicans who voted no when it came to approving more visas for afghan allies. the names will sound to you much like the pro-insurrection crowd. on top of that, the muslim ban still sticks in my craw. i'm not over it, and i'm not even muslim, and i'm not over it yet. the fact that people who stood by while the former president banned people strictly because they came from muslim countries bugs me that they're now pretending to care and then also saying, don't send people here. can you take a little bit about the

president trump who negotiated with nato to make sure there were 5,000 nato troops there as well. kabul was free and the situation was under control. we have got to get back to that situation at least long enough to get back to evacuation of our citizens. we need to get them to safety as soon as possible. judge jeanine: if we don't, we'll be the ugly americans. we'll be people information whom people put their lives on the line and ended up dying. robert o'brien, thanks for being with us. just as i thought. milly knew. he knew from the trump administration. as afghanistan fell to the taliban. one afghan journalist spoke out amidst the chaos. her powerful message and lara logan next. fight back fast with tums chewy bites. fast heartburn relief in every bite. crunchy outside, chewy inside. ♪ tums, tums, tums, tums ♪ tums chewy bites as someone with hearing loss i know what a confusing and frustrating experience getting hearing aids can be. that's why i founded lively. affordable, high-quality hearing aids with all of the features you need, and none of the hassle. i use lively he

and frankly nato drawdown and see their influence. haidi: president biden has long said the objective was never nation building. 20 years, this campaign. what would have been the outcome and is that a reasonable statement to have made, to make this exit? katherine: it is a reasonable statement to make. the united states did not go into afghanistan to build a nation, it came into hope those responsible for 9/11, and that was the taliban and al qaeda. the truth is the united states never beat the taliban and never said conditions for return. we are talking about having achieved our objectives come i don't think we ever did. we got close to defeating the taliban and never but insufficient resources to do it. we let the civil war get out of hand and did not have a strategy, there were many different ones over the past years, to win the war we were trying to fight. haidi: you speak to people who have been following this campaign and many will point to not just failures along the way but the miscommunication of these failures. does it come

between the united states and nato, and i would just note also that press secretary of state went to repeated administrative meetings for consultations on this decision and ultimately secured an agreement of the north atlantic council for tv carried out along the timetable that was laid out. all of the allies signed up for that. what the president also committed to you with sure that every last nato troop on the ground in afghanistan, and there were more nato troops in afghanistan then american troops when joe biden took office, that they would get out safely and securely without incurring a single casualty, and he executed that. he is committed to securing the flights of our partners to get their civilians out and to get others out, and he is on the process of doing that. in fact, planes have landed and taken off with their personnel over the course of the last 24 hours. >> and not enough to assure our partners because -- the united states commits only two -- how can you be sure -- call [indistinct question] how can you justify the u.s. involvement? and i also understand that the u.

military over the last 20 years, with nato forces over the last 20 years, the u.s. embassy. you know. we've heard that over a thousands of them have been able to get out of country into the u.s. but there are many, many more who are mired deep in paperwork, who are growing panicked by the moment. we've been in touch with one young man who talked about potentially trying to set himself on fire outside the u.s. embassy as a form of prempt now, i'm not sure he's going to do that. i sternal hope he is not, but i do think that speaks to the situation here in terms of just how alarmed and panicked people are becoming. >> absolutely. and you noted that some afghans have been evacuated, but there are still 15,000 siv applicants in afghanistan waiting to be evacuated, and you have spoken to some people in kandahar. you were just there last week. did they expect this to happen so fast? >> reporter: >> no. they didn't. when i interviewed this lawmaker last week what was extraordinary is he was saying you should watch out tonight. we're launching a big counteroffensive. afghan forces wi

nato allies are deeply concerned about the high levels of violence caused by the taliban defensive, including attacks on civilians, and other reports of serious human rights abuses. the talent i need to understand that they will not be recognized by the international community if they take the country by force. okay, this is the teledyne you are telling this to. "you will not be welcome in the international community if you do what you appear to be doing and keep doing it." i think it is safe to say that, after 20 plus years, the taliban doesn't care. welcome to allstate. (phone notification) where we've just lowered our auto rates. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ and savings like that will have you jumping for joy. now, get new lower auto rates with allstate. because better protection costs a whole lot less. you're in good hands with allstate. click or call for a lower auto rate today. >> tech: every customer has their own safelite story. this couple loves camping adventures and their suv is always there with them. so when their windshield got a chip, they wanted it fixed fast. they drove to safel

afghanistan is on the verge being under taliban control tonight almost 20 years after the united states and nato troops forced the islamist fundamentalist group from power. here's what we know as of late this afternoon: president ashraf ghani left the country. evacuations of u.s. and other embassies are underway. taliban fighters are in kabul and taliban officials are in talks at the presidential palace. kabul's streets were mostly empty this morning as taliban fighters approached. early this morning, reportedly wiout any fighting, the taliban took control of jalalabad, a key city to the east of the capital then, by midday, the president of afghanistan, asaf ghani, left the country after appearing in a televised address where he made no mention of leaving. one of the top afghan peace negotiators, abudllah abdullah, urged the taliban to negotiate a peaceful transfer of power and called ghani “the former president of afghanistan” >> ( translated ): the fact that the former president of afghanistan has left the country, and left behind the nation and the country in this situatn, god will hold h

and nato troops are finalizing their withdrawal from afghanistan, and the taliban is using that opportunity to make rapid military advances. tailan militants were taking control of key cities. for the latest on this we turn to nbc's ali arouzi live from iran's capital of tehran ali, good morning. >> reporter: good morning. that's right, phillip. the taliban's takeover of afghanistan continues. they've now seized three more provincial capitals in the country, putting nine out of 34 of them in the hands of taliban fighters in less than a week the fall of the capitals to the northeast is piling pressure on the country's government who seem to be unable to stem the tide of the advance now that the u.s. troops have all but gone. now after heavy fighting, the taliban have captured the key afghan city of puli khumri, the capital of the baghlan province. it's about 140 miles north of kabul, giving the insurgents control of the strategic road junction linking kabul to the north and the west the taliban flag is the city gates. kabul itself hasn't been directly threatened, but the taliban offensive is

nato allies. there are reports they remain extremely furious with the united states. does that matter? >> it matters an awful lot because what we're focused on afghanistan today, dana make no mistakes they aren't limited to afghanistan. they're in yemen, southeast asia, africa, every one of those terrorists is watching american weakness in afghanistan and i'm sure they're all contemplating whether this isn't the moment to strike and well oel need our friends and allies to have confidence in us in all of these places. in afghanistan, too. that we'll be prepared to do and honor the commitments we've made. they are all very concerned. i've heard from many of them and very worried this president is not prepared to lead in the way we did for four years. >> bill: thank you for your time. one more question. why did we have to release 5,000 prisoners from an afghan jail? why was that necessary? >> bill, it was part of the set of understandings. we didn't want those 5,000 people released but it was part of the commitments that were made. the taliban honored some of their commi

still many nato partners seem to also be reeling with the facts on the ground. the nato secretary-general said yesterday what is happening in afghanistan is a tragedy and the situation remains difficult and unpredictable. now, the president today will be briefed by his national security team in the situation room this morning before heading home to wilmington. eva? >> and the eyes all over the world watching to see how this all folds out as it plays out for us to see. maryalice, thank you. >>> now to tropical storm henri barreling towards the northeast coast and the region bracing for what could be a rare, direct hit. rob is in new haven, connecticut, tracking it all. good morning to you, rob. >> hey, good morning, eva. if it comes ashore as a hurricane on long island or connecticut, it will be the first one since gloria back in 1985 and this thing took a shift to the west yesterday so the amount of time we have to prepare is not a whole lot. take a look at where it is right now, about 190 miles off the coast of the carolinas, about 550 miles from long island, a

-led war for the last 20 years it was also part of a big nato coalition. there were more nato troops inside afghanistan then there were u.s. troops. nevertheless, the biden administration made the decision unilaterally to leave the country and he decided how and when and has left allies scrambling. as the situation gets out of hand to come feeling of anger, it is growing. >> to see that commander in chief call into question, and it's shameful. and this is a shame on all of us. not just america but also the whole of nature. >> what did it say? if we are entirely dependent on a unilateral decision. >> that last point there is one that has been reiterated all week across the world and us allies try to evacuate their people, the question many are asking is can they rely on the u.s. not to abandon them in the future the way the biden administration has appears to have done so now. boris johnson trying to reach president biden on monday morning, and that's great anger among allies. so we have a thing with that relationship. >> sandra: very important question for

, you look at fact that look at optics, what our allies are saying in the world, did you think that nato was thinking about doing things without the u.s.? are you watching now our allies are having conversations without us. and you are looking at fact that the british and french have gone out of their way to get their citizens out and we're telling our americans, hey, by the way, don't come to the airport, we have so many americans trey that are not even near kabul. they are on all over afghanistan. and they cannot get through a checkpoint their passports are taken and taliban is not letting them, there is a massive problem when we trust the taliban to secure our airport that allowed 13 solers to die and have -- soldier to die and to think about russia and china right now. this is walking right into the hands of russia can and china. china would love to have bagram air force, they have their eyes on mineral resources, they are working with taliban, taliban spokesman said they want to start relying on china going forward. this has been catastrophic for america. it is not a good look. it i

the development comes amid a week's long relentless taliban offensive as american and nato forces finalize their pullout from war-torn afghanistan. the families fleeing the taliban left traumatized, angry and desperate. nbc's kelly cobiella spoke to some of those refuged in a park in kabul. >> all the peoples who are from the northern areas of afghanistan are gathered over here. they don't have a place to stay at night. they don't have their own relatives, even in kabul, it's very tough. it's very difficult to these people to live a normal life. so that's why because of the war. it's because of taliban. >> horrible turn of events there. kelly joins us from kabul and kelly, just tell us more about what you're learning, the conversations you've had with people fleeing the taliban. >> reporter: these are all people who had good-paying jobs many had government jobs, lived in a big city, the city of kunduz, city of about 300,000 in the north. they had homes, cars and like i said good-paying jobs and had to flee the city, harrowing stories of survival, told in the middle of the night you need to

military spokesperson there that there is not a military end to this, and the government is involved with nato, and other allies, and coming to a negotiated settlement here, and that the taliban is not going to be recognized if they come to power through force and does the taliban care? how seriously should we take a settlement negotiation, when there are thousands of taliban fighters taking over the country at the end of a rifle right now? >> they don't care at all. this is not what winning looks like for us. this is what losing looks like. they know it. they are winning. they have no incentive to negotiation when they are taking over the battlefield when they are capitulating. and courtney is right, they are fighting a fight of attrition, and they have weapons and warriors coming over from the border, and killing the command commandos when they can. and we are tracking the number of people that we have now lost, and currently counting 669 people behind the enemy lines without contact. these were afghan interpreters and families hoping to try to get to kabul. if kandahar has fallen, you can d

. >> dana: not to mention the frustration and anger from european allies and nato partners. mike gallagher, appreciate your time this morning. >> bill: i want to show you this picture now. a moment ago one of these jets took off from the kabul airport. looks to me like perhaps maybe a cargo craft leaving. where it is going don't know, is it american, german, british, don't have information on that. at least somebody is moving i guess. in summary that's what's happening in kabul. >> dana: what they were talking about the airport being in a bowl surrounded by the mountains there. also wanted to show you this. remarkable today. fox and friends had an interview with haroon. he is now trapped there. this is what he said. >> no one wants to say hey, i'm an american, i want to go. for my safety and my family's safety which is already our safety is at risk. all those people that are right behind the airport, 80% of them have paperwork that proves they helped americans. and now the taliban are right there. they are seeing them every day with their papers. how do you know they can vid

military transport aircraft landing and taking off from america, from germany, from other european and nato countries. although thousands of people are now being rescued and moved safely out of the country, there's still tens of thousands just hundreds of yards from me still desperate to get through and get out. this morning, amid mayhem around kabul's airport, evacuations are ramping up. with the august 31st deadline to withdraw all military forces now just one week away u.s. officials reporting that helicopters and troops were sent in to kabul to extract americans and airlift them to the airport but many americans and thousands of afghan allies remain. president biden indicating the pullout could be pushed back, but the taliban saying failure to meet the deadline will cause mistrust claiming it's their red line. >> if they are intent on continuing the occupation, it will provoke a reaction. >> reporter: adding to the chaos the possibility of an airport attack from isis-k, the branch of isis terrorists here in afghanistan who could exploit the volatile situation. u.s. and coalition forces

conference since seizing power the taliban promising amnesty for all those who have worked with american and nato forces vowing not to hunt them down or seek retribution. what guarantees will you give to the afghans who are now hiding at home who want to leave the country who the americans will transport? they can't get to the airports, so what guarantees? >> we are assuring the safety of all those who have worked with the united states and allied forces whether as interpreters or any other field that they worked with them. as for their talents and skills we do not want them to leave the country. we want them to serve their own homeland. >> reporter: wary of promises from the taliban, hundreds of thousands of afghan women and girls now sheltering in their homes. nasrin nawa was able to get out of the country just in time but her family is still on the ground in afghanistan. >> it's heartbreaking. so many people are stuck in the country and they have no way out. >> reporter: well, the taliban leadership have now arrived in the country and they've got to get on with the business of establishing gov

says what nato circumstance nate -- nato is, nato is a paper tiger. when america pulls out nato is nowhere, others have massive strategic implications for the world and for the u.s. preprestige and good u.s. has done in the world, undermined by joe biden's catastrophic decision to are draw, know conditionally -- withdraw unconditionally with any regard who what is going on to unconditionally withdraw from the country of afghanistan. >> president biden has trashed the afghan soldiers and army, what do you say about that? >> i would say. that i never heard such a disgraceful speech from the president of the united states much america as i heard the other day he said the buck stops with me, but he then the went on to explain how the buck stopped with everyone else, it was not with him, it was everyone else, starting with president trump, and suggesting for one moment he was forced to carry out a policy like this because of president trump's policy is laughable, a pit -- pitiful excuse for what he has done. there were other options, he did not have to tak

. >> reporter: all these men worked for nato as construction workers and cooks and interpreters. >> we will translate language. we issued them. he is a terrorist. they put them in the jail. they will kill us. every one of us. >> reporter: many feel abandoned and betrayed. nbc news spoke with an afghan taliban commander. he said the taliban is aware of u.s. forces back in afghanistan on the ground. he said if the u.s. tries anything, we will deal with them the same way afghan forces. peter. >> kelly, please stay safe. >> kelly mentioned the situation in afghanistan is putting pressure on the biden administration, especially because the biden administration ordered the total withdraw of u.s. forces. monica alba is at the white house with that part of the is story. good morning. >> reporter: morgan, good morning. president biden is receiving updates from the secretary of state and pentagon chief of the deterioraing situation while at camp david this weekend. the white house says he has no regrets to withdraw troops from afghanistan by the end of the month. president biden silent on afghan

states, at the end of the day, we have to admit, and i include myself in this mission having commanded nato for four years, we have yet to train the afghan military to the degree in which they could have been more successful. so long answer short, there is plenty of blame to go around, and we have to cull these lessons apart and start to focus on what do we do now. >> and colonel, i understand that you have personally speaken to the taliban leaders in the past and currently, and what is your official capacity, and more to the point, are the remaining americans there, are they safe right now? >> well, the taliban have said they will grant safe passage to anybody who wants to leave, and i think that right now, we have to start working with them on the ground. i know that this -- i know this is hard to accept. my first time talking with people who had just a few moments before trying to kill me and kill my soldiers was, and i mean, it is very difficult and emotionally hard, but you so take a moment to separate, you know, create some space between emotion and action. focus on the things that ar

>> massive amount of money put in by the nato countries into perhaps an escrow account that would not be under the guidance or the distribution of united states. the united stes has already shown it cannot do that without corruption and failure. i think we would have to look to the u.n. and groups that have a reputation for being able to truly assist people in afghanistan and reparations for dismantling the war system. amy: kathy kelly, longtime peace activist and author. the co-coordinator of the ban killer drones campaign and a member of world beyond war. she has traveled to afghanistan nearly 30 times. next up, new orleans and at the dark after hurricane i. stay with us. ♪♪ [music break] amy: "song for george" by mat callahan and yvonne moore. today is the last i of black august. this month for 50 years since the assassination of george jackson. this is democracy now!, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman with juan gonzalez. hurricane ida has been downgraded to a tropical depression after it hit the louisiana coast sunday as a category for paying -- categ

without american troops, without nato troops there, it's going to be a walk in the park for them, and it was. they took over the country without firing any shots. many of the afghans i have spoken to here feel utterly hopeless. you know, they had a sense that the country may change after 9/11. look, it was still a very difficult place to live after 9/11, but it was a far cry from what the taliban had made for the country. they were executing people in soccer stadiums. women had zero rights under the taliban. but over the last 20 years, you had seen them get involved in arts and music and television. they know that that's all gone now. and they're going to live a very, very suppressed life in afghanistan, and they don't think anything is going to change. interestingly, one afghan i spoke to today told me he thinks that the taliban learned their lesson after the 9/11 attacks, and they're not going to try to provoke america to launch some sort of all-out attack on them. and if that's the way the taliban are thinking, well, then, they're going to be there for a long time because nobody is

a nato official confirming that at least 20 people have died in and around the airport since august 13th, and among the seven afghan civilians killed over the weekend, one of them was just 2 years old. reports she was trampled to death. her mother, a former interpreter for an american company, telling "the new york times," i felt pure terror. i couldn't save her. with temperatures in the 90s every day, heat, exhaustion an added threat. one family telling abc news they spent three days sleeping on the ground outside the airport without food or water, finally giving up and going home. american troops here on the ground giving water to those in need and using it to help keep children cool. the journey out just as dramatic as the scene on the ground. an afghan woman going into labor on a u.s. military flight. the baby delivered in a cargo bay after landing in germany. both now at a medical facility and in good condition. president biden, the administration discussing extending that august 31st deadline just over a week from now. the taliban of course get a vote. they're saying there is no ag

there weren't a lot of nato troops. at least he could really make a greater call and then at that point. and contractors can help some, but things like patrolling, you want it done by people in uniform. so that kind of number, just for bagram alone, would perhaps push up the numbers up where president biden was going to have them. >> john: is the deadline was beginning to wind toward a close on saturday, senator lindsey graham of south carolina was on with judge jeanine. he said this. >> bagram was a great decoration platform, it has multiple runways, it's out in the middle of nowhere, and you can take that airbase tonight if you wanted to. if we had any will in the white house militarily we could take bagram airbase. >> john: one of the things said is that it is out in the middle of nowhere, and if you're trying to evacuate people from kabul, which is the better place? >> certainly hamid karzai airport is easier for residents of kabul to get to. bagram is, as i recall, something in the vicinity of 20 miles away. there

20 years, interpreters, translators, people had to risk their lives to make sure that americans and nato troops were safe amid the war being left behind, and there are great points when they talk about the people, because there is a deep fear among many of the afghan civilians who help the united states because they understand they could easily be targets of the taliban, but there is this process that will have vetting and paperwork and a state department that will have to work overtime to come pleat the entire process, but getting people out of the country was that promise made by president biden and he simply did not fulfill the promise, and the people who will pay the highest price are the afghans and the americans left behind in a country that is currently controlled by the taliban. >> sandra: greg palkot, who i reference jennifer griffin covering the war, two years, we will tap into your expertise, covering and greg palkot, it's notable by the way, we are about 35 minutes now from that midnight august 31st originally set deadline for the full troop withdrawal from afghanistan. of co

ea also maid none of the nato allies criticized the u.s. on the world stage, but there are reports to the contrary and arguing the president used an example claiming the u.s. doesn't have a military presence in syria. we, in fact, have 900 troops stationed there. and he also a made this claim about al-qaeda being gone from afghanistan. >> look, let's put this thing in perspective here. what interest do we have in afghanistan at this point? with al-qaeda gone? >> al-qaeda's capacity to do what it kid on 9/11, to attack us, to attack us or our allies from afghanistan is vastly diminished. chris: is it gone? >> there al-qaeda members and remnants in afghanistan, yes. but what the president was referring to was its capacity to do what it did on 9/11, and that capacity has been very successfully diminished. >> reporter: other members of the president's cabinet defended him in various appearances on the sunday morning shows today and this address coming on a sunday is expected to offset some of the pressure and criticism that the president faced

nato wanted us to be there. the afghans wanted us to be there. nobody was demanding we leave. i think it was a mistake at that level. brooks and capehart i don't --jonathan: i don't know if it is fair that no one wanted us to leave, when they had said for years they wanted u.s. personnel out of afghanistan. >> president biden said he wanted to have this anniversary, september 11 number when we got into afghanistan, to be out, and the argument is may we have bungled that. we have imperiled so many afghan citizens. think about the taliban taking over the country. >> that gets to what i said in my initial answer, what is happening in the country now is rrific. i interviewed hugh hewitt at the washington post and other colonists who said it is not messy and chaotic, it is catastrophic. i disagree with hugh hewitt on just about everything, but on that one, i cannot disagree that what is happening in that country is not catastrophic. for the american people who want our people home and to stop spending what we are spending there, for them, it is a catastrophic choice, but a choice t

would partially agree with in that is that the afghan army was the army that the united states and nato built. if they had weaknesses, those were weaknesses -- and they did -- they were weaknesses long known to the united states and nato partners whouilt that force. a lot of mistakes were made along the way. a lot of exaggerated ambitions that were never going to be realized. yes, you can blame them for not stepping up to the plate as president biden did, you can blame their political leaders for not providing the leadership gave these fighters cause fight for, but there is plenty of blame to go around here and a lot of it is attributable to the united states and how it went about building this army in afghanistan. judy: laurel miller with the international crisis group, thank you smuch for joining us. >> it was my pleasure to be with you. ♪ judy: in the day's her news. the death toll from saturday's 7.2 magnitude earthquake in haiti soared to more than 1400 people. 6000 others were injured. the quake's epicenter was about 80 miles west of the capital, port-au-prince. rescue crews rac

. >> the nato secretary general tweeting "the flags of all 30 allies are flying at half mast at nato headquarters following the appalling terrorist attack outside kabul airport. we mourn all the victims." a similar site across the u.s. paying tribute to the 13. governors across the country urging counties, businesses and individuals to lower their flanks out of respect as well. new details emerging about those killed. several were just 20 years old. one service member was expecting a child in just three weeks. >> our thoughts and prayers continue to go out to the families and to the teammates that we have lost. this is a devastating time for these gold star families. a title no one wants to hold. we absolutely hold them in the utmost respect. i can also report that two flights landed at ram stein carrying our wounded personnel from the attack. >> the pentagon says many of those members who were wounded in the attack in the airport during that bombing will receive medical care in germany. >> kevin: alex from london, thank you. the biden administration racing to evacuate the remaining

and nato troops complete their pullout. nick paton walsh is following this for us. afghanistan has swiftly descended into violence, and there are even fears that kabul, the nation's capital, could also fall. of course, this is coming very close to the 20th anniversary of 9/11. give us the latest. >> yeah, it's been a bad 72 hours for afghanistan. for its government there. nothing like it in the last 20 years, jim. make no mistake. certainly kunduz is the largest city to fall to the taliban. temporarily, the insurgency have twice in the last six years moved in and been kicked out by african security forces. there's fighting still going on now but it's not happened to the backdrop to the kinds of things in the last few days. friday the taliban took their first provincial capital, a kind of city hub of some of the regions in afghanistan. that was on the border with iran, and then they since have taken two, possibly three other provincial capitals over the last 72 hours. it's that sense of momentum that has many deeply concerned, i think, because the insurgency have alw

i think a number of nato allies were not happy with the way this was done. uk to say the least. so there might be something there in terms of getting the rest of the world to help out. but i'm not sure how you maintain a military presence of any kind in afghanistan, in kabul, without raising the possibility of some kind of contact with the taliban. there hasn't really been any, so far. but anything involving pushing back the perimeter. basically, compressing the people, that dense crush of people around the airport. moving them out beyond it. it -- it just feels like it raises the potential for something to pop off. are you prepared for that? >> you're -- you're absolutely right. it does raise the potential but what is the alternative? are we going to simply abandon those people who are left behind? we -- frankly, the time for asking questions about the strategy that was employed is -- is in the future. right now, we have got to focus on making sure that -- look. we have the finest military in the world. we have seen incredible response by them. and i don't want to put any servi

. >> reporter: these men all worked for nato as construction workers, cooks, interpreters. >> we've tried for more than past six years in a long line. >> reporter: many here feel abandoned an betrayed fazia koofi is a women's rights activist and envoy to taliban peace talks. she survived two assassination attempts given the situation right now, how do you see the future for women in afghanistan everyone i have spoken to about this has gotten emotional, everyone >> taliban are not afraid of the world superpowers. they're not afraid of the b-56 or the b-52 they're afraid of the women. >> kelly, good to have you with us. the taliban advances are getting closer and closer to kabul. how much pressure does the capital appear to be under >> nbc news has confirmed half of afghanistan's 34 provincial capitals are under taliban control, and there are reports of heavy fighting on kabul's doorstep in logar province, just 50 miles away lester >> all right, kelly, continue to stay safe. the stunning advance of the taliban has the president under pressure to do more to stop it. peter alexander has that

a force larger in size than the militaries of many of our nato allies. we gave them every tool they could need. we paid their salaries, provided for the maintenance of their air force, something the taliban doesn't have. taliban does not have an air force. we provided close air support. we gave them every chance to determine their own future. we could not provide them the will to fight for that future. there are some very brave and capable afghan special forces units and soldiers. but if afghanistan is unable to mount any real resistance to the taliban now, there is no chance that one more year, five more years or 20 more years the u.s. military boots on the ground would've made any difference. here's what i believe to my core. it is wrong to order american troops to step up when afghanistan's own armed forces would not. the political leaders of afghanistan were unable to come together for the good of their people, unable to negotiate for the future of their country when the chips were down. they would never have done so while u.s. troops remained in afg

and nato finalize their withdrawal by the end of this month, after two decades of war. so what has been the taliban's strategy? how have they conquered this territory so quickly? for that we turn to bill riggio. he is a senior fellow at the foundation for defense of democracies and the editor of their "long war journal." bill riggio, thank you for joining the "newshour". you have been watching this rapid succession of taliban victories. we have a map that shows the regional capitals they now control, those nine black squares you see in the north and the west. the pink areas are taliban-controlled. the lighter yellow is government-controlled, and you can see, bill, the darker yellow is a huge chunk of the country. those lands are currently under taliban threat. what do you see as the insurgent strategy and objective? >> yeah, the insurgents -- the taliban's objectives is to seize control of afghanistan, to reestablish islamic emirate of afghanistan, that's the name to have the government prior to the u.s. invasion, they will do it by force or diplocy, and via diplomacy m

and nato allies have just one week to pull out all their citizens and vulnerable afghans after the taliban today again insisted they'd accept no extensions beyond august 31st, or there would be consequences. the u.s. embassy strain, issuing a final alert for american citizens to leave tonight or they'd be on their own. then recalling it 30 minutes later this is now an extremely busy airfield every few minutes new planes are coming in, and they're not just from the united states we have seen them from the uk, qatar, australia, civilian aircraft this is a truly global airlift. these satellite images show the huge crowds trying to leave the airport. but now, finally, the departures are going smoothly we watched a qatari air force plane bound for doha being loaded as u.s. forces monitor air traffic from the runway but will the air lift be done in a week? maybe, but it will be difficult, because u.s. troops don't just need to fly out afghans but also themselves we just left kabul airport, and you go through the american checkpoint and then you're headed to what looks like another american check

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military, but also by other nato countries like britain and france. we are now hearing all u.s. personnel have been safely evacuated from the country. the next phase is u.s. citizens and then afghans who have worked alongside u.s. forces. these special visas applicants, but we are told they have to make their own way to the airport. many of them are hiding at home, afraid to come out to the streets because taliban fighters now dominate the city. they say they are here to provide security, but they are a dark, brooding presence on many junctions, roads. there is a risk that could be stopped at checkpoint. this is the reason why they are trying to get out. they fear for their lives and don't want to come into contact with the taliban. the u.s. is adamant they have to make their own way to the airport. we have also been seeing today the taliban spokesman came to underline they will protect women's rights, but with the caveat, under islamic law. they say women will be able to go to school, to universities, the workplace, but there are going to be conditions. finally, will they allow

nato at the g-7 in cornwall. they were all delighted to see biden back and america back in the game and what you are hearing totally publicly now from allies right across europe, mps in the uk, conservative mps standing up in parliament saying they are ashamed that the u.s. commander in chief is blaming afghans, some of whom they fought alongside, not taking blame tore this, himself, really disparaging comments in public from other nato allies about the u.s. performance here. i think more broadly, the concern is and i have lived here for a long time and to some extent, i have always bought the argument, that the u.s. intelligence community military performance, national security operation at large could do what it needed to do around the world, it was defective. but it was powerful, that it was competent and i think for those of us who believe that the world is better off when america is strong and healthy and engaged to see the level of incompetence that we saw in the very first stages of this operation was real

a nato official confirming that at least 20 people have died in and around the airport since last saturday, and among the seven afghan civilians that were killed just yesterday, we are now learning that one of them was just 2 years old. reports that she was trampled to death. her mother, a former interpreter for an american company, telling "the new york times," "i felt pure terror. i couldn't save her." >> hello. >> hello, assalamualaikum. >> reporter: today i met with mansoor ahmad khan, pakistan's ambassador to afghanistan. to discuss the state of affairs in kabul. how would you describe the situation in kabul? >> the most immediate challenge is the humanitarian one. many people want to go, want to leave this place. if this process was done in a more orderly manner, we could have maybe saved those precious lives, but having said that, it's never too late. it is important that we should bring our action together once again and try to work out the remaining part of the evacuation or humanitarian effort in a more coordinated and a more orderly manner, and this goes for all the sides. >> re

turkey as a naito member -- a nato member, i think it is very, very important that all of these players as they run around pragmatically to a -- the best way to progress that people are going to sort of lock in advances and force leverage on the taliban to bring about these change changes. manus: martin, we're trying grapple with placekickers, government, human lives, running away from a country country. can you put context -- it is a very interesting context in terms of population, working population and g.d.p. per capita. what is at play here for afghanistan and the world in term of natural resources. that is going to take foreign capital to help this country. so just set the economic scene for us in terms of what afghanistan has to offer and why they must be pragmatic. >> very famously, the national security adviser for barack obama, susan rice, as the head of national security, national security is not infrastructure spending. this developing model is something afghanistan has never seen. we don't have to take the view of what the future will look like like in afghanistan. we look a

we ended up with nato and the international order where u.s. leadership has been by and large more good than bad. we are now at one of those inflection points. you cannot see something like afghanistan in isolation. it is a contest of democracy, a question of what kind of leadership the u.s. will apply. what will become of the global system the u.s. and its satellites created? all these issues we look at, these day-to-day issues we get lost in, really important issues. it has to be seen in the larger context. if we get this history wrong, it will look ugly, more like post-world war i and then post world war two. i am all for working with allies and seeing these setbacks as moments we can learn and take lessons from. host: thank you both for the conversation this morning and were talking to our viewers. we appreciate it. we will take a break. when we come back, we continue with our conversation, your view of the president's handling of afghanistan. there are the numbers on your screen. start dialing in. we will be back. ♪ >> weekends bring you