President Joe Biden, anxiously seeking to complete the U.S. evacuation from Afghanistan, watched a nightmare scenario unfold on Thursday when suicide bomb explosions outside the Kabul airport killed at least 12 U.S. troops and wounded 15 others.
Biden had already gathered in the White House Situation Room with his top military and diplomatic advisers for a daily update on the chaotic evacuation effort early on Thursday when the blasts occurred outside the airport in the Afghan capital.
"We're outraged as well as heartbroken," Biden said of himself and his wife Jill in public remarks late on Thursday. The couple had "some sense what the families of these brave heroes are feeling today" after the death of his Army major son Beau from brain cancer, which Biden has previously linked to his son's military service."They were part of simply what I call the backbone of America, they are the spine of America.
"As we wait for more details to come in, one thing is clear: We can't trust the Taliban with Americans' security," added Democrat Bob Menendez, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, in an implicit criticism of Biden's strategy. There are further risks to the president, including worsening internal Democratic Party divisions that have been brewing, the adviser said.
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