US media revealed the contribution of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to the evacuation of a thousand elements of the Afghan special forces through a secret base.
Details go back to officials in Washington quietly instructing Americans and Afghans at risk, including Afghan commandos, to head to a secret CIA base outside Kabul to secure safe passage to the United States.
Indeed, the covert operation, which took place over several weeks in August, succeeded in evacuating hundreds of vulnerable Americans and Afghans.
The list of those departing from Afghanistan included members of the elite Afghan Special Forces and their family members. At least 1,000 Afghan commandos and their families were evacuated.
According to (Politico), the magazine found documents and conversations with 3 officials (senior administration, military, and Congress), all of whom spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive information.
A US official confirmed the CIA’s involvement in the evacuation, noting that the agency “worked closely with other agencies to facilitate access to the airport in various ways for vulnerable US and Afghan citizens.”
For the first time, the United States has used this secret base for evacuations, according to the New York Times. However, the full scope of the operation was not previously reported in the final days of the evacuation effort. A CIA representative declined to comment on the operation.
This location is known as the Eagle Base, and units were moved from it to the airport in order to bypass the chaotic crowds and terrorist threats around the gates.