UNITED STATES—On Tuesday, August 31, President Joe Biden addressed the nation about the end of the war with Afghanistan.
“We completed one of the biggest airlifts in history, with more than 120,000 people evacuated to safety,” said Biden. “The number is more than double what most experts thought were possible. No nation, no nation, has ever done anything like it in all of history. Only the United States had the capacity and the will and the ability to do it, and we did it today. The extraordinary success of this mission was due to the incredible skill, bravery, and selfless courage of the United States military and our diplomats, and intelligence professionals. I was just at Dover Airforce Base for the Dignified transfer. We owe them and their families a debt of gratitude we can never repay, but we should never, ever, ever forget.”
I promised the American people I would end this war. Today I've honored that commitment. pic.twitter.com/nozJIBTWb7
— President Biden (@POTUS) September 1, 2021
On Monday, August 30, President Biden and First Lady Jill were at Dover Air Force Base in Dover City, Delaware to receive the bodies of 13 soldiers who gave died during the attacks at the Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul.
In video, Mohammad, the Afghan Interpreter who once saved Biden and two other Senators, asks Biden to save him and his family.
In an August 26 press release from the U.S. Department of Defense, the names of the 13 soldiers were released.
Marine Corps. Staff Sergeant, Darin T. Hoover, 31, of Salt Lake City, Utah indicate he died while attempting to help Afghan citizens seeking asylum.
Marine Corps Sergeant, Johanny Rosario Pichardo, 25, of Lawrence, Massachusetts was killed during the attack.
Marine Corps Sgt Nicole L. Gee, 23, of Sacramento, California had just been promoted. She was photographed holding an Afghan baby that had reportedly been passed over the security wall for rescue.
20-year-old Marine David Lee Espinoza was one of the 13 U.S. service members killed in terror attacks in Kabul last week.
"Not only do I feel for this family, but all of the other families who have lost their soldiers," said @RepCuellar. pic.twitter.com/cSKui7xp0T
— The National Desk (@TND) August 30, 2021
Other soldiers killed in the line of duty included Marine Corps Lance Cpl. David L. Espinoza, 20, of Rio Bravo, Texas; Army Staff Sgt. Ryan C. Knauss, 23, of Corryton, Tennessee; Marine Corps Cpl. Hunter Lopez, 22, of Indio, California. Lopez is the son of two Riverside County Sheriff’s Department officers, Captain Herman Lopez and Deputy Alicia Lopez.
Our prayers are with the Lopez family. #ripHunterLopez
Statement from @SheriffBianco here:https://t.co/PmKiMRMnqN pic.twitter.com/KYs0mvmZc4
— Riverside County Sheriff's Dept (@RSO) August 27, 2021
Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Rylee J. McCollum, 20, of Jackson, Wyoming was also killed in the line of duty. Corporal McCollum’s father told reporters that his son lost his life helping evacuate the airport in Kabul. Corporal McCollum and his wife were expecting their first child.
Other victims included: Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Dylan R. Merola, 20, of Rancho Cucamonga, California; Marine Corps Lance Cpl Kareem M. Nikoui, 20, of Norco, California. Norco Mayor Kevin Bash reported Corporal Nikoui was in the process of saving children when he died.
Also killed were Marine Corps Cpl. Humberto A. Sanchez, 22, of Logansport, Indiana; Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Jared M. Schmitz, 20, of St. Charles, Missouri; Navy Hospital Corpsman Maxton W. Soviak, 22, of Berlin Heights, Ohio and Marine Corps Cpl. Daegan W. Page, 23, of Omaha, Nebraska.
