AUSTIN (KXAN) — Supporters of Afghan refugees and Afghan citizens left behind as the Taliban reclaim Kabul could be heard chanting “Free Afghanistan!” at the Texas State Capitol Saturday afternoon, during a ‘Stand with Afghanistan’ rally.
As of Thursday, as many as 1,000 Americans and many more Afghans were still struggling to get out of Kabul. President Biden has set a deadline for the end of this month.
Both organizers of the Austin event have ties to Afghanistan: one is an Afghan woman at school in Austin, the other is a first-generation Afghan.
Organizers are asking state and local leaders to focus on humanitarian aid in Afghanistan, provide refugee services to not only those who helped American troops but all Afghans trying to flee Kabul and oversight of the Taliban as they retake the capitol, specifically as it relates to women’s rights and safety.
On Thursday, 13 U.S. servicemembers were killed in suicide bombings outside of the Kabul airport, currently held by the United States military.
The U.S. Marine Corps named those fallen servicemembers Saturday in a Tweet. One of the Marines who died was 20-year-old Lance Cpl. David L. Espinoza. He is from Rio Bravo, Texas.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
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