FILE - In this Aug. 29, 2021, file photo families evacuated from Kabul, Afghanistan, walk past a U.S Air Force plane that they arrived on at Kosovo's capital Pristina International Airport. The Afghans came from the Ramstein military base in Germany, and they will be housed near the U.S. military Camp Bondsteel, 40 kilometers south of the capital Pristina.
The U.S. official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the plan. It was the first disclosure of what the U.S. intends to do for Afghans or other evacuees who have failed to clear initial rounds of screening or whose cases otherwise require more time.Most Afghan evacuees are clearing processing in a matter of days at large transit sites that U.S. government employees set up quickly at military bases in Qatar, Germany and Italy, along with smaller sites elsewhere.
The U.S. official said the transit centers "provide a safe place for diverse groups ... to complete their paperwork while we conduct security screenings before they continue to their final destination in the United States or in another country.” A site down the road that formerly housed road crews will temporarily house evacuees bound for other NATO countries, under NATO's management and care, the official said.Germany and Italy each have set time limits of no more than two weeks for U.S. processing of any one evacuee on their soil.
What do they know that we don't?