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A female soldier was attacked by Afghan evacuees at the Fort Bliss base

2021-09-27T13:10:24.706Z


The attack was carried out by a "group of men" on September 19. The army did not disclose the possible injuries to the woman, but reported that it is implementing greater security measures at the base. The FBI is investigating the case.


By Dennis Romero and Juliette Arcodia -

NBC News

A female soldier was attacked by international "evacuees" at the Fort Bliss base in New Mexico, the US military said in a statement late Friday.

Lieutenant Colonel Allie M. Payne reported in the statement that the attack occurred on September 19 and was carried out "by a small group of men evacuated from the Doña Ana Complex in New Mexico."

[An Army general was the last American soldier to leave Afghanistan]

The victim received "adequate care, counseling and support," Payne said.

The attackers were not described as Afghans, but Payne explained that the woman was working as part of Operation Allied Welcome, which the US Department of Homeland Security describes as "an effort to resettle Afghan refugees."

Details about the assault and the extent of the woman's possible injuries were not released, and Payne did not say if anyone was arrested.

Afghan evacuees line up to receive food at the Fort Bliss military base in New Mexico.

As of early September, the Biden Administration had more than 25,000 Afghans housed in eight military bases.

David Goldman / AP

“Bliss Task Force is also implementing additional security measures to include more health and safety patrols, additional lighting, and buddy system enforcement at the Doña Ana Complex,” said Payne.

The FBI is investigating the attack, a spokesman said.

The federal agency did not immediately respond to a request for more information.

[These are some of the prohibitions imposed by the Taliban on women in Afghanistan]

The Doña Ana Complex is part of Fort Bliss in New Mexico and Texas, along the US-Mexico border.

"The safety and well-being of our service members, as well as all those at our facilities, is paramount," said Payne.

The previous Friday, former Delaware Governor Jack Markell, now the White House coordinator for Operation Allied Welcome, said Afghan evacuees are generally vetted and approved before being brought into the country.

Markell was not asked about the assault.

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"The Administration has established a series of strict screening and background checks and public health measures to keep our citizens and our allies as safe as possible," said Markell during a press call that included Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.

New Mexico Republican Representative Yvette Herrell disagreed.

It said in a statement that the attack was "another tragic failure in the process of investigating the Afghan citizens brought to the United States."

The United States withdrew from Afghanistan on August 30, ending a fruitless 20-year war aimed at ending terrorist hideouts and bringing democracy to the region.

The country has accepted 64,000 Afghan evacuees, most of whom are said to be "people on humanitarian parole."

Source: telemundo

All news articles on 2021-09-27

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