U.S. Senator Ted Budd (R-N.C.), a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, has joined Chairman Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) and other committee members in urging National Security Advisor Marco Rubio to review the Biden administration’s vetting process for Afghan nationals. The request follows concerns about security threats stemming from the August 2021 withdrawal from Afghanistan.
In a letter addressed to Secretary Rubio, the senators stated, “The horrific terror attack in Washington, D.C. the past week that resulted in the shooting of two brave National Guard members demonstrates that it is past time for the United States to revisit the deficiencies of the Biden administration’s vetting process for Afghan nationals and remedy the resulting egregious security threats such a process created in the United States after the disastrous August 2021 withdrawal. We urge you to take immediate action to prevent future attacks on American servicemen and citizens.”
The letter points out that while previous administration officials claimed all Afghan nationals underwent “enhanced vetting,” reports from various Offices of Inspectors General indicated otherwise. A February 2022 Department of War (DoW) OIG report found that Operation Allies Refuge and Operation Allies Welcome did not use all available DoW data, including information from the Automated Biometric Identification System (ABIS), when vetting evacuees. The ABIS database contains tactical data collected over two decades in Afghanistan.
After an initial review using ABIS, at least 50 individuals were identified as having potentially significant security concerns, ranging from minor offenses to serious cases like fingerprints found on improvised explosive devices. A September 2022 Department of Homeland Security (DHS) OIG report supported these findings and noted that around 31,000 Afghan evacuees entered the U.S. before DHS established a task force for their resettlement. Congress has also been informed about hundreds of evacuees who may have links to terrorism after arriving in America.
The senators also highlighted that repeated requests by their committee for more information about these individuals have gone largely unanswered by agencies including DoW, National Counterterrorism Center, NGIC, Defense Intelligence Agency, and FBI. Four years after leaving Afghanistan, there remains uncertainty regarding how many evacuees are being monitored or tracked by intelligence or law enforcement authorities.
The letter asks Rubio to instruct DHS, DoW, and intelligence agencies to implement recommended vetting procedures for all Afghan evacuees currently in the country; identify those with significant security concerns; and seek removal of such individuals back to Afghanistan or third countries as appropriate.
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