Afghanistan Intel Update: 20 August 2021

hello again everyone and welcome back to the underground so today i wanted to offer a quick update on the situation in afghanistan as we see it uh right now obviously the situation is very fluid things are changing by the minute so chances are by the time this video even gets out things will have changed quite significantly most likely however i did want to throw together some slides really quickly and show what the situation is on the ground from a strategic level all the way down to what is happening on the ground level as best we can now some things we cannot talk about but we will do the best that we can to get the information out there for those of you who have not been following what's going on so let's start right with the top right at the strategic level with the political situation so as one might expect the situation has gotten quite intense in the white house as over the past few days the situation is not good clearly and a lot of american people are looking to the white house the the voice of international diplomacy for the united states for some sort of guidance or or any re uh any leadership really and that's not really happening at the moment so there's a lot of inte e united states for some sort of guidance or or any re uh any leadership really and that's not really happening at the moment so there's a lot of internal conflict right now within the united states political system which is compounding things overseas particularly when we get to what units are actually going or actually being allowed to do on the ground as well also as of a couple of days ago it's it's come out it's become public knowledge that the state department is charging uh or planning to charge uh american citizens up to two thousand dollars per person to be evacuated from the country um now this is not a new policy this has been around for a very long time uh but it looks bad it looks very very very bad because americans are now asking wait a minute where's our tax money going uh you're freely flying in you know immigrants from the u.s southern border and they're not you're not charging them a dime but you're charging american citizens uh who are over there at the behest of the us government uh you're charging them uh money to you know ex-fill them from the situation it doesn't really look good and again points the internal conflict of the united states government also we' o you know ex-fill them from the situation it doesn't really look good and again points the internal conflict of the united states government also we're having international concerns as well china has openly and directly threatened taiwan with an invasion due to the u.s quote unquote abandoning china which is or sorry abandoning afghanistan which is china's words whether or not that's true remains to be seen most likely this is just political you know word play and things like that it's just posturing is really good at taking advantage of a weakness in the united states to make themselves stronger so this was to be expected and it's i would not necessarily classify it as a a serious threat at this time however i would fully expect to see a lot of chinese aircraft to uh fly into taiwan's air defense zone which is usually usually is what china does in situations like this so be on the lookout for that it doesn't mean the war is going to kick off between you know taiwan and china any day now but it does mean that the situation is tense this afghanistan situation reaches far beyond the borders of that beleaguered nation as we're finding out right now also pointing to the uh the recent his afghanistan situation reaches far beyond the borders of that beleaguered nation as we're finding out right now also pointing to the uh the recent um woes within the united states military these are coming to a head right now general milley has claimed he he is going with the i nobody told me i didn't know excuse uh which is a basically he is saying that there's no way that any of us knew that the the uh afghan national army and the afghan government would collapse as quick as it did and this is an absolute and complete lie every anyone who has ever been to afghanistan knows that this is a complete bs and many many many many many documents are coming out right now that confirm what literally every human being on the planet knew which was that the a a was incapable of even basic defense against against the taliban so there you go politicians in uniform aka our senior united states military leadership getting caught up in their own words yet again is coming to coming to fruition and also getting into the lower level stuff uh the taliban has already begun breaking their promises um the general attitude in the beginning a few days ago when this all started the general attitude was t ban has already begun breaking their promises um the general attitude in the beginning a few days ago when this all started the general attitude was that it kind of makes no sense for the taliban to attack americans now um the u.s is leaving with its tail between its legs and in a very dishonorable fashion and the faster the that the taliban can facilitate that movement the better um remember the taliban are are patient like these guys have waited decades and they are very very patient so they can wait a couple more weeks um before they you know start their bloodshed throughout the country again but that patience is running out in a lot of areas all right so moving on to more afghanistan specific information as i mentioned the situation is rapidly deteriorating with every day that goes by some people might have noticed that the situation has kind of stabilized just a little bit with the addition of thousands of us troops on the ground at hki the airport there in kabul but there are still tens of thousands of americans stranded throughout the country uh not just in kabul but in other places uh throughout the country which have completely and totally fallen to the taliban really the out the country uh not just in kabul but in other places uh throughout the country which have completely and totally fallen to the taliban really the only places uh that right now that are not being held by the taliban are the actual airport in kabul and some more tribal regions up in the north where the northern alliance has uh they've gotten started again uh so the boys are back in town when it comes to the old northern alliance but we'll see how that goes when it comes to the airlift the evacuees have been the traditional process is that when the aircraft takes off right those pictures that we're seeing with all the afghans on it that are leaving afghanistan they're not coming directly to the united states no they're they're going to qatar or qatar however you want to say it um that's where they're being evacuated to uh for uh more in processing well there's only a certain amount of capacity there on u.s bases so other us bases are having to be opened up throughout the throughout the region to uh house house these you know thousands of people that we're trying to get out but you know spaces space is running out um capacity is uh is filling up and yeah so that's going to be a pre s of people that we're trying to get out but you know spaces space is running out um capacity is uh is filling up and yeah so that's going to be a pressing issue over the next next few weeks at least also is the rather shameful reports we're seeing from u.s forces not being allowed or the united states as a whole is is refusing to leave the wire that's the kind of headlines that are getting out there uh all of the other nations that are taking part in these airlifts out of kabul they're running rescue missions like ever like several an hour right they're running rescue missions 24 7 all over the city to get people out of safe houses and get people out of out of harm's way and back to the airport to get out well the united states is not doing that in uh any significant numbers now we do have uh confirmation that a lot of um secret squirrel stuff is going on um and so we can't talk more about that so that we don't want to endanger any lives on the ground there but suffice it to say uh pictures uh tell tell a thousand words and videos even more so and uh u.s forces uh have not been utilized to their fullest potential despite the fact that we have a lot of motivated uh young men on the en more so and uh u.s forces uh have not been utilized to their fullest potential despite the fact that we have a lot of motivated uh young men on the ground there that are willing ready willing and able to go complete the mission they are not being allowed to by their superior officers which is um a lot of adjectives but disappointing among the most and then finally we're also running into logistics issues a lot of people have started raising the issue of where the aircraft getting re refueled at this is the large one of the largest air air lifts of modern history and uh these aircraft are thirsty and they're not they're not having the fuel capacity and when it comes to military logistics this is being handled so this is not a crisis at this point i would say however logistics always add a level of complexity to an already emergency situation so that is yet another way that this situation is deteriorating logistically it's it is a nightmare and also this airlift could take weeks uh at the current rate we can do the math and we've looked at the satellite imagery and we can count pretty well uh here and at the current rate the the airlift of not just uh american citizens but all the ked at the satellite imagery and we can count pretty well uh here and at the current rate the the airlift of not just uh american citizens but all the afghans as well is say say that we're only just going to take the people inside the airport uh that could take weeks based on the number of aircraft we have and the number of aircraft that other nations have contributed uh that could take a very long time so this is uh this is not uh this is not something that is going to be solved overnight this is a situation that is going to take weeks possibly at best and that is not a that is not including um or considering any rescue missions that would require aircraft to fly around the country afghanistan's a pretty big country and helicopters don't have the range to just fly from one side of it to the other they've got to refuel somewhere so there you go you know logistics again very very important so let's take a look at what's actually going on on the ground outside the airport right now as best we know it okay so here's the situation on the ground in the vicinity of the airport as best we know it this is the general perimeter of hamid karzai international airport known colloquially as hca ground in the vicinity of the airport as best we know it this is the general perimeter of hamid karzai international airport known colloquially as hcaya the northern part of the base or airport is under military control that's where the united states is setting up their stuff and uh to the south is the civilian side is under civilian control uh traditionally so normally when the afghan war was going on military dudes are on the north side civilians are on the south side it's kind of a crap shoot right now as to who's where but most civilians that are inside the airport perimeter are being held on the south side so that we can more efficiently load them via the normal pax terminals there the main road into the airport is conveniently called airport road and this leads to the main entry control point or ecp now this is where you're seeing most of those videos come from the video that's going around is kind of viral where the the taliban are firing into the crowd that occurred right there um a lot of the the pictures and videos coming off of of american soldiers helping people over t walls and things like that that is there at that main ecp um so yeah that's where most your content is f of of american soldiers helping people over t walls and things like that that is there at that main ecp um so yeah that's where most your content is coming from if you're seeing a video chances are it's from there uh also most afghans are coordinated or at least stacked along airport road along the main stretch into that main ecp and also along the road to the west as the road continues west around the airport this is where a significant number of afghans are gathered this is where we're seeing the the videos of people climbing over t walls the wall there along that western portion is very tall so it's hard for people to get over but yeah it's still where a lot of people are are gathered trying to get into the airport all right so moving on to friendly composition and disposition so we cannot and will not talk about the friendly disposition at this time for opsec reasons but we can give a rundown of the current composition of friendly u.s forces so uh right now we're seeing on the ground being confirmed by the us government is the first battalion eighth marines uh second battalion first marines first battalion of the 194th field artillery which is from the iowa army national guar irst battalion eighth marines uh second battalion first marines first battalion of the 194th field artillery which is from the iowa army national guard as well as elements from the 82nd airborne which are kind of scattered throughout theater at this point as far as we know also there are other various units that are there we cannot confirm or deny that they're there the us government cannot confirm or deny it there but we've got videos of these guys being there on the ground so there you go also left out from the slide are uh various special forces teams from other like non-phi by nations that are scattered scattered throughout the whole place so it's just too many icons there's too many people on the ground there to kind of track them all and most of these guys are out in the city as well so there you go now as far as enemy disposition as one can probably guess by now the entire city has fallen to the taliban who control virtually every part of the city particularly among along major roads which are easier to traverse for with their equipment that they've captured so significant numbers of enemy forces throughout the entirety of the city surrounding the airport on pretty much all equipment that they've captured so significant numbers of enemy forces throughout the entirety of the city surrounding the airport on pretty much all sides also we're seeing significant amounts of taliban activity roving roving patrols of of lightly armed but still decently heavily armed considering most civilians are unarmed arms taliban patrols along airport road to the west there and also along the main stretch which are looking for any sort of opportunity to take i guess is the best way to put it for youtube censorship i guess also there are checkpoints that we have been able to confirm via social media videos um we don't really know exactly where these are at but we do know that one is at least out in front of or across the street from the interior ministry which has been taken over by the the taliban and is now serving as sort of a government building for them for their uh for their government uh so yeah taliban checkpoints pop-up checkpoints these things happen everywhere it could be something as simple as just a dude stopping his vehicle in the middle of the road and boom he's now the checkpoint so as anybody who's been to afghanistan knows these these dudes are really good his vehicle in the middle of the road and boom he's now the checkpoint so as anybody who's been to afghanistan knows these these dudes are really good at setting up checkpoints um between a a checkpoints and in other places really really quickly to extort citizens they've been doing this for the past couple of decades and they're really good at it and those skills are coming to fruition right now especially considering a a is nowhere to be seen so that is the current situation outside the airport now looking at this image if we were to shift the uh focus a little bit to the south uh we're going to push south and show what's going on or sort of where things are at just give people an understanding of where things are at in the city uh the us embassy in the green zone are or the former former green zone are to the south so if we look if we shift the camera the the imagery down a little bit to the south we can see there's the main ecp there's that uh main airport road there of course taliban has maintained maintains control over most of the city and that's where the the former u.s embassy was located is now currently in taliban hands along with the presidential palace now along with a the city and that's where the the former u.s embassy was located is now currently in taliban hands along with the presidential palace now along with all of that like these icons indicate these icons are not specific to anything but there are civilians everywhere uh there are also american citizens everywhere throughout the city it's not a small city by any by any means and it is very difficult to traverse this terrain with the taliban at every corner and on every uh every street so there you go that's a that's a about as good of a rundown as we can give in the short time that we have and hopefully this was helpful at knowing what is going on and where everything is at right now the things are subject to change we could put down each individual tile bench hook point that we know about and honestly it'll probably be gone or changed or moved or something like that so this is a good broad overview of very specific and tactical level situation so moving forward into what people can do about this if you are looking at this like we are here in the united states and you are feeling a lot of things about what's going on i just know that you're not alone the situation is very tough tough to in the united states and you are feeling a lot of things about what's going on i just know that you're not alone the situation is very tough tough to watch tough for a lot of people people who've been there people who haven't been there people who are concerned about the state of humanity are are very upset about this right now and uh rightfully so but but we can do something about it um so if you're looking for ways to help or things that you can do to help with this unfortunately there's not very much you can do but you can absolutely call your representatives i know this is going to turn a lot of people off because a lot of people dislike their politicians right now but phone calls in america are practically free and it doesn't take a lot of time to get through to your local representative and at least leave a voicemail that some staffer or unpaid intern has to listen to and catalog that can at least maybe do something and it's very helpful i'll always make make sure to of course you know be as as calm and collect as you can be um the messages for representatives that are just shouting into a voicemail box don't tend to really get anywhere and uh you you tend to get on a list an the messages for representatives that are just shouting into a voicemail box don't tend to really get anywhere and uh you you tend to get on a list anyway so if you if you feel uh called to do something you can at least call your representatives and maybe just maybe enough pressure will uh will force some action on the united states political leadership maybe it's a long shot but hey it's it's worth some it's worth it's better than doing nothing at this point also if you happen to see any photographs or or stories of family members or or or people that are stuck on the ground that are trying to share their story to get out of the country um please unless you have specific knowledge and are weighing the the costs and and the the benefits of this of doing something like this please refrain from showing the faces or or retweeting or reblogging or sharing uh the faces of of any locals that might still be trapped there that might be targets for the taliban we do have confirmed reports that the taliban are watching social media like this and they are hunting these people down already so this is happening it might not be happening on a widespread scale just yet but just give it time remem d they are hunting these people down already so this is happening it might not be happening on a widespread scale just yet but just give it time remember if you put something on the internet it will be there forever uh the internet is forever and um that's something to consider especially if uh you might be trying to do some good but you might end up hurting someone in the process so please consider that moving forward as we go forward into this and third if you feel so so called to do so charity is is another option there are a lot of not genuine charities out there that will certainly try to exploit this situation so please be careful if you choose to go and contribute to a charitable organization that tries to help the situation out either helping refugees or helping afghans or helping interpreters or even helping u.s citizens that are stranded there there are a million charities for each of those so just please be mindful of the ones you choose and please please be aware that there are some there's some sharks out there that are trying to take advantage of this situation to make a quick dollar so please be mindful of that but that could also be an option if you if you are or kn rying to take advantage of this situation to make a quick dollar so please be mindful of that but that could also be an option if you if you are or know of a charity that is honorable um and is is doing good work so that's another option as well and fourth i know it's hard to hear these days but um and it doesn't sound like much but uh being kind to another human being really does go a long way especially in the world today there are a lot of bad things happening and uh just being kind to someone else is a uh is a good way to make sure that we've got good things still happening at least on some level so that could be very helpful as well and if you or anyone that you know personally is in need of help here is some contact information that can help you if you have you have different options based on your status so american citizens obviously have have higher priority for us government flights so there are a few things you can do if you're an american citizen there's always a step program that is absolutely a great thing granted yes it has become very much aware that the united states government is not willing to help its own citizens in afghanistan at this time but this step program has become very much aware that the united states government is not willing to help its own citizens in afghanistan at this time but this step program will at least put your name in their database that says you are there and they're going to have to answer for why they didn't get you at some point in time also following the the u.s embassy in kabul on their social media and also the state department on social media helps as well they're pushing out a lot of updates um via via the internet and a lot of times if the internet is hard to load in afghanistan the internet is garbage there right like we all know this you might not be able to load a full website page but you probably could load twitter right so that could be very helpful as well also also make sure please to follow the other nations the united kingdom france and germany those embassies are helpful as well we have confirmed reports that the united kingdom france and germany are out in the city and they are they're putting in work and they're getting stuff done and they are picking up as far as we know this might not continue but we have reports that they are picking up people whoever they can um it doesn't matter if you are king up as far as we know this might not continue but we have reports that they are picking up people whoever they can um it doesn't matter if you are a citizen of their nations um despite what the united states is doing right now that uh you might actually have a good shot if the united states can't get you out the united kingdom might be able to get you out if you are an american of course no guarantees but hey at least we know that they're doing they're doing some good work number four kind of obvious and get to the airport as quickly as you can as fast as you can avoid the main roads don't travel alone we're seeing the taliban along that main airport road extorting citizens and even murdering people left and right despite what the western media is telling you uh the videos on social media that they cannot censor are uh are proving otherwise and there at the bottom of that column are some contact information we'll we'll put this information also in the description box below if it helps also if you or chances are if you're afghan you're probably not watching this video but if you know someone who is an afghan and they're having a hard time they have two options really that we kno u're probably not watching this video but if you know someone who is an afghan and they're having a hard time they have two options really that we know of the special immigrant visa the siv process this is something that has been a broken process for many many years now but there's the website for the paperwork and also if you're not eligible for the siv process you can apply for a p2 visa and there's the website for that paperwork as well that website is affiliated with the us department of state even though it's a dot org website so there you go i'm afraid we we can't help but so much but hopefully this has been at least somewhat helpful for for those that are trapped uh in a very bad situation so yeah hopefully this was helpful for everyone please please keep afghanistan in your thoughts moving forward and if even if you cannot do anything about the situation the best you can do is remember like i mentioned earlier there's there's a lot of bad stuff going on there's no doubt about that and we can rewrite the history books the the powers that be can uh can change that 24-hour news cycle to be something else and you know we can go on and eat ice cream another day right but some of owers that be can uh can change that 24-hour news cycle to be something else and you know we can go on and eat ice cream another day right but some of us are never going to forget and that's sometimes that's all you can do so years from now when everyone else has forgotten about what's happening right now we can remember and sometimes that's enough so let's not forget what's happening here let's do what we can and uh let's continue moving forward as best we can through these tough times so thanks for watching everyone hopefully this was helpful and we'll see you next time and always remember to fight in the shade