OpEd’s & Press Releases

August 26, 2021

CONTACT:
Lauren Carl
lauren.carl@pinkston.co
703-388-6734

BALTIMORE — Today, August 26, a series of terrorist attacks near Kabul’s airport took the lives of over 60 Afghans and 12 U.S. troops. These attacks were carried out at the site of an ongoing evacuation of vulnerable U.S. citizens, green card holders, and vulnerable Afghans, efforts led by the United States with support from the global community. The U.S. military is engaged in a heroic effort on the front lines of the evacuation. World Relief grieves the loss of so many innocent lives and laments the risk and vulnerability to which both Afghans and U.S. personnel are exposed in Afghanistan.

“We are heartbroken by the bloodshed at the Kabul airport,” said Myal Greene, president and CEO of World Relief. “We commend the valiant efforts of the U.S. military to lead this critical evacuation and know that in doing so, they put themselves in harm’s way. This act of violence highlights the evil those who don’t make it out will be subject to while living in Afghanistan as well as our humanitarian duty to leave no one behind who is at risk. Far too many of our service members, allies and vulnerable Afghans remain trapped in Afghanistan at risk of death without any means of getting out.”

The Biden administration has pledged to continue evacuations until August 31. But as that date quickly approaches, and as violence disrupts official U.S. evacuation efforts, World Relief also calls on the Biden administration to continue evacuations past August 31 if that’s what it takes to save lives and keep our nation’s commitment to our allies.

“We honor the lives lost today of those in the U.S. military and Afghan community. We know the constant dangers our U.S. military face providing security and support as well as the dangers that those who seek safety often face.  We continue to urge President Biden to remain firm in our commitment to help vulnerable Afghans and evacuate those whose lives are in jeopardy,” said Jenny Yang, senior vice president of advocacy and policy at World Relief. “We cannot turn our backs on those who have risked their lives and their families’ lives for our country.”

World Relief asks that our partners and church community join us in praying for those who lost their lives today, and for the grieving families of victims. World Relief also asks for prayer for a compassionate and effective response by the international community to the ongoing crisis in Afghanistan. And World Relief is actively welcoming Afghans who have been evacuated and cleared for resettlement to the United States, in partnership with local churches and communities.

To learn more about World Relief, visit https://worldrelief.org/.

To find out how you can help welcome those who have fled Afghanistan, visit https://worldrelief.org/respond/#afghan.

To download a PDF version of this press release, click here.

About World Relief

World Relief is a global Christian humanitarian organization whose mission is to empower the local church to serve the most vulnerable. We aim to tackle the world’s greatest problems with holistic, locally-driven solutions that lead to lasting change — whether in response to disasters, extreme poverty, violence, oppression or mass displacement and immigration. World Relief’s work in the United States, specifically, focuses on helping refugees and other immigrants in vulnerable situations rebuild their lives in a new country.

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