US Army Sheds Light on Problems With Evacuation of Dogs From Afghanistan

Facing the apparent inability to airlift more than 150 Afghan stray dogs from the country, the US Army resorted instead to relocating the animals to "a former Afghan National Army compound on the airport grounds with appropriate supplies of food and water."

A spokesman for the US Army has recently delivered a response to the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals regarding the latter organisation’s inquiry about reports of dogs – “including working dogs, animal companions of evacuated Americans, and rescued animals” - being left in Afghanistan after the US forces' withdrawal from the country.

According to an update posted on PETA’s website, the spokesman clarified that the US military "did not leave any dogs in cages at the airport”, but were apparently unable to help the Kabul Small Animal Rescue (KSAR) get "more than 150 stray Afghan dogs" out of the country because these dogs were not permitted "on military evacuation flights due to regulations".

As Breitbart points out, this revelation comes as the International Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals criticised the US Centers for Disease Control for "enacting policies that were a ‘terrible impediment’ to rescuing dogs from Afghanistan".

Starting from 14 July, CDC enacted a "temporary suspension for dogs imported from high-risk countries for dog rabies", and SPCAI’s application for an emergency exemption from that policy reportedly was denied.

"These dogs were not permitted on military evacuation flights because of regulations, but the Kabul Small Animal Rescue claimed to have arranged a charter plane to rescue the animals," the army spokesman explained. "Unfortunately, that plane did not arrive, leaving no options to evacuate the dogs."

"US forces identified that the only reasonable and humane course of action was to relocate the dogs to a former Afghan National Army compound on the airport grounds with appropriate supplies of food and water," they added, noting that, upon transporting more than 150 dogs in crates to the compound, US soldiers "showed the owner/operator of Kabul Small Animal Rescue where our forces had released the dogs, and she acknowledged that our forces had exercised the only option available at that point."

The army spokesman also mentioned that KSAR owner and operator "indicated that she intended to return to the airport in the coming days to gather the dogs and get them on a charter plane to forever homes outside Afghanistan."