When the US left Kabul, these Americans tried to help Afghans left behind. It still haunts them

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Audio By Carbonatix

12:02 AM on Friday, August 30, 2024

By REBECCA SANTANA and FARNOUSH AMIRI

Three years ago, the U.S. military withdrew from Afghanistan when the last American plane departed Kabul. But for some Americans, that was not the end of the story. In the three years since, a smattering of volunteers in the United States have worked to get some of the nation’s Afghan allies out of the Taliban-controlled country and into new lives abroad. Sometimes they work alone. Sometimes the work has been frustrating and has affected their mental health. They see it as a duty for those left behind who helped Americans at great risk to their own safety. And, they say, they need to fill in where the U.S. government hasn’t.