’Small cities’: Contained in the army bases that can quickly home Afghan evacuees
America is constructing “small cities” on army bases throughout the nation quickly to deal with the Afghan evacuees who fled their house nation within the remaining days and weeks of August.
The eight army installations which are getting used to deal with Afghan refugees presently have roughly 25,600 individuals with a capability of 36,000, although they’re nonetheless wanting the 50,000 objective, Gen. Glen VanHerck, commander of Northcom, mentioned throughout Friday’s briefing.
VanHerck does “not anticipate” that the army might want to use extra bases to succeed in that threshold.
EXCLUSIVE: FORMER NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER CALLS FOR AFGHANISTAN ‘ACCOUNTABILITY’
“We proceed to offer culturally acceptable meals, water, bedding, non secular providers, leisure actions, and different providers resembling transportation from the port of entry to the situation of lodging and a few medical providers,” he mentioned. “I’m constructing eight small cities. We’re going to have challenges.”
VanHerck additionally described a “mayor cell” in place, which he described as how no less than one base established an Afghan chief throughout the “village” to be some extent particular person to assist be sure the refugees have what they want.
“We take our army leaders, we put them into the mayor’s cell, and so they’re accountable for a selected location, possibly a couple of dorms, a dorm or two, and so they have a counterpart on the Afghan facet that may primarily be their equal, if you’ll, in rank,” the final defined. “That is nice as a result of not solely does it permit the Afghans to specific their issues or challenges or the place they want sources or assist, it permits us to additionally talk with them by the identical course of, and so they can perpetuate that info.”
Inside the bases, households are housed collectively, whereas single women and men are housed amongst one another.
There have additionally been “a pair” of unaccompanied minors who had been evacuated, VanHerck mentioned, noting that these kids are handed over to the Division of and Human Companies. Division of Homeland Safety Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas additionally characterised the quantity of unaccompanied minors as a “small quantity” throughout a Friday briefing.
A spokesperson for HHS didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark concerning a selected variety of unaccompanied kids.
The tens of hundreds of Afghans flown out of Afghanistan in August, earlier than the U.S. withdrew all of its troops, have been taken to the Center East and Europe, the place they’re being screened earlier than happening to the U.S. The U.S. European Command spans throughout Germany, Italy, and Spain.
