HAMPTON ROADS, Va - Chaos is in Kabul, Afghanistan as the Taliban have seized control of most of the country, after Afghanistan’s president, Ashraf Ghani left the country after vowing not to give up the achievements of the past two decades.
Former Congressman Scott Taylor, who served several years on the U.S. Navy SEAL Team, says he’s doing everything to help get Americans out of Afghanistan.
"I’ve been spending all day, the last 7 hours trying to call every contact I have to get people out of that country. It’s a big mess. It’s a massive mess at the airport," Taylor said.
Kabul’s International Airport is closed to commercial flights. U.S. forces now have control over air traffic control at Kabul's airport, in addition to expanding security there.
"I’ve been helping to lay on contracted private airfare to get in there and get people out. Frankly, people don’t care where they go, they just want to get out," the former Congressman tells News 3's Leondra Head.
The former congressman says he plans to fly to the country to get Americans out.
"I’m in Turkey right now in Istanbul. But I might be on a plane to Kabul in the next couple of days to go there and help coordinate to get people out."
As a former Navy SEAL Team member, Taylor says it’s disappointing to see the Taliban seize control.
"It’s extremely disheartening and disappointing when you see the president of Afghanistan and all of the elites completely collapse. Americans and the coalitions have helped this country and their elite and military for twenty years," Taylor said.
When the Taliban last ruled Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001, women could not work, girls were not allowed to attend school and women had to cover their faces in public.
"It's heartbreaking to see. You have to think about kids in Afghanistan who might be twenty years old who've grown up with a taste of freedom and women who’ve grown up with a taste of freedom. Only to have the Taliban come back and take over," Taylor said.
The former congressman says he’s received several LinkedIn messages with people asking for help to get their loved ones out of Afghanistan.
The U.S. State Department has been ordered to get all its people out of the country by August 31.
