COVID surge prompts U.S. Embassy to issue health alert "strongly" suggesting Americans plan to leave Afghanistan ASAP

A surge in COVID-19 cases in Afghanistan has led the U.S. Embassy in Kabul to "strongly" suggest that Americans "make plans to leave Afghanistan as soon as possible."

The embassy issued a health alert Thursday describing dire developments in the pandemic. "New cases and deaths from COVID-19 have risen sharply throughout Afghanistan," the alert said. "Hospitals are reporting shortages of supplies, oxygen, and beds for both COVID-19 and non-COVID-19 related patients. U.S. citizens have reported being denied admittance to hospitals due to lack of space."