US orders embassy staff to leave Kabul as it begins troop pullout

The order came two weeks after President Biden announced US troops would leave the country by September.

The United States has ordered non-essential staff to leave its Kabul embassy, citing increased threats as Washington prepares to end its 20-year war in Afghanistan. The order came two weeks after President Joe Biden announced that US troops, currently about 2,500, would leave the country by September. Meanwhile, Zalmay Khalilzad, Washington’s special envoy to Afghanistan, warned in a Senate hearing that US aid could be slashed if a Taliban-dominated government did not respect human rights.