US Intelligence Reportedly Warned of Possible Taliban Takeover
Summary from the AllSides News Team
Multiple outlets reported Tuesday that generals, diplomats and the U.S. intelligence community increasingly warned of a possible Taliban takeover in Afghanistan over the summer, even as President Joe Biden said publicly that such an outcome was unlikely to happen soon. The New York Times cited “current and former American government officials,” The Wall Street Journal cited “several administration and defense officials,” ABC News quoted “numerous U.S. officials,” NBC News quoted “U.S. officials,” The Washington Post quoted a “senior intelligence official,” and the Washington Examiner quoted Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas). On Wednesday, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley said in a press briefing that “the timeframe of a potential collapse was widely estimated, it ranged from weeks to months, even years following our departure,” and that “there was nothing that I or anyone else saw that indicated a collapse of this army and this government in 11 days.”
Original reporting on the intelligence community’s findings came mostly from left- and center-rated outlets. Coverage on Wednesday primarily focused on Gen. Milley’s remarks.
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