Afghan people take evacuation flight from Afghanistan at the Kabul airport on August 24, 2021. (Photo: AP)

Another 500 Americans have been contacted in the past 24 hours and given instructions on when and how to get to the Kabul airport to catch an evacuation flight. Attempts are being made to contact another 1,000 to determine whether they still want to leave. They were all warned about the chaotic scene outside the airport, Blinken told reporters.

All US troops will leave Afghanistan as planned, Blinken insisted. There is no deadline on helping American citizens who remain, or the many Afghanis who have worked with the US in recent years, if they want to leave. That effort will continue every day, even after August 31, Blinken said.