Blackwater Founder Charging Thousands Of Dollars For Evacuation Flights Out Of Kabul As Biden Team Struggles
Reports are surfacing of Defense contractor and Blackwater founder Erik Prince chartering planes to rescue people out of Afghanistan before the Aug. 31 deadline. This may offer private sector hope for those trapped in the Taliban-infested nation.
Prince is guaranteeing safe passage into Kabul’s Hamid Karzai International Airport and onto a charter flight for $6,500 a person, the Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday. Extra charges will be applied for those needing extensive rescue assistance such as being trapped in their homes or need additional transportation.
It isn’t clear if Prince had the resources to carry out private rescues and to who they were being offered. It’s also unclear whether he is profiting off Biden’s botched withdrawal.
Prince is a former Navy SEAL and an ally of President Donald Trump. He co-founded the private military company Blackwater, which is now known as Academi, in 1997. Blackwater was known for being a major contractor during the Iraq War.
When his contractors killed 17 Iraqi civilians in the Nisour Square massacre in 2007, his company gained notoriety. Four agents were convicted of the attack in 2014, but Trump pardoned them all in December of last year.
According to a report to the UN Security Council, Prince — who is Trump’s Education Secretary Betsy DeVos’ brother — was accused of violating the UN arms embargo against Libya. Prince has vehemently denied any wrongdoing.
His $6,500 offer to assist in the evacuation of Afghans comes as Americans and Afghans rush to flee Kabul as the evacuation window closes.
The Taliban have ordered all US troops to be out by Biden’s August 31st deadline and threatened that there would be consequences if they’re not.
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