More than a dozen children, including 11-month-old among those rescued
SOTs, B-ROLL and Photos for Media Use can be found here: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1KbmaBJUmaay7whHdPYyVebGZQG_nh1sq?usp=sharing
NEW YORK – A small team of Americans from Project DYNAMO successfully exfiltrated 39 American citizens and Lawful Permanent Residents of the United States from inside the country of Afghanistan Friday morning.
The American team of two from Project DYNAMO included Bryan Stern and Abdul Wasit, who entered Afghanistan on a flight from another country in the region earlier in the week.
Additional members from Project DYNAMO’s small team of volunteers coordinated the rendezvous of those being rescued to a safehouse at an undisclosed location near the capital city of Kabul where evacuees were given all necessary vaccinations, food, water, shelter, and COVID-19 PCR tests, prior to loading vehicles to Kabul International Airport escorted by the Project DYNAMO team.
At approximately 4 p.m. in Kabul on Friday, 39 U.S. evacuees and the two Project Dynamo team members successfully boarded two airplanes in Kabul, Afghanistan. Aviation related costs of the operation were generously donated by Berry Aviation, an American charter airline based in San Marcos, Texas.
“Our mission has always been closely tied to supporting the warfighter where and when they need us,” said Stan Finch, president of Berry Aviation, Inc. “Given the conditions on the ground in the region, we didn’t want to leave behind any of our fellow Americans and allies. We’re immensely proud to partner with Project DYNAMO and help bring some of the last Americans and permanent residents in Afghanistan to safety.”
While the logistics took months of planning, this operation took place with team members from Project DYNAMO on the ground in Afghanistan for less than 48 hours.
“This is the first known major airlift rescue with American boots on the ground since the U.S. government abandoned the country of Afghanistan in August,” said James Judge, a spokesman for Project DYNAMO. “We are proud to announce that the evacuees and two DYNAMO team members are now safely out of Afghan airspace at this time and on their way home to America.”
The evacuees and Project DYNAMO team members are headed to JFK International Airport in New York and are expected to arrive Saturday morning. Once in New York, they will be required to clear customs and immigration, though the information for all of the evacuees has already passed a preliminary inspection by the U.S. Department of State.
“Project DYNAMO is the only group, government or otherwise, to go from Kabul to the U.S. without using a so-called lily pad or refugee camp, or as we like to say, from Kabul to CONUS, since the Taliban took control and the U.S. left,” said Stern, a co-founder of Project DYNAMO. “No American or Permanent Resident should be forced to stay in a refugee camp while attempting to return to their own families, homes and communities in the United States.”
This is the second large-scale rescue operation where Project DYNAMO has evacuated Americans from Kabul to CONUS amongst the many smaller operations conducted on a weekly basis while they have been forward-deployed since August.
A press conference is planned in New York for Saturday at a time and location to be announced.
To date, more than 2,000 Americans and lawful permanent residents have been rescued from Afghanistan by Project DYNAMO via air and land safely and legally.
“Without the support of donors, volunteers and organizations like Berry Aviation, these rescues would not be possible,” Stern said. “The heart and soul of our success is our team backed by generous donors.”
Those interested in supporting Project Dynamo can do so by visiting projectdynamo.org
The 39 evacuees and two Project DYNAMO team members are expected to arrive at JFK International Airport between 8-9 a.m. EST.
Project DYNAMO is based in Tampa, Florida.
-PROJECT DYNAMO-
Members of the media interested in contacting someone about this story should email news@judgepr.com or call 813.279.8335.
