Marine sniper Sgt. Tyler Vargas-Andrews was on a security detail in a high-rise building in Kabul, watching desperate Afghans trying to flee the brutal Taliban when he was caught by a tremendous blast.
It was August 26, 2021, and during the chaotic evacuation sparked by the Biden administration’s troop withdrawal after 20 years in Afghanistan, an ISIS-K suicide bomber had detonated on the outskirts of Hamid Karzai International Airport.
Just moments before the attack, the California veteran spotted a terrorist fitting the suspect’s description and asked if he could “intervene,” but he says his leaders declined.
Between 100 and 150 ball bearings landed in Vargas-Andrews’ body in the blast that killed 11 other Marines, two Navy Corpsmen and hundreds of Afghan men, women and children. His right arm and right leg had to be amputated in the following 43 surgeries.
Vargas-Andrews broke down in tears Wednesday while recounting his harrowing ordeal in Congress and criticized the Biden administration’s withdrawal from Afghanistan, which Republicans called a “stunning leadership failure.”
He detailed how military leaders ignored his warnings minutes earlier and how those stationed at the airport were told not to get involved – despite the Taliban firing at people trying to board a plane.
Marine sniper Sgt. Tyler Vargas-Andrews broke down in tears on Wednesday as he recounted his harrowing ordeal in Congress and criticized the Biden administration’s withdrawal from Afghanistan, which Republicans called a “stunning leadership failure.”
Between 100 and 150 ball bearings landed in Vargas-Andrews’ body in the blast that killed 11 other Marines, two Navy Corpsmen and hundreds of Afghan men, women and children
His right arm and leg were amputated over the course of 43 surgeries following the attack
“The withdrawal was, in my opinion, a disaster and there was an inexcusable lack of accountability and negligence,” he told the House Foreign Affairs Committee.
“The 11 Marines, a sailor and a soldier who were murdered that day have not been held accountable.”
The roll call of the dead in the Kabul airport attack during the US withdrawal from Afghanistan
The August 26, 2021 suicide bombing took advantage of the crowds and chaos at Hamid Karzai International Airport.
It was aimed at a gate manned by US Marines who were tasked with ensuring that those with correct papers could proceed to the next stage of processing.
Along with at least 170 Afghans, the following Americans died:
Marine Corps Staff Sgt. Darin T. Hoover;
Marine Corps Sgt. Johanny Rosario;
Marine Corps Sgt. Nicole L Gee;
Marine Corps Cpl. Hunter Lopez;
Marine Corps Cpl. Daegan W. Page;
Marine Corps Cpl. Humberto A. Sanchez;
Marine Corps Lance Cpl. David L Espinoza;
Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Jared M Schmitz;
Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Rylee J McCollum;
Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Dylan R Merola;
Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Kareem M. Nikoui;
Navy Petty Officer Third Class Maxton W. Soviak;
Army Staff Sgt. Ryan C. Knauss
His appearance was part of the Republican probe into the Biden administration’s botched withdrawal from Afghanistan in August 2021.
He recalled “surreal” scenes at the airport where Afghans tried to kill themselves on barbed wire rather than face the Taliban’s “torture”.
He described how there was information that an attack could be imminent, but they could only watch.
“We communicated over the communications network that there is a potential threat and that an IED attack is imminent – that was as serious as it could be.
“I asked for operational clearance while my team leader was ready for the M110 semi-automatic sniper system,” he added.
“The answer, the leadership had no authority to commit to us, don’t engage,” he said.
Vargas-Andrews and the Marines with him also asked a battalion commander to come to the tower to look at the suspect.
They asked permission to shoot, but it was not granted.
“Plain and simple, we were ignored. Our expertise was disregarded, nobody was held responsible for our safety,” he told the committee.
His sniper squad was then hit by the suicide blast.
“I was thrown 12 feet to the ground but knew immediately what had happened. I opened my eyes to Marines who were lying around dead or unconscious,” Vargas-Andrews tearfully said, describing the day’s events.
“A crowd of hundreds immediately disappeared in front of me and my body was catastrophically wounded with 100 to 150 ball bearings in it.”
Even after his catastrophic injuries, Vargas-Andrews claimed no one asked him for a report.
He also says that no one in the Pentagon or the White House has taken responsibility for the missteps.
The US Marine Corps tweeted a photo of the flag-bedecked coffins of their fallen brothers killed in the Kabul suicide bombing, after the coffins arrived back on home soil on August 29, 2021
Thirteen American service members died when the suicide bomber detonated ball bearing-filled explosives amid the chaos at the city’s airport
His story followed an opening statement by House Foreign Affairs Committee chair Republican Rep. Michael McCaul, who criticized the Biden administration for withdrawing troops against the advice of generals and intelligence agencies.
“What happened in Afghanistan was a systemic federal government collapse at every level and a stunning leadership failure by the Biden administration,” McCaul said in his searing opening statement.
The President promised, ‘There will be no circumstances where people are lifted off the roof of an embassy like in Vietnam.’ And yet they were.
“Several people in the Biden administration said they would plan for every eventuality. They have not. Instead, they spent the next four months ignoring reality.
“When the Taliban quickly took territory in the summer of 2021 and invaded Kabul on August 15, we just weren’t ready.
“Because of the Biden administration’s dereliction of duty, the world watched over the next two weeks as heartbreaking scenes unfolded in and around Kabul Airport.
“A sea of people desperately trying to get through airport gates that represented freedom.
“We all saw the images of desperate Afghans clinging to planes as they took off – some falling from the sky to their deaths.
“Mothers who hand their children over airport walls to strangers – willingly give up in the hope of saving their lives.
“And then, on August 26, horror struck.
“A suicide bomber at Abbey Gate killed 13 American soldiers, wounded at least 45 others and killed about 170 Afghans.
“That day was the deadliest day for American troops in Afghanistan in 10 years.”
Vargas-Andrews recalled the “surreal” scenes at the airport where Afghans tried to kill themselves on barbed wire because they did not want to be subjected to Taliban “torture”.
The Abbey Gate suicide bomber killed 13 American soldiers, wounded at least 45 others and killed approximately 170 Afghans