Former White House press secretary Jen Psaki has apologized to the families of the 13 American soldiers who were killed during the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021.
Psaki’s apology came during a transcribed interview with Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul. The chairman questioned Psaki about comments she made in her book regarding an incident at a ceremony in late August 2021, which honored the soldiers who were killed in the attack at Abbey Gate.
In her book, Psaki asserted that President Biden did not look at his watch during the ceremony at Dover Air Force Base, a claim that had drawn criticism and skepticism.
“The chairman asked Ms. Psaki about her comments regarding President Biden looking at his watch while at Dover and if she had anything she wanted to say to the families on the record,” said Leslie Shedd, the Foreign Affairs Committee’s majority spokeswoman, in a statement quoted by the Washington Examiner. “After pressing her multiple times if she had something she wanted to say to them, Ms. Psaki asked the chairman to pass along her apology to the families and to express her regret for the pain she caused them. He has done that,” the statement added.
The attack during the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan in August 2021 resulted in the deaths of over 170 Afghan citizens and 13 American soldiers, with scores of others wounded.
