There are at least 24 students from the Sacramento area San Juan Unified School District, who are now stranded in Afghanistan by President Joe Biden, following the final withdrawal of U.S. troops Monday, according to a report.
The Sacramento Bee reported that the school district confirmed at least 24 students are in the country as Taliban terrorists are now in control of the majority of the country and the airport since the last troops evacuating people left.
However, this number is down from the school district’s original estimate of 150 students that had yet to return to campus since the start of the 2021-2022 school year.
The report noted that the office of Democrat Rep. Ami Bera, who represents the school district, has contacted the school district and is working with them to bring the students back since the original story broke of two students being stranded.
Bera’s office did not immediately respond to Sacramento Bee for comment.
Additionally, it is unclear when the other residents from the Sacramento area will be able to fly out of Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, Afghanistan.
Sacramento Bee reported on the Afghan evacuees that left the country headed for Sacramento:
A number of refugees will likely be resettled in Sacramento. The Sacramento region has long been one of the largest destinations for special visa holders. One out of every nine Afghan natives living in the U.S. resides in the Sacramento region. About 9,700 Afghan people live in Sacramento County, more than any other county in the U.S., according to census data. Another 2,000 live in Yolo, Sutter, Placer or El Dorado counties.
For weeks, people fleeing Afghanistan have been landing at Sacramento International Airport, a family or two at a time.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Monday could not give an exact number of Americans left in the country.
“We believe there are still a small number of Americans, under 200 and likely closer to 100, who remain in Afghanistan and want to leave,” the secretary said, trying to explain the number of Americans they believe are still stranded in the county.
Follow Jacob Bliss on Twitter @jacobmbliss.
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