The chaos & fear of people is a testament to the international community’s role in AFG’s downfall & their subsequent abandonment of Afghan people. The future for AFG has bn decided for its people without its people’s vote & now they live at the mercy of a terrorist group. #Kabul pic.twitter.com/k4bevc2eHE
— Omar Haidari (@OmarHaidari1) August 19, 2021
The U.S. Marine Corps confirmed that the soldier who pulled a baby over a fence in a viral video of the Afghanistan withdrawal is not Lance Cpl. Hunter Clark, who is under investigation for speaking at a Trump “Save America” rally where both he and the former president said he was the soldier in the video.
Press officer Capt. Kelton Cochran of the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit, who did not identify the soldier who appeared in the video, told military magazine Task and Purpose that while there were numerous incidents of parents handing their small children off to U.S. soldiers throughout the evacuation process, Clark, who is accused of violating military rules about speaking at partisan events, was not the officer shown on tape during the handoff that went viral.
“Regarding the viral photo that began circulating around August 20, 2021, the Marine identified in that particular image was not LCpl Clark,” Cochran told the Washington Examiner.
STATE DEPARTMENT FAULTED FOR WAITING TOO LONG TO PULL THE TRIGGER ON AFGHANISTAN EVACUATION
Officials are investigating whether Clark violated a military policy preventing active service members from “speak[ing] before a partisan political gathering, including any gathering that promotes a partisan political party, candidate, or cause.”
“The 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) has initiated a command investigation regarding LCpl Hunter Clark’s attendance at the event last weekend to determine if any DoD policies were violated,” Cochran said. “Any details pertaining to this incident are not releasable while the investigation is being conducted.
Former President Donald Trump introduced Clark at a Saturday rally in Perry, Georgia, as “one of the Marines who bravely served in Kabul during the withdrawal and helped evacuate children over the airport and over the airport walls,” after which Clark addressed the crowd directly.
Clark, who spoke for less than a minute at the rally in his hometown, said he was “the guy who pulled the baby over the wall,” which he called “definitely probably one of the greatest things I’ve ever done in my entire life.”
“I want to thank all the support from all of y’all,” he added. “It really means a lot, and I’m glad to be home now today.”
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Representatives for Trump’s office did not immediately respond to the Washington Examiner‘s request for comment.
Since the Taliban’s Aug. 15 takeover of the capital city of Kabul, numerous stories have emerged of chaotic scenes as people attempt to flee, including images of Afghans clinging to departing U.S. planes and falling to their deaths. Fewer than 100 U.S. citizens who want to leave remain in the country following the withdrawal of all U.S. troops ahead of President Joe Biden’s Aug. 31 deadline, according to U.S. officials.
