World

7 Oct 2021

Afghanistan: A Secret CIA Gate Used to Sneak out Evacuees

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The Central Intelligence Agency opened a back door called the Glory Gate which was at a distance of 2 miles from the airfield. The secret gateway was kept hidden and was run by CIA operatives and Delta Force and guarded by the Afghan paramilitary unit called the 02.

The Glory Gate was located opposite a gas station and was used to help civilians escape without being caught. The secret entrance was used for CIA operations and intelligence assets but was later transformed into a channel for evacuation efforts led by the U.S in the last days of the withdrawal.

It has been reported that the gate was primarily made of barbed wires, Hesco barriers and concrete blast walls for extra protection. Afghans and other civilians were driven to the Camp Alvarado which was a previous U.S Base and a part of the airport. From here, the secret would be opened to allow the civilians through and into the airport.

The CIA used the gate mostly for evacuation efforts as difficulty with dealing with the Taliban only grew. John Bass, former U.S ambassador to Afghanistan said, “On any given day, right, we didn’t know if we were going to be able to get 100 people through or 5000.”

The State Department and CIA came to a deal to use the Glory Gate as a safe passageway for U.S families and Embassy staff to evacuate. People were asked to gather at secret locations from where they were boarded onto buses and driven to the airport. After reaching the gate, it would take 4 to 5 hours to go through all checkpoints and make it to entrance safely.

©Photo: thedrive