U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks to the media with Lithuania’s Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis (not shown) in the Benjamin Franklin Room of the State Department ahead of a meeting in Washington, D.C. on September 15, 2021. (Photo by MANDEL NGAN/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
OAN Newsroom
UPDATED 1:04 PM PT – Wednesday, September 15, 2021
A group of Republican senators have called on Secretary of State Antony Blinken to officially designate the Taliban as a foreign terrorist organization. Reports detailing the letter said it points out the Taliban has appointed a known terrorist wanted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) as interior minister.
The letter also noted given the Taliban’s history of supporting terror attacks, the group presents a significant threat to the U.S. The letter was signed by Sens. Joni Ernst (Iowa), Rick Scott (Fla.), Dan Sullivan (Alaska) and Tommy Tuberville (Ala.).
“Since reestablishing control of Afghanistan, the Taliban resumed the same murderous and oppressive habits that characterized their leadership tenure prior to the arrival of U.S. forces in 2001,” stated the letter. “Even as the administration concluded the withdrawal of U.S. and allied forces from Afghanistan, we saw public attacks on individuals, beatings of women and girls, and search teams actively pursuing allies and partners.”
NEW 🚨 I’m leading an effort calling on the Biden Administration to recognize the Taliban as a terrorist organization. https://t.co/fhl46KSGSr pic.twitter.com/2HdJVMlxqT
— Joni Ernst (@SenJoniErnst) September 15, 2021
This comes after Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and Congressman Michael Waltz (R-Fla.) each introduced resolutions on Tuesday saying the Taliban should be designated as terrorists.
