What Happened to the Dog Taken by the Taliban
The claim: An image shows U.S. military machine service dogs left behind in Transitional islamic state of afghanistan
After the Pentagon announced the last U.S. troops flew out of Transitional islamic state of afghanistan on Aug. xxx, marking an end to America's longest war, posts surfaced challenge U.Due south. military service dogs were left behind in cages at Kabul'south airport.
An Aug. 30 open letter from American Humane, an animate being welfare group, criticized the war machine for purportedly leaving behind animals that worked with the U.Southward.
Meanwhile, on social media, users shared an image of dogs in cages in front of a helicopter, alongside captions suggesting the animals pictured were abased by the U.S.
"Picture of service dogs left in Transitional islamic state of afghanistan," reads an Aug. 30 Facebook photo with more than 1,000 shares. "Left at the drome. Our government sucks."
Other versions of the claim have been shared widely on Facebook, Twitter, Reddit and by various news outlets.
Donald Trump Jr., the one-time president'southward son, was among those who amplified the claim, tweeting, "The Biden assistants didn't merely carelessness Americans in Afghanistan. They even abandoned difficult-working service dogs!!!"
In a message to USA TODAY, one Facebook user attributed the claim to Rep. Madison Cawthorn, R-N.C., who shared the prototype to his Instagram account on Aug. xxx with the text, "Contract service dogs left behind in Kabul."
However, the Pentagon said U.S. working dogs were non left behind at Hamid Karzai International Airdrome, and the photo circulating online does non show animals belonging to U.S troops.
Fact bank check:Bidens attended dignified transfer of 13 fallen service members
Trump and other Facebook users who shared the mail did not return a asking for comment.
Pentagon denies claims
The Section of Defense told U.s. TODAY it did non go out any dogs, including war machine working dogs, in cages at Hamid Karzai International Airport.
"Photos circulating online were animals nether the care of the Kabul Small Animal Rescue, non dogs under the care of the U.South. military machine," Eric Pahon, a spokesperson for the Defense Department, said via email. "Despite an ongoing complicated and dangerous retrograde mission, U.S. forces went to great lengths to assistance the Kabul Small Animal Rescue as much as possible."
Pahon added that the "priority mission was the evacuation of U.S. citizens, (special immigrant visas) and vulnerable Afghans," non animals.
The Defense force Department cited "custom regulations" every bit an obstacle in evacuating "devious dogs" from Afghanistan. It did not deny the authenticity of the viral image but disputed that the animals had worked with the military in any capacity.
Where did the photo originate?
The photo circulating online was first shared to Twitter on Aug. 29 by Veteran Sheepdogs of America with the caption, "UPDATE: Kabul Airfield. Working on getting working dogs out. Any mess you lot think Kabul is... it's worse!"
Merely in a subsequent tweet, the organization said all "51 contracted military working dogs are safe & existence cared for in their crates."
Meanwhile, Kabul Small Animal Rescue, an fauna welfare group and an affiliate of Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals International, which has tended to animals injured or displaced during the war in Afghanistan, tweeted it was aiming to evacuate animals in the cargo hold of planes leaving Kabul's aerodrome.
The group had launched "Operation Hercules," an effort to airlift animals out of the country. Yet, that work had been taking place for days earlier the social media claims went viral.
A previous post from Kabul Modest Fauna Rescue described the animals as "dogs and cats left behind as people flee" in Kabul. The grouping never described the animals as beingness service animals.
"All our working dogs left with their handlers. We would not leave them backside," Pahon said. "To propose otherwise is ridiculous."
On Aug. 31, SPCA International released an update stating that Charlotte Maxwell-Jones, Kabul Pocket-size Animal Rescue'due south founder, rescued at least 130 animals and had been working with U.South. forces to evacuate them from the country. According to the group, that number included "46 working dogs and several personal pets belonging to fleeing Americans."
It's besides worth noting the U.Due south. Centers for Illness Command and Prevention prohibits the travel of dogs from countries to the U.S. with a loftier incidence of rabies, and Afghanistan is among those countries.
USA TODAY reached out to Kabul Small Animal Rescue for additional comment.
Fact check: Post online lists service members killed in 2010, not Marines killed in Kabul
Our rating: Simulated
Based on our research, we charge per unit Faux the claim that an image shows U.S. service dogs left backside in Afghanistan. The Pentagon said U.S. military service dogs were not left in cages in Transitional islamic state of afghanistan. The photo circulating on social media shows dogs nether the intendance of an fauna welfare group, which never described the dogs equally being U.S. service animals.
Our fact-check sources:
- USA TODAY, Aug. 31, Pentagon denies whatever service dogs were left in Afghanistan
- Eric Pahon, Aug. 31, Email exchange with Us TODAY
- John Kirby, Aug. 31, Tweet
- Veteran Sheepdogs of America, Aug. 29, Tweet
- Veteran Sheepdogs of America, Aug. 31, Tweet
- Kabul Pocket-sized Animal Rescue, Aug. 27, Tweet
- Kabul Modest Animal rescue, Aug. 20, Tweet
- U.S. Centers for Illness Control and Prevention, June 14, High-Risk Dog Ban
- SPCA International, Aug. 31, Urgent update and activeness program from Charlotte & Kabul Small Animal Rescue
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Source: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2021/09/01/fact-check-image-falsely-claims-show-military-dogs-left-kabul/5667668001/
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