White House is asked to protect New York Times, Washington Post, WSJ journalists 'in danger' at Kabul airport

  • The publisher of The Washington Post pleaded with the White House to have the U.S. military help more than 200 journalists and related people affiliated with the Post, Wall Street Journal and New York Times who are "in danger" at the Kabul airport in Afghanistan.
  • Post Publisher Fred Ryan asked National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan in an "urgent request" email to have those people moved from the civilian side of Hamid Karzai International Airport "to the military side where they can be safe as they await evacuation flights."
  • Thousands of Afghans swarmed the airport tarmac after the Taliban captured the capital Kabul.

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  • NYT

The publisher of The Washington Post pleaded with the White House on Monday to have the U.S. military move to safety more than 200 journalists and related people affiliated with the Post, Wall Street Journal and New York Times who are "in danger" at the Kabul airport in Afghanistan.

Post Publisher Fred Ryan asked National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan in an "urgent request" email to have them moved from the civilian side of Hamid Karzai International Airport "to the military side where they can be safe as they await evacuation flights."

"They are currently in danger and need the US government to get them to safety," Ryan wrote in the email, which he said he was writing on behalf of the three newspapers.

Ryan wrote that there are 204 journalists, support staff and family members from the three newspapers who are stuck on the civilian side of the airport.

Thousands of Afghans swarmed the tarmac of the airport Monday after the Taliban captured the capital, Kabul.

Kamal Alam, a nonresident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council and senior adviser to the Massoud Foundation, told CNBC, "No one can really leave."

"If you don't have a visa or passport, you're not going," said Alam, who is stuck in Afghanistan.

CNBC Politics

Read more of CNBC's politics coverage:

  • Biden will give a speech on Afghanistan's collapse Monday afternoon, White House says
  • Chaotic scenes at Kabul airport as Afghans and foreign nationals flee Taliban
  • Mystery shrouds nonprofit linked to wealthy Chinese exile: Steve Bannon leaves, records kept secret

— CNBC's Natasha Turak contributed to this report.

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