Afghanistan updates: US, Taliban hold first direct talks since withdrawal

Republicans on the House Armed Services Committee sent a letter to Biden requesting information about his "plan" for Afghanistan.

"For months, we have been asking you for a plan on your withdrawal from Afghanistan. You failed to provide us with one and based on the horrific events currently unfolding in Afghanistan, we are confident that we never received your plan because you never had one," the letter says.

"The security and humanitarian crisis now unfolding in Afghanistan could have been avoided if you had done any planning. Pretending this isn't your problem will only make things worse. We remain gravely concerned the void left in Afghanistan will be rapidly filled by terror groups. The Taliban now control the country. Al Qaeda used Afghanistan to plot and execute the 9/11 attacks and other acts of terrorism," the letter continues. "You cannot let this happen again."

Notably, Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo. -- a member of the committee -- has also signed the letter.

Cheney appeared on ABC's "This Week" Sunday and said that Biden "absolutely" bears responsibility for the Taliban's rapid takeover of Afghanistan, as does former President Donald Trump and his administration.

"What we're watching right now in Afghanistan is what happens when America withdraws from the world," Cheney told ABC "This Week" co-anchor Jonathan Karl. "So everybody who has been saying, 'America needs to withdraw, America needs to retreat,' we are getting a devastating, catastrophic real-time lesson in what that means."

-ABC News' Mariam Khan

Just 10 days ago, Ahmad and his family were living at home in Kabul, Afghanistan. Now, they're starting a new life in the U.S.

"It's quite different and I like it. It is something that I have never imagined before," Ahmad told ABC News. In this report, he will only be referred to by his first name to protect his family.

"The peace. The calm. ... You're free, you can go anywhere, you can do anything, you enjoy your life. And the most important thing (is) that we have a better future for children."

For years, Ahmad worked in logistics, supplying equipment for the U.S. and Afghan forces in Kabul. But his association with the West made him a target for the Taliban, despite its assurances that those who worked with the U.S. would not be harmed.

"I just missed … what's happening in Afghanistan. This week, I came here, and then next Friday it was under the Taliban control," he said. "I am very lucky and I'm happy for that."

Ahmad said it took him a year and a half to get out of the country, and now it's "impossible" for the thousands of other Afghans trying to escape.

-ABC News' Allie Yang, Annie Pong and John Kapetaneas

Marine Corps Maj. Thomas Schueman's quiet street in Rhode Island is a world away from Afghanistan, but he remains steadfast in his mission: Find a way out of the country for his friend and former interpreter Zak, one of the many still trapped as the government collapsed around them.

"He wasn't just a translator, he was my brother, basically one of my Marines," Schueman told ABC's Nightline." "I have a lifelong commitment to the people I serve and lead."

He hopes to get Zak, who will only be identified as such in this report to protect his identity, and his young family to the airport and to safety.

-ABC News' Deborah Kim, Allie Yang, Ashley Louszko and Jake Lefferman

At 4:19 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time on Monday, President Joe Biden concluded a speech defending his decision to withdraw U.S. forces from Afghanistan, tapping his binder on a podium in the East Room of the White House for emphasis.

By 4:57 p.m., the presidential helicopter, Marine One, was in the air, headed for the presidential retreat, Camp David. For Biden, there was no looking back.

As Biden withdrew to Camp David, his administration officials were left in Washington to field the lingering questions the president did not address: What exactly will be the fate of endangered Afghans struggling to leave the country? And why was the administration so surprised by the speed of the Taliban’s takeover?

Even members of Biden’s own party are raising questions about the intelligence on Afghanistan. Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va.,chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, proposed investigating what led to the government’s underestimation of the Taliban advance.

-ABC News’ Sarah Kolinovsky