WASHINGTON, Aug. 29 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Joe Biden on Sunday attended a solemn ceremony at a base in his home state of Delaware where the remains of 13 troops killed in Afghanistan last week were returned to the U.S. soil.
Biden was joined at Dover Air Force Base by first lady Jill Biden, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, Joint Chiefs Chairman Mark Milley and other senior military officials.
The president and first lady met privately with the families of the fallen before observing flag-draped cases carrying 11 service members' remains were loaded into vans. The sounds of crying could be heard and one woman collapsed and was taken to an ambulance.
The remains of two other fallen U.S. service members are being brought home privately at the request of their families.
The 13 U.S. troops were killed in a terrorist attack near the gates of Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul last week as U.S. forces were working to evacuate Americans and allies from Afghanistan.
The Pentagon on Saturday released the names of the fallen troops, mostly aged from 20 to 25 years old.
The White House said on Saturday that around 111,900 people had left Afghanistan since Aug. 14. The U.S. pullout from Afghanistan is set to complete by Aug. 31. Enditem
