President Joe Biden during the respectful transfer of the remains to Dover Air Force Base, Dover, Delaware. SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images
Mark Schmitz, whose son died in Kabul last week described his encounter with Biden.
Schmitz said to Biden about the deaths of his fellow soldiers, The Washington Post.
Treisteen US servicemen were among the 100+ who died in the attack.
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A father of a US Marine killed in an attack on Kabul's airport last week stated that he challenged President Joe Biden "to learn the stories" about the victims of the ceremony at which the remains of US service personnel were returned to the US.
Mark Schmitz's 20-year old son Lance Cpl. Jared Schmitz was one of 13 US military personnel who helped to evacuate Afghan citizens and Afghans.
At least 169 Afghans were killed in the attack, as well as 13 US military personnel.
Biden was present at the Dover Air Force Base ceremony in Delaware on Sunday when the remains of the service personnel were returned to the US.
Biden then met privately with grieving families, including Mark Schmitz, afterwards.
According to The Washington Post, he said that he originally decided not to speak to Biden about his mishandling of Afghanistan withdrawal, which he blames for his son's deaths. But then he changed his mind.
Schmitz stated that Biden had spoken of the death six years ago of his son Beau Biden, a veteran from Iraq, to cancer. Schmitz claimed he wanted to speak about Jared, so he and his wife pulled out a photograph of their son to show him.
"I told you, 'Don’t ever forget that name. You won't ever forget this face. Schmitz said to The Post, "Don't forget the names the other 12". "And take some time and learn their stories."
Schmitz claims that the president was not happy about this and he bristled, responding: "I do understand their stories."
Schmitz also spoke out about the encounter with Biden during a Fox News interview on Monday night with Sean Hannity.
Continue the story
It didn't work out. Schmitz stated that he talked more about his son than he did about my son. This didn't go well with him.
Biden stated that his personal tragedy of losing his wife and child in a car accident in 1972, and his adult son dying from cancer years later, has helped him understand the pain of families who have lost loved ones in the COVID-19 pandemic or military families.
However, he has been widely criticised for his handling the US withdrawal in Afghanistan. This has resulted in the collapse of the Afghan government and the Taliban assuming power weeks after the US pulled out most of its military forces from Afghanistan in early July.
Many people clamoured to flee the country by flying from Kabul. The Taliban had set up a security perimeter around Kabul's airport to protect against terrorist attacks.
Steve Nikoui, the father of US Marine Kareem Nikoui, spoke out against Biden in an interview with The Daily Beast last Wednesday.
Nikoui said, "They sent my boy over there as paper pusher and then had Taliban outside providing security." "I blame my military leaders Biden for turning his back on me. That's all.
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