Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — Remarks made by Sen. Soliai Tuipine Fuimaono during a Senate session last week, sharing with his colleagues that he had been informed by Acting Gov. Talauega Eleasalo V. Ale that a Toa O Samoa from American Samoa had been captured in Afghanistan and was being held in prison have ignited inquiries to Congresswoman Uifa’atali Amata regarding the matter.  According to Uifa’atali, “this report seems to be a misunderstanding.”

In a public statement sent to Sasmoa News as well as posted on her congressional Facebook page, Uifa’atali Amata said, “I am receiving inquiries regarding an American Samoan soldier. I want you to know I immediately began looking into this report the first time it was brought to my attention, and contacted the Department of Defense.

“At this time, to the best of our knowledge, this report appears to be a misunderstanding.

“We can be very thankful to God for this!

“We also must recognize that there are Americans still there in an unstable situation, there are many Americans and allies in harm’s way, including Service Members working to evacuate them. We need to pray for all of them.

“We also know there’s much the Pentagon cannot state publicly, we understand, as official policy in these cases must be the safety of their operations on behalf of our nation’s security.

“While we can be very grateful the specifics of this one report seem to be a rumor that we can put to rest for now, we know our nation has many personnel bravely trying to help people leave Afghanistan in unpredictable or dangerous circumstances. We will be in contact with the Department of Defense as often as needed. May God bless our Service Members in their efforts.”

Samoa News reported on the matter last week — in the Aug. 19th  issue — noting that Soliai explained that this information was shared by Talauega during a meeting earlier in the day with the acting governor. However, Soliai told senators that the name of the Toa-o-Samoa who was captured was not revealed, as per military protocol, and there were no other details available — as is the norm, where neither the name or details of the incident are revealed.

He called on senators and the public to pray for the captured solider and the soldier’s family, as well as other American Samoa soldiers — as there are several of them currently in war-torn Afghanistan.

The following day, Friday, Aug. 20th, Samoa News published a press release issued Thursday, from the Governor’s Office that expressed the Lemanu administration’s support of the Toa O Samoa “who continue to serve in the region.”

It pointed out that “the most recent developments in the Afghan Region have led to a heightened sense of readiness throughout the United States Department of Defense and American Samoa’s local U.S. Army Reserve Unit.  Currently, there are over 200 Soldiers at the Pele U.S. Army Reserve Center under the 9th Mission Support Command, headquartered in Honolulu, Hawaii.”

Samoa News added in “Background” to the press release that, “No mention was made of Sen. Soliai Tuipine Fuimaono’s statement to his Senate colleagues that he has been informed by Acting Gov. Talauega Eleasalo V. Ale that a Toa O Samoa from American Samoa has been capture in Afghanistan and is being held in prison.”

However, later in the day, Samoa News updated this story on line after receiving the following press release from the Governor’s Office:

REGARDING SEN. SOLIAI’S REMARKS

The Office of the Governor wishes to clarify recent news reports in reference to a Samoan soldier captured in Afghanistan. On Wednesday Aug 20th, unverified information about this was shared in discussions held during staff daily prayer but no official statement was issued by this Office pending confirmation from official sources.

To date, the Office of the Governor has not received confirmation of such an incident occurring.  All official statements on behalf of the Governor and Lieutenant Governor continue to be thoroughly vetted and approved by the Communications Office.

The Governor and Lt Governor keep our soldiers and Toa O Samoa in thoughts and prayers as they support the ongoing evacuation missions of the US Military in Afghanistan.

FRIDAY’S CONGRESSIONAL BRIEFING

Uifa’atali over the weekend, issued a press release about her Congressional briefing with senior national defense leaders that happened on Friday, Aug. 20th, in Washington D.C. The briefing was for Members of Congress regarding Afghanistan by Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Mark Milley with Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Leader Kevin McCarthy.

According to the press release, members of Congress questioned these leaders about stepping up the massive evacuation effort in Afghanistan, and the urgency to provide a way out for thousands of Americans and potentially tens of thousands of Afghan allies. The Armed Forces leadership reported on the efforts underway already bolstering the transportation and security, and ongoing plans and progress.

The congresswoman continue, “I can’t specifically know that any of our own from American Samoa are in Kabul, however, every time I’ve visited Central Command bases and the Middle East, I’ve always found American Samoans there, either supporting efforts in Iraq or Afghanistan or returning from those deployments.”

 “We pray for any of them that are likely to be involved in some way, as we might learn later, and have hopes that the situation around Kabul won’t escalate further. Our nation must do all that is necessary to ensure no Americans or close allies are left behind.”

In the briefing, national security leaders assured Congress they were fully committed to getting Americans out, and while Members of Congress expressed urgency and questioned the planning so far, most of the briefing described how the effort has surged during the week.

In 24 hours, they reported doubling the number of C-17s flying in and out of Kabul. The military leadership reported nearly 6,000 U.S. troops on the ground, supported from the air by the Navy and Air Force.

They also listed more than ten countries many of them in the region actively accepting displaced people from Afghanistan, and giving them aid upon arrival. The briefing detailed to Congress the biometrics being done at transit points, communication efforts with the Taliban, the massive refueling operation, and other extensive logistics.