“People are furious and disgusted,” said a former U.S. intelligence official who declined to be quoted by name. A defense official told NBC News he grew nauseous as he considered how many Afghan allies would be left behind.

At the CIA, “officers feel a real sense of obligation, moral obligation and personal obligation” to the Afghans they supported and trained, said former CIA Director John Brennan, an NBC News national security consultant.

But the precarious situation for American troops on the ground left President Biden with no good options to extend their presence, military officials said…

The result, U.S. officials say, is that evacuations are likely to slow down considerably by Friday, in order to give the military enough time to effect an orderly withdrawal. That is not nearly enough time to evacuate all the Afghan interpreters, drivers and others who helped the 20-year American effort in the country, and it may not be enough time to remove every American, officials acknowledge.