Refugees pushed their way onto airplanes. Hundreds of children were separated from their parents. Rogue flights landed without manifests. Security vetting of refugees was done in hours or days, rather than months or years…

The total number of evacuees, and where they are currently waiting, is still not clear, though Mr. Biden said Tuesday that more than 120,000 had been evacuated. As of Friday, Alejandro N. Mayorkas, the secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, said about 40,000 people had arrived in the United States at airports near Washington, D.C., and Philadelphia. Officials expect about 17,000 more to arrive by next Friday, and thousands more may ultimately end up living in a dozen other countries…

But unclassified briefing documents titled “2021 Afghanistan Repatriation Mission” reveal that in some cases, spotty information is being collected: Flight manifests have been at times incomplete or missing, visa or citizenship status is unknown, and there is a lack of basic demographic data.