A claim that the United States has returned to Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan has been denied by both the CIA and the Taliban.
According to a report by journalist Zark Shabab on Medium, a U.S. Air Force C-17, carrying military equipment and senior U.S. intelligence officials, including CIA Deputy Director Michael Elli, landed at Bagram on Sunday.
“Reports that CIA Deputy Director Michael Ellis was at Bagram Air Base are false,” CIA Director of Public Affairs Liz Lyons said. Lyons did not address other claims about the aircraft or possible intelligence activity.
The Taliban also denied the report. Spokesperson Zabiullah Mujahid called the story “propaganda” and said the Taliban had full control of Bagram.
“There is no need for any country’s military presence in Afghanistan at present and the Islamic Emirate will not allow such an action,” he said.
Satellite imagery from April 5 to April 7 also did not confirm the presence of any visible aircraft at the Bagram Air Base.
🇺🇸🇦🇫 – Satellite imagery from April 5 – April 7 of Bagram Air Base, Afghanistan. No visible aircrafts, disputing the US C-17 claim further, unless they had invisible cloaking devices on. pic.twitter.com/tjzParkAvw
— Emeka Gift Official (@EmekaGift100) April 9, 2025
Bagram Air Base, once the center of U.S. military operations in Afghanistan, was handed over to the Taliban in 2021 after the U.S. withdrawal. Since then, the U.S. government has said it no longer has a military or intelligence presence in the country.
