A Gold Star mom whose son was killed during the deadly withdrawal from Afghanistan said she holds President Biden responsible for his death and still seeks closure two years later.
A suicide bomber detonated its deadly charge outside the Abbey Gate at Kabul International Airport on August 26, 2021, killing 13 US servicemen and at least 170 Afghans amid the chaos at the exit. The families demand accountability from the Biden administration nearly two years later.
Paula Knauss Selph, the Gold Star dam of Army Staff Sgt. Ryan Christian Knauss, told DailyMail.com in an exclusive interview, “There’s been a lot of grief, a lot of grief.”
“There’s nothing like watching your child die in front of you, in front of the whole world,” she said, reflecting on the two years since Ryan’s death.
She shared meeting President Biden for the first and only time on Memorial Day 2022 at an event for Gold Star families in Washington, D.C.
Paula Knauss Selph and her son Army Staff Sgt. Ryan Christian Knauss
President Joe Biden laying a wreath at The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery on Memorial Day, Monday, May 30, 2022
“He was a beautiful baby,” and weighed 10 pounds at birth, Selph fondly recalled. Ryan is pictured here with his older brother
During a meeting in the Oval Office, Biden told her, “I can understand if you’re angry.”
“I was face to face with him, face to face,” she continued, “I started to cry.”
“It should never have happened like this,” she told the president.
“He stood there stoically,” Selph said, instead of getting an apology or a hug.
“Nothing from his mouth, except – do you want your picture taken with me?”
Selph amazingly replied that she would only like a photo if it was with the president next to her son’s headstone at Arlington National Cemetery.
“I can’t do that because the Secret Service won’t let me do that,” she replied.
It is a moral disgrace for a president not to feel compassion for the people he serves. It’s a moral disgrace,” Selph told DailyMail.com of her conversation with the president.
He thought the “sad event” was a “photo op” instead of realizing it was a moment in time when he can never get back with a mother grieving for a child and that he has the chance had to make a difference, she continued.
“He had the chance to make a difference for my child. About not making decisions and indecisiveness that cost him his life. And I hold him accountable,” she continued.
Selph, on the other hand, said General Mark Milley – the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff – had apologized after Ryan’s death at an event in Florida.
While he’s not “innocent” in what happened to her son, she said she had more respect for him because he looked her in the eye and said, “I’m so sorry about what happened.”
She said the failures that led to Ryan’s death in Abbey Gate two years ago are not a partisan problem, but rather a “leadership problem.”
Her son Ryan always wanted to join the armed forces growing up, she told DailyMail.com.
“He was a beautiful baby,” and weighed 10 pounds at birth, Selph fondly recalled.
“Ryan, all his life was pretty sure he wanted to join the armed forces. And that is a nice thing for me. But he kept that focus throughout his life. He was so disciplined. He was so smart.’
While Ryan may not have been a “martyr” or a “perfect person,” he sacrificed his life to give others the chance to live the American dream.
“He protected us and gave us the opportunity for many people to make the American dream come true. That’s what will outlive us all for a long time.”
Selph is the executive director of the Respect and Remember Foundation, which supports active-duty military personnel, encourages recruiting, and works with veterans’ organizations — all on Ryan’s behalf.
Army Staff Sgt. Ryan Christian Knauss died at Abbey Gate on August 26, 2021
The Americans killed in the blast were: (from left to right, starting with top row) Cpl. Daegan W. Page – Sgt. Johanny Rosario Pichardo – Staff Sergeant Darin T. Hoover – Lance Cpl. David L. Espinoza – Lance Cpl. Rylee J. McCollum – Lance Cpl. Kareem M. Nikoui – Cpl. Hunter Lopez – Lance Cpl. Jared M. Schmitz – Staff Sergeant. Ryan C. Knauss – Cpl. Humberto A. Sanchez – Marine Corpsman Maxton W. Soviak – Lance Cpl. Dylan R. Merola – Sgt. Nicole L. Gee
Biden at the 2022 Arlington National Cemetery event on Memorial Day
Taliban soldiers are pictured at the entrance to Afghanistan’s international airport in Kabul on August 17, 2021, two days after the Taliban entered the capital
The State Department last month released a damning 87-page report on failed withdrawals in Afghanistan just before the July 4 holiday weekend.
The research found serious pitfalls in leadership and questions about who was in charge before and during the chaos, which resulted in the deaths of 13 US servicemen and hundreds of Afghan civilians.
The State Department report repeatedly blamed the administrations of both former President Donald Trump and President Joe Biden for their efforts before and after the departure of US troops from Kabul in August 2021.
“The decisions by both President Trump and President Biden to terminate the US military mission in Afghanistan had serious implications for the viability of the Afghan government and its security,” the report said.
“Those decisions are beyond the scope of this review, but the (review) team found that there had been insufficient senior-level thought about worst-case scenarios and how quickly they might follow during both administrations.”
It also outlined several strategic failures as the Taliban overran cities – and said that “worst case scenarios” had not been sufficiently considered.
As a result, thousands of allies who aided the US in the war were left behind and chaos ensued at Hamid Karzai International Airport as men, women and children desperately tried to flee.
Biden stood by his decision to withdraw troops from Afghanistan and shrugged at the report.