Following viral pictures and rumors, the Pentagon is denying accusations that it did not evacuate dogs that served with the U.S. during operations in Afghanistan.

Conservative activists, lawmakers, and animal lovers voiced concerns online in the last days of America’s longest war claiming that the U.S. had not evacuated its service dogs.

The Pentagon denied on Tuesday that dogs that had cooperated with the U.S. military had been left in the country. Officials said that a series of social media posts concerning the non-military or contracted evacuation of dogs in Kabul had generated confusion.

“To correct erroneous reports, the U.S. military did not leave any dogs in cages at Hamid Karzai International Airport,” Defense Department representative, Eric Pahon, said.

On Aug. 27, Kabul Small Animal Rescue, an animal welfare organization that has cared for animals wounded or displaced during Afghanistan’s war, said on Twitter that it was attempting to evacuate animals on planes departing Kabul’s airport.

The animals were being airlifted out as part of “Operation Hercules,” a crowd-funded initiative in the nation organized by the organization. That work had been going on for days prior to the viral photos going viral.

On Sunday, the veteran’s group Veteran Sheepdogs of America shared a photo on Twitter showing some animals in boxes in front of a damaged military plane. According to the report, the plane is now parked at Hamid Karzai International Airport.

On Monday, the president and CEO of American Humane, an animal welfare organization, published an open letter condemning the military for allegedly abandoning animals who had assisted the U.S.

Pundits and legislators who are opposed to the U.S. pullout as a whole posted the crate image and others online.