Pentagon announced the Complete Withdrawal of US Troops from Afghanistan

Listen to this article

On Monday, the Pentagon announced the last US troops had left Afghanistan, ending America’s longest war. General Kenneth F. McKenzie said, “Every single US service member is out of Afghanistan, I can say that with absolute certainty”. He said the last US flight out of Afghanistan left at 3:29 p.m. ET. The heads of the State Department and Defense Department teams were among the last to leave: Chargé d’Affaires Ross Wilson and Major General Chris Donahue. The 18th Airborne Corps posted a photo of the last soldier to leave Afghanistan. He was identified as Major General Chris Donahue, commander of the US Army 82nd Airborne Division, XVIII Airborne Corps. President Biden said he would address Americans on Tuesday about the decision not to extend the US mission past the deadline.

However, some Americans and at-risk Afghans were unable to evacuate. On Monday afternoon, Biden issued a statement and said, “For now, I will report that it was the unanimous recommendation of the Joint Chiefs and of all of our commanders on the ground to end our airlift mission as planned. Their view was that ending our military mission was the best way to protect the lives of our troops, and secure the prospects of civilian departures for those who want to leave Afghanistan in the weeks and months ahead”. The US forces demilitarized, or rendered useless military equipment it left behind, including dozens of military vehicles and aircraft, amounting to billions of dollars of equipment. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the US remains committed to Americans who are still in the country and to vulnerable Afghans.

The US no longer has a military or diplomatic presence, as diplomats assigned to Afghanistan will now operate out of Doha, Qatar. Blinken said there are less than 200 and likely closer to 100 Americans left in Afghanistan. He said, “Now, US military flights have ended and our troops have departed Afghanistan. A new chapter of America’s engagement with Afghanistan has begun. It’s one in which we will lead with our diplomacy”. The withdrawal came nearly 20 years after the US military first entered Afghanistan after the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001. McKenzie said, “Your service will never be forgotten. My heart is broken over the losses three days ago”. The US has relocated more than 122,000 people from Afghanistan since the end of July including 5,400 American citizens.