General Frank McKenzie, the commander of US Central Command, announced on August 30 that the last US military aircraft had left Afghanistan. The American departure marked a catastrophic end, chaotic and bloody exhaust From the longest war of the United States.
President Biden A statement later that day weighed in and thanked the last US forces serving in Afghanistan for carrying out the “dangerous regress from Afghanistan as scheduled”, with no further loss of American life.
The airlift, which began as a seemingly random and hastily organized effort, was injured by 13 service members killed and the death penalty for Afghan translators who helped American soldiers and diplomats, but were unable to flee the country.
Furthermore, Biden’s decision to leave will be influenced by the question of whether and how well the threat of terrorism emanating from Afghanistan has actually been addressed.
In the 24 hours leading up to that Monday morning, 26 military C-17 aircraft carrying 1,200 people took off from Kabul, according to General Hank Taylor, deputy director of regional operations for the Joint Staff who spoke with Pentagon press secretary Kirby. At the Pentagon briefing before Monday.
Taylor said a total of 28 flights took off from Kabul airport in a 24-hour period.
In the same 24-hour period, the US launched a drone strike that killed several civilians including children, rocket fire targeted Kabul airport, and military officials continued to warn of active, specific threats to the evacuation effort. .
“The threat stream is still real. It’s still active, and, in many cases, it’s still specific,” Kirby said at a Monday morning briefing about whether another attack at the airport is likely. Taylor said military operations in Kabul were continuing with a focus on protecting US troops and that the military would have the ability to evacuate Afghans by the end.
“We’re taking this very seriously and we’ll do it right to the end,” Kirby said.
With the military exit, the US withdrew all diplomatic representation, leaving open the question of whether it would formally recognize the Taliban as the rulers of Afghanistan.
Saki said Monday that the president is already committed to increasing some US engagement with Afghanistan, telling his military commanders that he should “stop nothing” to pay ISIS for the deaths of service members.
Read more about the US withdrawal in Afghanistan Here.
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