Last American Military Plane Leaves Afghanistan, Ending 20-year War: General

Contact Your Elected Officials
The Epoch Times Logo

The United States officially ended its military presence with the final U.S. military flight out of Kabul, concluding 20 years of American involvement in Afghanistan after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) head Gen. Frank McKenzie said during a televised address that the last C-17 military plane cleared Afghan airspace after lifting off at around 3:29 p.m. ET Monday. That came hours before President Joe Biden’s Tuesday deadline for shutting down the final airlift.

“I’m here to announce the completion of our withdrawal from Afghanistan and the end of the military mission to evacuation American citizens, third-country nationals, and vulnerable Afghans,” he said on Monday afternoon.

There are still Americans who remain in Afghanistan “in the low hundreds,” said McKenzie in a response to a reporter’s question, adding that the military and State Department will work to evacuate those individuals. A Pentagon spokesman earlier on Monday said that around 600 still remain in the country.

“We didn’t get out everyone that we wanted to get out,” the general said, adding that it is a “tough situation.”

The U.S. pullout from Afghanistan ended with a rushed evacuation that extracted more than 100,000 people since Aug. 14 as the Taliban took over Kabul following a blistering military offensive that lasted only a few days. Last week, ISIS terrorists carried out a bombing at the Kabul airport, killing scores of Afghan civilians and 13 American soldiers.

Biden now faces condemnation at home and abroad, not so much for ending the war as for his handling of a final evacuation that unfolded in chaos and raised doubts about U.S. credibility. Biden has repeatedly defended his administration’s handling of the evacuation, although he and other administration officials provided conflicting details about the situation on the ground in Kabul.

There were also questions raised about the intelligence reports used by the Pentagon and top military leaders regarding the speed at which the Taliban took over the country and the fall of the U.S.-backed Afghan government and army. Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin and other generals said they received no intelligence suggesting the country’s government would collapse in just 11 days to the Taliban, designated by some federal agencies as a terrorist group.

Meanwhile, the administration received blowback over the billions of dollars in American weapons, vehicles, aircraft, and other equipment that were seized by the Taliban.

The final U.S. exit included the withdrawal of its diplomats, although the State Department has left open the possibility of resuming some level of diplomacy with the Taliban depending on how they conduct themselves in establishing a government and adhering to international pleas for the protection of human rights.

Previously, the Trump administration negotiated with the Taliban over the course of months, setting a withdrawal date for May 1. Biden pushed back the withdrawal date to coincide with the anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attack.

A new threat posed by the Afghan pullout and Taliban takeover is the ISIS terrorist group. When the Taliban took over, its members released numerous ISIS members from prisons across the country.

McKenzie made note of the threat posed by ISIS, saying the Taliban—an enemy of ISIS—will now have to deal with the group.

By Jack Phillips

Read Original Article on TheEpochTimes.com

The Epoch Times
The Epoch Timeshttps://www.theepochtimes.com/
Tired of biased news? The Epoch Times is truthful, factual news that other media outlets don't report. No spin. No agenda. Just honest journalism like it used to be.

No Kings Exposes Odd Things!

The “No Kings” protests held around the nation are not grassroots spontaneous people’s protests but are highly organized events by paid provocateurs.

President Trump Needs Much Better Protection

President Trump faces threats from foreign adversaries and domestic radicals prone to violence, people suffering from severe “TDS.”

Science Has Finally Come For Transgenderism

British biologist Richard Dawkins said “trans women are men,” calling transgender ideology a movement that undermines biological truth.

Trump is Coming for Antifa

Liberals say there is no organization called “Antifa”. Conservatives say Antifa is real and we now know how it is funded. What should we believe?

The Pentagon vs. the Free Press (or What’s Left of It)

Reporting what the government would rather not have reported is not just an essential function but a duty of a free press in a representative system.

Government Shutdown Could End This Week: White House Economist

In an interview, Kevin Hassett stated that a chorus of Senate Democrats thought it would be “bad optics” to reopen the govt before the “No Kings” rallies.

Vehicle Hit With Artillery Shrapnel During Marine Ceremony: California Highway Patrol

Metal shrapnel from a Marine Corps live-fire exercise at Camp Pendleton’s 250th anniversary damaged a CHP vehicle near a major highway, officials said.

World’s Most Advanced AI Chips Now Being Made in America Due to Trump’s Policies: Nvidia Chief

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang credited Trump’s tariffs and manufacturing push for enabling U.S. production of the firm’s advanced Blackwell AI chips.

Artillery Fire at Vance’s Marine Corps Celebration Sparks Friction With Newsom

Marine officials said firing artillery at Camp Pendleton is routine and disrupting traffic on I-5 is unnecessary, but Newsom closed portions of I-5 anyway.

President Signs Rare Earth Agreement With Australia’s PM

President Trump hosted Australian PM Albanese at the White House, where both leaders signed a new agreement on rare earth mineral cooperation.

Trump Says Insurrection Act Is ‘Strongest Power a President Has’

President Trump detailed plans to invoke the Insurrection Act to address rampant crime, calling it the “strongest power a president has.”

Army Corps of Engineers to Pause $11 Billion in Projects During Shutdown: Vought

Russ Vought, director of the White House’s OMB, has added to the growing pile of federal projects paused during the government shutdown.

Trump Signs Executive Order Putting New Restrictions on Federal Hiring

Trump signed an executive order directing federal agencies to restrict hiring, with exceptions for immigration, security, and political appointees.
spot_img

Related Articles

Popular Categories

MAGA Business Central