- With the withdrawal of the last U.S. troops from Afghanistan on Tuesday, the longest U.S. war has ended.
- The war claimed the lives of nearly 2,500 US troops and an estimated 240,000 Afghans at a cost of approximately US$2 trillion.
- A Taliban official in Kabul stated that the organization wants people to live an Islamic lifestyle and get rid of all foreign influences.
After the last U.S. troops withdrew, Taliban fighters took control of the airport before dawn on Tuesday, ending the 20-year war that made the Islamic militia stronger than in 2001, and celebratory gunshots echoed through Kabul.
The shaky video footage distributed by the Taliban showed that fighter jets entered the airport after the last batch of U.S. troops took off one minute before midnight, marking the end of Washington and its NATO allies’ hastily and humiliating withdrawal.
According to a report by Al Jazeera, Taliban spokesman Kari Youssef said: “The last American soldier has left the Kabul airport and our country has gained complete independence.”
The U.S. Army shared the night vision optical image of the last U.S. soldier who boarded the last evacuation flight from Kabul-Major General Chris Donahue, commander of the 82nd Airborne Division.
The United States’ longest war claimed the lives of nearly 2,500 U.S. troops and an estimated 240,000 Afghans at a cost of approximately US$2 trillion.
Although it successfully ousted the Taliban and prevented Al-Qaeda from using Afghanistan as a base to attack the United States, in the end hardline Islamic radicals controlled more countries than they did during their reign from 1996 to 2001.
Those years were marked by the Taliban’s brutal enforcement of the strict interpretation of Sharia law, and the world is now watching whether it will form a more moderate and tolerant government in the coming months.
Thousands of Afghans have fled due to fear of Taliban reprisals. The large-scale but chaotic airlift carried out by the United States and its allies in the past two weeks successfully evacuated more than 123,000 people from Kabul, but tens of thousands of people who helped Western countries during the war were left behind.
According to U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, there is a group of Americans who want to leave but cannot board the last flight. The number is less than 200 and may be close to 100.
General Frank McKenzie, the commander of the US Central Command, said at a Pentagon briefing that Ross Wilson, the US chief diplomat in Afghanistan, was on the C-17 for the last takeoff.
“This departure is heartbreaking. We didn’t let everyone we want to leave. But I don’t think if we stay for another 10 days, we won’t let everyone leave,” MacKenzie told reporters.
As the U.S. forces withdrew, they destroyed more than 70 aircraft, dozens of armored vehicles, and paralyzed air defense systems, which thwarted the Islamic State’s rocket attacks on the eve of the U.S. withdrawal.
‘National Shame’
In a statement, President Joe Biden defended his insistence on withdrawing U.S. troops before the deadline on Tuesday. He said that the world will allow the Taliban to keep their promises and allow safe passage for those who want to leave Afghanistan.
“Now, our 20-year military presence in Afghanistan is over,” Biden said, thanking the U.S. military for its dangerous evacuation. He plans to address the American people on Tuesday afternoon.
Biden has stated that the United States has long achieved the goal it set when it expelled the Taliban in 2001 because the Taliban harbored al-Qaeda militants who planned to attack the United States on September 11.
Since the Taliban took over Kabul earlier this month after the lightning advance and the collapse of the US-backed government, the president has been severely criticized by Republicans and some of his fellow Democrats for his handling of Afghanistan.
Senator Ben Sasse, a Republican member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, called the U.S. withdrawal a “national shame,” which was “a direct result of President Biden’s cowardice and incompetence.”
But Democratic Senator Sheldon Whitehouse wrote on Twitter: “Salute to our diplomats, military, and intelligence agencies. In this dangerous and turbulent situation, airlifting 120,000 people is beyond the reach of others. Arrived.”
Blinken said that if the new Taliban government does not retaliate against the country’s opponents, the United States is prepared to cooperate with the new government.
“The Taliban seek international legitimacy and support. Our position is that any legitimacy and support must be obtained,” he said.
The Taliban must revitalize the war-torn economy, and cannot expect billions of dollars in foreign aid to flow into the former ruling elite and encourage systemic corruption.
The population outside the city is facing a catastrophic humanitarian situation worsened by a severe drought as described by UN officials.
A Taliban official in Kabul stated that the organization wants people to live an Islamic lifestyle and get rid of all foreign influences.
“Our culture has become toxic. We see the influence of Russia and the United States everywhere, even in the food we eat. This is something that people should be aware of and make the necessary changes. It takes time, but it will happen, “He said.
