Why Did the U.S. Withdraw From Afghanistan?
Olivia Scro
Staff National News Writer
The US completely withdrew from Kabul, Afghanistan. This decision finished a two-decade struggle that started not long after the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001.
In August, President Biden expressed gratitude toward the American military and said he would discuss his decision to terminate the U.S. mission in Afghanistan. In the final week of the withdrawal, terrorists killed 13 U.S. citizens and many Afghans in an attack outside the airport. U.S. powers had to retaliate due to the casualties. McKenzie, who manages U.S. military activities in the area, said the Taliban didn’t have direct information on the U.S. military’s takeoff time since the U.S. decided to keep that data exceptionally limited. As of now, there are less than 200 Americans who are looking for clearing. Their safety is the main priority of the U.S. administration. In August, U.S. also released 1,200 individuals from the Afghan capital on 26 military cargo airplane flights in a 24-hour time span, as indicated by the White House. Around 122,800 individuals have been evacuated since the finish of July, including around 6,000 U.S. residents and their families.
The U.S. started its conflict in Afghanistan in October 2001, weeks after the attacks of Sept. 11. The Taliban at the time gave asylum to al-Qaeda, the group that arranged and did the overwhelming attacks on the World Exchange Community and the Pentagon. From that point forward, around 2,500 U.S. service members have been killed; additionally, the conflict took the lives of 100,000 Afghan soldiers, police staff, and regular citizens.
Today, the Taliban reestablished its power and gained new territories. Following the Taliban takeover, Biden guarded his choice that the U.S. would leave the conflict-torn country.
“I stand squarely behind my decision. After 20 years I’ve learned the hard way that there was never a good time to withdraw U.S. forces,” Biden said a day after Afghanistan fell to the Taliban. He added that American troops can no longer fight in a war for the Afghan people who are not even willing to fight for themselves. “American soldiers can’t and ought not to be battling in a conflict and kicking the bucket in a conflict that Afghan powers are not ready to battle for themselves,” Biden said. “We allowed them each opportunity to decide their own future. We were unable to furnish them with the will to battle for that future,” he added.
The Pentagon on Saturday delivered the names of the 13 Americans killed after a terrorist detonated a bomb by the airport in Kabul. The Aug. 26 attack, which killed 11 US marines, one Navy sailor, and one Army soldier, is under serious investigation. Therefore, countless deaths of American soldiers, the unwillingness of the Afghan population to oppose the rule of the Taliban, and the rising influence of the Taliban in the region influenced Biden’s decision to withdraw from the country after 20 years of active engagement in the conflict.
Contact Olivia at olivia.scro@student.shu.edu