McKenzie said he will "never forget" every Marine, sailor and soldier who died. He said the mission in Afghanistan has shifted from a military mission to a diplomatic one. Over a hour period the prior day, from early Saturday into early Sunday, roughly 2, people were evacuated, with 32 military flights and nine coalition aircraft departing Kabul's airport. Special Report: Last troops leave Afghanistan. In awe of our Sky Dragon Soldiers.
Please enter email address to continue. Please enter valid email address to continue. Chrome Safari Continue. Percentage of Afghan teenage girls able to read today: Date Congress authorized U. Number of times U. Number of times lawmakers on Senate Appropriations defense subcommittee addressed costs of Vietnam War, during that conflict: Number of times lawmakers in same subcommittee have mentioned costs of Afghanistan and Iraq wars, through mid-summer 5.
That was how many US forces remained in the country when Biden took office in January, after his predecessor Donald Trump slashed their numbers from 15, In appearances, the 2, troops and 16, US civilian contractors behind them, seemed to have been enough to keep the Afghan government in power in the year after Trump signed a withdrawal agreement with the Taliban insurgents on February 29, While the Taliban stepped up attacks on Afghan government targets, their gains remained limited to non-strategic rural areas.
No US soldier was killed after Trump's deal. Critics argue this showed that, when backed by a skeleton US force, Kabul could hold the line against the insurgents. In April, he announced his decision: the US would leave, but the departure deadline was pushed back three months, to the end of August. Republicans hammered the president for recent statements that the generals, either explicitly or indirectly, contradicted.
During an August interview, Biden insisted there were no generals urging him to keep some US troops in Afghanistan to prevent a Taliban takeover. Both Gen Milley and Gen McKenzie said they thought those troops were needed and, at one point, the latter said he told the president as much. Republican senators also questioned why Mr Biden had promised to keep the military in place until all US citizens were evacuated, given that there are still Americans in Afghanistan weeks after the final withdrawal.
Finally, both generals firmly stated that al-Qaeda is still present in Afghanistan - directly contradicting Biden's earlier statement that the terrorist organisation had been eradicated. All that gave Republicans ammunition to accuse the president of lying to the American people. Mr Biden didn't have to make such sweeping assurances. He could have simply said he considered the military's advice but stood by his decision to withdraw. Like many politicians before him, however, he talked his way into trouble.
Tuesday's hearing began with opening testimony from Mr Austin, followed by Gen Milley, who said it would now be harder to protect Americans from terrorist attacks from Afghanistan. Gen Milley said he made an assessment in late that an accelerated troop withdrawal from Afghanistan could precipitate the government's collapse.
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