US officials on the ground say the withdrawal is already a work in progress —and May 1 is just a continuation—but Washington has made an issue of the date because it is a deadline agreed with the Taliban in 2020 to complete the pullout.
A US soldier from 4th Infantry Division 4 Brigade Alpha Company presents a gift to an Afghan child in Langarhar. Pic/AFP
The United States has formally begun withdrawing its last troops from Afghanistan on Saturday, bringing its longest war nearer to an end, but also heralding an uncertain future for a country in the tightening grip of an emboldened Taliban.
US officials on the ground say the withdrawal is already a work in progress —and May 1 is just a continuation—but Washington has made an issue of the date because it is a deadline agreed with the Taliban in 2020 to complete the pullout.
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The skies above Kabul and nearby Bagram airbase have been buzzing with more US helicopter activity than usual as the pullout gears up, following the start on Thursday of a concurrent NATO withdrawal. The prospect of an end of 20 years of US presence comes despite fighting raging across the countryside in the absence of a peace deal.
A stark reminder of what remains came on Friday with a car bomb in Pul-e-Alam, south of the capital, killing at least 21 people.
US President Joe Biden is determined to end what he called “the forever war”, announcing last month that the withdrawal of the remaining 2,500 American forces would be complete by the 20th anniversary of the September 11 attacks.
“A horrific attack 20 years ago... cannot explain why we should remain there in 2021,” he said. Since the withdrawal deal was struck, the Taliban have not directly engaged foreign troops, but insurgents have mercilessly attacked government forces in the country.
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