U.S. Says Afghanistan Withdrawal Up to 20% Done

Date: 18 May 2021 - 21:58

News ID: ۹۰۳۳۶

WASHINGTON (Dispatches) – The withdrawal all U.S. forces from Afghanistan by September is up to 20% complete, Central Command (CENTCOM) said on Tuesday.
The command gave a completion range of between 13-20%, adding that five military facilities have been handed over to Afghan forces. About 115 C-17 cargo planes worth of material have been shipped out of the country, and 5,000 pieces of equipment have been marked for destruction, CENTCOM said in a statement.
The U.S. is refraining from giving an exact percentage of the withdrawal process.
The U.S. missed a May 1 deadline to pull its troops from the Asian country.
CENTCOM said it expects to provide weekly updates on progress toward meeting the president’s goal.
Under an agreement that was reached between the Taliban and the administration of former U.S. president Donald Trump in Qatar last year, foreign forces were to have left Afghanistan by May 1.
President Joe Biden, however, pushed back the May 1 deadline, saying his administration would be completing the military exit by the 20th anniversary of the September 11, 2001 attacks.
The Taliban, meanwhile, have said they are no longer bound by the agreement to refrain from targeting international forces, as Washington has missed the original deadline.
The U.S. attacked Afghanistan in 2001, claiming that the Taliban were harboring al-Qaeda. The invasion removed a Taliban regime from power but prompted widespread militancy and insecurity across the Asian country.
The war has taken countless lives, including of Afghan civilians.