All US and NATO troops have left the biggest air base in Afghanistan, a US defense official told AFP Friday, signaling the complete withdrawal of foreign forces from the country was imminent after two decades of war.
Bagram Air Base served as the linchpin for US-led operations in the rugged country, where the long war against the Taliban and their Al-Qaeda allies started in 2001 following the September 11 attacks.
“All coalition forces are off Bagram,” said the official – who asked not to be identified – without specifying when the last foreign troops left the base, 50 kilometers north of the capital Kabul.
He did not say when it would be officially handed over to Afghan forces, but ministry of defence spokesman Rohullah Ahmadzai said government authorities were “fully prepared” to take over the base.
The Taliban said it welcomed and supported the latest phase of the troop pullout.
“Their full withdrawal will pave the way for Afghans to decide about their future between themselves,” spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said.
The US military and NATO are in the final stages of winding up involvement in Afghanistan, bringing home an unspecified number of remaining troops by a deadline of September 11.
The Taliban have launched relentless offensives across Afghanistan in the past two months, gobbling up dozens of districts as Afghan security forces have largely consolidated their power in the country’s major urban areas.
The ability of Afghan forces to maintain control of Bagram airfield will likely prove pivotal to maintaining security in Kabul and keeping pressure on the Taliban.
The exit of foreign forces from Bagram base “symbolizes that Afghanistan is alone, abandoned, and left to defend itself against the Taliban’s onslaught,” said Australia-based Afghanistan expert Nishank Motwani.
“Having reached home, Americans and allied forces will now watch what they fought so hard to build over 20 years burn down from afar and knowing that the Afghan men and women they fought with risk losing everything.”
Media reports say the Pentagon will probably retain about 600 US troops in Afghanistan to guard the vast US diplomatic compound in Kabul.
Residents from Bagram said security will only deteriorate with the exit of foreign forces.
As of May 2021, there were about 9,500 foreign troops in Afghanistan, of which US troops made up the largest contingent of 2,500.
So far Germany and Italy have both confirmed the full withdrawal of their contingents.