BAGRAM: The United States left Afghanistan’s Bagram Airfield quietly at night without notifying the new commander, who discovered the exit two hours after the United States left, Afghan military officials say.
The U.S. Department of Defense announced Friday that it had completely abandoned its largest airfield in Bagram, Afghanistan, before a full withdrawal planned for August this year.
This airfield in Bagram was the American epicenter in the fighting
against the Taliban and al-Qaeda. The airfield faced a blackout 20 minutes after U.S. troops left, ABC News reported. This allowed looters to loot the buildings and take everything at stake.
“We heard some rumors that the Americans had left Bagram … finally at seven in the morning it was confirmed that they had already left Bagram,” said General Mir Asadullah Kohistani, Bagram’s new commander.
The departure of the United States 20 years later without informing Afghan officials has left many Afghan soldiers with a sense of neglect.
U.S. military spokesmen did not comment on the hasty and quiet departure from Bagram airfield. But last week, U.S. military spokesman Colonel Sonny Leggett said the handover of many Afghan bases had been underway since President Joe Biden announced the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan. The statement also added that the departure was coordinated with Afghan leaders.
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Afghanistan has seen an increase in Taliban activity, and many districts in northern Afghanistan have fallen under their control. This increase in Taliban activity comes as NATO and US troops withdraw from Afghanistan. Most of the US troops have left and the rest will leave once a protection agreement has been reached at Kabul Hamid Karzai International Airport with Turkey.
Inside Bagram airfield
The Afghan army allowed a glimpse of the air base for the first time on Monday. The facility, the size of a small town, consisted of roads that flowed through barracks and hangar-shaped buildings. The base has two runways and more than 100 parking spaces for fighter jets with protective walls to protect the aircraft. The facility also includes a passenger lounge, a hospital with 50 beds and a giant hangar full of supplies.
Some of the more advanced items include thousands of keyless civilian vehicles and hundreds of armored vehicles.
U.S. troops took heavy weapons and detonated ammunition before leaving.
Kohistani says 20 years of NATO and the United States in Afghanistan are valued, but now is the time for Afghans to take up.
“We have to solve our problem,” said Bagram’s new Afghan commander. “We have to secure our country and rebuild our country with our own hands.”
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