Biden ordering U.S. troops out of Afghanistan by Sept. 11

By Tony Bertuca / April 13, 2021 at 1:35 PM

President Biden plans to pull all U.S. troops out of Afghanistan by Sept. 11, the 20th anniversary of the terrorist attack that launched the longest armed conflict in American history.

A senior administration official who briefed reporters said Biden would formally announce the decision tomorrow.

News of the troop withdrawal was first reported by The Washington Post.

"President Biden has decided to draw down the remaining U.S. troops from Afghanistan and finally end the U.S. war there after 20 years,” the senior administration official said. “We will begin an orderly drawdown of the remaining forces before May 1 and plan to have all U.S. troops out of the country before the 20th anniversary of 9/11."

The former Trump administration had set May 1 as the deadline to remove all U.S. troops from Afghanistan.

The senior official said the withdrawal is not "conditions-based."

"The president has judged that a conditions-based approach, which has been the approach of the past two decades, is a recipe for staying in Afghanistan forever," the official said.

Senate Armed Services Committee Ranking Member Jim Inhofe (R-OK) released a statement criticizing Biden's decision.

"To say I'm concerned is a vast understatement -- this is a reckless and dangerous decision," Inhofe said. "No one wants a forever war, but I've consistently said any withdrawal must be conditions-based. Arbitrary deadlines would likely put our troops in danger, jeopardize all the progress we've made, and lead to civil war in Afghanistan -- and create a breeding ground for international terrorists. We're talking about protecting American lives here."

The senior official said the Biden administration judges the "threat against the homeland now emanating from Afghanistan to be at a level that we can address it without a persistent military footprint in the country and without remaining at war with the Taliban."

The 20-year war in Afghanistan, which has cost trillions of dollars, has led to the deaths of more than 2,300 U.S. troops and caused at least 100,000 Afghan civilian casualties.

Meanwhile, the senior official said, "the president is deeply grateful for the honor, courage and determination of the U.S. men and women who served in Afghanistan for almost two decades, as well as the sacrifices made not just by those troops, but also by their families."

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