INTERNATIONAL
THE END OF AN ERA: THE UNITED STATES’ WITHDRAWAL FROM AFGHANISTAN
The conclusion of the longest occupation in the history of the United States leads to uncertainty about the future of both US foriegn policy and the lives of many Afghans. WORDS BY JACK PARKOS | ART BY RACHEL HARTLEY
O
n Aug. 15, 2021, the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan fell as Taliban forces entered the city of Kabul. The last remnants of the American occupation of Afghanistan evacuated as the United States officially withdrew from the region. Americans saw shocking images of people desperately trying to leave the country, including one of Afghan civilians hanging onto planes leaving Kabul. Many are wondering how this could have happened. The story goes back nearly 40 years. After the Soviet Union withdrew from Afghanistan in 1989, there was a power
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vacuum that caused conflict in the region. In 1996, the Taliban took control of Afghanistan, forming the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan and ruling over the region as an Islamic theocracy. That all changed after the events of Sept. 11, 2001 when al-Qaeda attacked the World Trade Center. The Taliban government had been housing Osama Bin Laden and other al-Qaeda members, prompting the United States to invade Afghanistan in October of that year. This led to the longest lasting war in American history. Despite the fact that the Taliban government fell early on, the
American military continued to fight off remaining insurgents in the years that followed. The seeds for the withdrawal were planted with the reaction of many Americans who opposed the U.S. staying in Afghanistan all those years after the initial occupation. Both former President Barack Obama and former President Donald Trump ran campaigns that promised to reduce the U.S. presence in the Middle East, including Afghanistan. During his presidency, Obama maintained a complex stance on Afghanistan policy. Although the early years of the presidency saw an increase in American presence in
