Departing Afghanistan

Sunday, August 29, 2021: 8:10 AM (EDT).

As the final hours of the US involvement in the Afghanistan war are coming to an end, the facts emerging reflect the resolve of the Biden administration to fulfill its promise to withdraw human lives quickly and with dignity. With just 4,000 American troops left for evacuation, some 150,000 or more Afghanis and others are safely in locations in the Middle East, Europe, and in the US. There are still many months of processing to be accomplished, but this withdrawal by any standard of reckoning ranks as the quickest and most effective withdrawal of human lives out of harm’s way in world history. US Air Force C-17’s carried as many as 850 passengers each, and many other countries diverted civilian aircraft to help in the airlift. So it was a joint effort among our allies.

One suicide bomber worked his pathetic will against 150 innocent men, women, and children—as well as imposing his murderous intentions against 13 of our bravest troops. In less that 48 hours he paid for his actions with his own life with no collateral damage. But after 20 years of trying to keep the peace, we are at long last out of a troubled country that had no military solution. For that, we can thank our allies, our diplomats, our military commanders, and our commander-in-chief, President Joe Biden.