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| It finally happened, OnPolitics readers. |
| The last U.S. forces left Afghanistan Monday, after 20 years of war, more than 2,400 U.S. troops killed in combat and a frenetic evacuation. |
| The military retreated one minute before the clock struck midnight on the Aug. 31 deadline. |
| President Joe Biden delivered remarks Tuesday afternoon to mark the end of the nation's longest war. I'll get to that below. |
| It's Mabinty, with the day's top news. |
The war is finally over |
| During his address to the nation, Biden defiantly defended his handling of the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan. Biden said the Aug. 31 withdrawal deadline was not "arbitrary." |
| "It was designed to save American lives," Biden said. |
| The pullout capped a chaotic withdrawal of U.S. troops that was upended after the Taliban quickly took over the Afghan government this month. It turned deadly when a terrorist attack killed 13 U.S. service members and at least 169 Afghan civilians on Thursday as the U.S. scrambled to evacuate Americans and Afghan allies in the final days. |
| Biden took responsibility for his decision to leave Afghanistan on Tuesday but reiterated it was necessary to leave. "I was not going to extend this forever war and I was not extending a forever exit," Biden said. |
| Afghan observers said the U.S. exit was an abrupt, full-circle moment that left the Taliban declaring victory over the world's leading super power. |
| The last soldier: Maj. Gen. Christopher Donahue, commander of the 82nd Airborne Division, XVIII Airborne Corps, based in Fort Bragg, N.C., was the final soldier to leave Afghanistan as U.S. troops boarded a C-17 aircraft in Kabul. |
| The Pentagon tweeted a photo recognizing Donahue as the final soldier in America's longest war, which saw more than 775,000 American troops serve over two decades. |
Real quick: Stories you'll want to read |
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What happens next |
| Now that the withdrawal is complete, refugee groups, experts and advocates are bracing for a refugee crisis and economic calamity. |
| The Taliban now in control of the country will have to contend with terror group ISIS-K as the United Nations and Biden urge the new government to allow for safe travel for Afghans and to uphold human rights. |
| Women and girls will likely be trying to flee the country in droves, despite the Taliban's pledges to rule with a more moderate hand. When the militant Islamic group last ruled the country, its leaders barred girls from attending school and prohibited women from working outside the home. Appearing in public without a male relative was illegal. |
| Between 100 to 200 U.S. citizens remain in Afghanistan, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Monday. |
| Blinken said the U.S. will continue to try to get Americans and Afghans out of the country, and will work with Afghanistan's neighbors to secure their departure, either over land or by charter flight once the Kabul airport reopens. |
| Biden reinforced Blinken's remarks saying, "For those remaining Americans, there is no deadline. We remain committed to get them out if they want to come out." |
| Please keep Louisiana and everyone hurt by Hurricane Ida in your thoughts. — Mabinty |
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