Overview

• Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has initiated a detailed Pentagon review of the chaotic 2021 US military withdrawal from Afghanistan, citing the need for accountability and transparency.
• The review will reexamine prior investigations, decision-making processes, and findings to provide a full account of the withdrawal’s failures and consequences.
• Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed that the US is reassessing whether to classify the Taliban as a Foreign Terrorist Organization, reflecting ongoing policy debates.
• The 2021 withdrawal resulted in the deaths of 13 US service members and 170 Afghan civilians during a suicide bombing at Kabul airport’s Abbey Gate, carried out by ISIL.
• The withdrawal followed a 2020 agreement under the Trump administration, which set a May 2021 exit deadline in exchange for Taliban counter-terrorism assurances.