The Kabul Tribune (KT) — U.S. special review panel examining the military withdrawal from Afghanistan has completed its main phase of interviews with senior military and civilian leaders.
According to a statement from the Pentagon, the panel was
established under the direction of U.S. President Donald Trump and initiated by
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth to conduct a comprehensive review of the August
2021 withdrawal.
The panel has conducted in-depth interviews with key
officials involved in planning and executing the withdrawal, including senior
generals, while also reviewing more than nine million documents from multiple
government institutions.
Officials said the objective is to provide a transparent and
detailed account of the events and identify systemic and leadership failures
that contributed to the rapid collapse of the Afghan government, with the aim
of preventing similar situations in the future.
The withdrawal, carried out under the previous U.S.
administration, was widely criticized for its chaotic execution. It culminated
in a suicide bombing at Kabul International Airport that killed 13 U.S. service
members and more than 170 Afghan civilians.
The panel is now analyzing the collected evidence and
preparing its final report, which is expected to be presented to Congress and
the public in the coming months.
The review, chaired by Sean Parnell, is expected to examine
high-level decision-making, operational execution on the ground and broader
policy implications, including those linked to the 2020 Doha Agreement.
The latest effort reflects renewed attempts by U.S.
authorities to draw lessons from the Afghanistan withdrawal, an event that
continues to shape debates over military strategy, foreign policy and
accountability
