Joe Biden
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
April 13, 2021
U.S. President Joe Biden will withdraw all American troops from Afghanistan by the 20th anniversary of the September 11, 2001, attacks, sources told The Washington Post and Reuters.
The decision, which Biden is expected to announce on April 14, will bring an end to America’s longest war.
The move will keep thousands of U.S. forces in Afghanistan beyond a May 1 troop withdrawal deadline that the administration of former U.S. President Donald Trump negotiated with the Taliban last year.
In recent weeks, Biden has warned that the withdrawal deadline will be difficult to meet due to logistical challenges.
The Taliban has threatened to resume hostilities against foreign troops in Afghanistan if they do not withdraw by May 1.
It is unclear if the Taliban will act on their threats after Biden announces his plan for a phased pullout by September.
In 2001, U.S.-led forces invaded Afghanistan and toppled the Taliban regime for harboring Al-Qaeda, which was behind the September 11 terrorist attacks in the United States that killed nearly 3,000 people.
Based on reporting by The Washington Post and Reuters