Defense Secretary Orders Review Of US Military Withdrawal From Afghanistan

WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has ordered a department-level review of the U.S. military withdrawal from Afghanistan

In a statement issued on Tuesday, Hegseth blamed the Biden Administration's 'disastrous and embarrassing' decision to withdraw from Afghanistan three and a half years ago as the reason for the deaths of 13 U.S. troops and 170 civilians in a suicide bombing at the Kabul International Airport's Abbey Gate.

'President Trump promised accountability for what transpired during that military withdrawal, and I am committed to delivering on that promise'.

Hegseth said he is directing the Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs and Senior Advisor Sean Parnell to convene a Special Review Panel for the Department into the U.S. military withdrawal from Afghanistan.

Sean Parnell spent 485 days serving as an infantry platoon leader during the War in Afghanistan. He was wounded in action along with 85 percent of his platoon while many of his colleagues were killed in the War.

Parnell will lead the effort to reexamine previous Abbey Gate investigations conducted by U.S. Central Command during the Biden Administration.

In addition, Lt. Col. Stuart Scheller, a combat-decorated Marine officer who spoke out about the Afghanistan withdrawal, and Jerry Dunleavy, an author, journalist, and investigator who helped lead the House Foreign Affairs Committee's investigation into the Afghanistan withdraw, will serve on the Special Review Panel.

Sean and his team will look at the facts, examine the sources, interview witnesses, analyze the decision making, and post-mortem the chain of events that led to one of America's darkest moments, Hegseth said. 'Sean and his team will provide updates at appropriate times to keep the American people informed of our findings and any directed actions resulting from our review'.

The United States Armed Forces completed their withdrawal from Afghanistan on 2021 August 30, marking the end of the two-decade-long U.S. military presence in the war-torn country.

Copyright(c) 2025 RTTNews.com. All Rights Reserved

Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX