...a venerable old Persian-speaking city in western Afghanistan, populated mostly by Tadjiks, which is why it's not as blood-soaked as areas controlled by Pashtuns...
to Afghan forces.
Afghan military officials said Italian forces have pulled out their military equipment as well as destroyed some.
In recent weeks, loud explosions have been heard from the camp and military officials said the Italian forces destroyed large numbers of armored vehicles and heavy weapons before evacuating.
"In terms of military equipment, nothing was left for us from the Italians," said Major General Sayed Emal Pacha, the commander of an Afghan air force division.
"We pledge that our security and defense forces across Afghanistan are ready to defend our country and the people in the western zone and in Herat," said Abdul Saboor Qane, governor of Herat.
"All aviation services are being carried out by the professional cadres of Khawja Abdullah Ansari airport. There have been no problems at all at the airport following the withdrawal of foreign forces and flights are being carried out normally and regularly," said Abdul Shaheer Salehi, the director of Herat airport.
With the withdrawal of Italian forces from Herat, the control of Herat’s airport was also handed over to the Afghan government.
Meanwhile,
...back at the pound, the little lost dog backed into the corner and showed its teeth. And what big teeth they were!...
Germany also completed the withdrawal of its forces from Afghanistan.
Germany’s last troops left Afghanistan on Tuesday after nearly 20 years of deployment in the country, said German Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer.
The German defense minister said in a tweet that the last Bundeswehr soldiers "left Afghanistan safely" on Tuesday evening.
She thanked the more than 150,000 troops who have served there since 2001 and said that "they can be proud of this mission."
Most European troops exit Afghanistan quietly after 20 years
[AlAhram] NATO
...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. It's headquartered in Belgium. That sez it all....
declined to give an update Wednesday on how many nations still have troops in its Resolute Support mission
Most European troops have already pulled out of Afghanistan, quietly withdrawing months before the U.S.-led mission was officially expected to end _ part of an anticlimactic close to the ``forever war'' that risks leaving the country on the brink of civil war.
Germany and Italia declared their missions in Afghanistan over on Wednesday and Poland's last troops returned home, bringing their deployments to a low-key end nearly 20 years after the first Western soldiers were deployed there.
Announcements from several countries analyzed by The News Agency that Dare Not be Named show that a majority of European troops has now left with little ceremony _ a stark contrast to the dramatic and public show of force and unity when NATO allies lined up to back the U.S. invasion to rid the country of al-Qaeda after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.
In the ensuing decades, the war went from one mission to another. Former U.S. President George W. Bush's administration shied away from nation-building and the United Nations
...boodling on the grand scale...
advocated a light footprint. But with the passing years, NATO and U.S. troops took on greater roles developing Afghanistan's National Security and Defense Forces and training police. At the war's peak, the U.S. and NATO military numbers surpassed 150,000.
NATO agreed in April to withdraw its roughly 7,000 non-American forces from Afghanistan to match U.S. President Joe
The Big GuyBiden
...46th president of the U.S. Sleazy Dem mschine politician, paterfamilias of the Biden Crime Family...'s decision to pull all American troops from the country, starting May 1.
Biden set a Sept. 11 deadline for the withdrawal of U.S. troops. But more recently, American officials have said that pullout would most likely be completed by July 4 _ and many allies have moved to wrap up their own presence by then as well.
NATO declined to give an update Wednesday on how many nations still have troops in its Resolute Support mission. But an analysis of 19 governments' own announcements shows that more than 4,800 of the non-American forces have left.
The U.S. has refused to give troop figures, but when Biden announced the final pullout between 2,500 and 3,500 troops were deployed. The U.S. has also refused to give a clear date for their final withdrawal.
Germany publicly announced the end of its nearly 20-year deployment in a statement and a series of tweets from the defense minister late Tuesday evening, shortly after the last plane carrying its troops had left Afghan airspace.
Three transport aircraft landed at the Wunstorf air base in northern Germany on Wednesday afternoon. The troops, wearing masks, lined up on the tarmac for a brief ceremony, but the military dispensed with a bigger reception because of the coronavirus (aka COVID19 or Chinese Plague)
...the twenty first century equivalent of bubonic plague, only instead of killing off a third of the population of Europe it kills 3.4 percent of those who notice they have it. It seems to be fond of the elderly, especially Iranian politicians and holy men...
pandemic.
``We have worked long and hard to stand here today,'' said Brig. Gen. Ansgar Meyer, the last commander of the German contingent. ``As your commander, I can say for you: `Mission accomplished.' You have fulfilled your task.''
But the top American general in Afghanistan gave a sobering assessment Tuesday, warning about the recent rapid loss of districts to the Taliban
...Arabic for
students...
and cautioning that the country could descend into civil war.
The German pullout came amid a spate of withdrawals by European nations. Poland's last departing troops were greeted Wednesday by Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszczak. Some 33,000 Polish troops have served in Afghanistan over the past 20 years.
The last Italian troops from Italia's base in Herat arrived at the military airport in Pisa late Tuesday. Italia officially declared its mission in Afghanistan over in a statement Wednesday, with Defense Minister Lorenzo Guerini paying tribute to the 53 Italians who died, and 723 who were maimed over the past two decades.
Going forward, Guerini said Italia's commitment to Afghanistan would remain strong but in other forms, ``beginning with the strengthening of development cooperation and support for Afghan institutions.''
Georgia's last troops returned home on Monday, while Romania brought home its remaining 140 troops on Saturday, when Norway also pulled out. Troops from Denmark, Estonia and the Netherlands also returned home last week. Spain withdrew its last troops on May 13, Sweden on May 25, and Belgium on June 14. The small contingents deployed by Portugal, the Czech Republic, Slovenia, Finland, Albania, North Macedonia and Luxembourg have all left as well.
The pullout is nearing its end as security in Afghanistan worsens. Since May 1, when the withdrawal began, the Taliban have overrun district after district, including key ones along major transportation routes. Many have fallen after Afghan soldiers surrendered, often being convinced to leave their post by elders. But elsewhere there have been bitter military battles, with Afghan troops sometimes losing when their positions could not be resupplied.
The U.S. military commander in Afghanistan, Gen. Austen S. Miller, meanwhile, expressed concern about the resurrection of militias, which were deployed to help the beleaguered national security forces but have a brutal reputation for widespread killing.
``A civil war is certainly a path that can be visualized if this continues on the trajectory it's on right now, that should be of concern to the world,'' he said.
At a ceremony last week to mark the official end of the Dutch deployment, Dutch Defense Minister Ank Bijleveld-Schouten underscored the uncertain outlook.
``We see reports of the rise of the Taliban, growing violence, also in areas where we were stationed,'' she said. ``A lot has been achieved but we must be realistic: The results are not irreversible.''