The United States left Bagram Air Base in the dead of night, and did not tell the new Afghan commander

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BAGRAM, Afghanistan – The United States left Afghanistan’s Bagram airport after nearly 20 years by cutting off the electricity and slipping away at night without notifying the new Afghan commander of al-Qaeda, who discovered the Americans’ departure more than two hours after their departure, Afghan military officials said.

The Afghan military reviewed the sprawling air base on Monday, providing a rare first glimpse into what was the epicenter of the US war to bring down the Taliban and hunt down al-Qaeda perpetrators in the September 11 attacks on America.

Explosion walls and some buildings can be seen at Bagram Air Base after the US military left the base, in Parwan province north of Kabul, Afghanistan, on Monday, July 5, 2021.

The United States announced Friday that it has completely evacuated its largest airport in the country ahead of a final withdrawal that the Pentagon says will be completed by the end of August.

General Mir Asadollah Kohistani, the new commander of Bagram said.

US military spokesman Col. Sonny Leggett did not address the specific complaints made by the many Afghan soldiers who inherited the abandoned airport, instead referring to a statement last week.

The statement said the handover was underway shortly after President Joe Biden announced in mid-April that America was withdrawing its last troops. In the statement, Leggett said they coordinated their departure with Afghanistan’s leaders.

Before the Afghan army could take control of the airport, about an hour’s drive from the Afghan capital, Kabul, it was invaded by a small army of looters, who looted barracks after barracks and dug into huge storage tents before driving them out, according to Afghan military officials. .

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“We initially thought they might have been Taliban,” said Abdul Raouf, a 10-year-old soldier. He said the United States called from the Kabul airport and said, “We are here at the Kabul airport.”

Kohistani insisted that the Afghan security and defense forces could hold on to the heavily fortified base despite the Taliban’s string of battlefield victories. The airport also houses a prison that holds about 5,000 prisoners, many of whom are allegedly Taliban.

The recent increase in the Taliban comes with the withdrawal of the last US and NATO forces from the country. As of last week, most NATO soldiers have already quietly left. It is likely that the last US soldiers will remain until the conclusion of an agreement to protect Kabul Hamid Karzai International Airport.

Meanwhile, in northern Afghanistan, district after district fell into the hands of the Taliban. In just the past two days, hundreds of Afghan soldiers have fled across the border into Tajikistan rather than fight the insurgents.

“In battle, you are sometimes a step forward and some steps back,” Kohistani said.

Kohistani said the Afghan army is changing its strategy to focus on strategic areas. He insisted that they would take them back in the coming days, without explaining how this would be achieved.

Afghan army soldiers stand guard after the US military leaves Bagram Air Base, in Parwan province north of Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, July 5, 2021 (AP)

On display on Monday was a massive facility, the size of a small city, that was used exclusively by the United States and NATO. The sheer size is extraordinary, with roads woven through barracks and former hangar-like buildings. There are two runways and more than 100 parking spaces for combat aircraft known as craters due to the blast walls that protect each aircraft. One of these two runways is 12,000 feet long and was built in 2006. There is a passenger terminal, a 50-bed hospital, and huge hangar-sized tents filled with supplies such as furniture.

Kohistani said the United States left behind 3.5 million pieces, all detailed by the late US military. They include tens of thousands of bottles of water, energy drinks and military takeaways known as MRE’s.

“When you say 3.5 million items,” he said, “it means every little thing, like every phone, every doorknob, every window in every barracks, every door in every barracks.”

Expensive items left behind include thousands of civilian vehicles, many without keys to start them, and hundreds of armored vehicles. Kohistani said the United States also left behind small arms and ammunition, but the departing forces took heavy weapons with them. Weapon ammunition left for the Afghan army was detonated before they left.

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Afghan soldiers who on Monday toured around the base that once housed up to 100,000 US troops were highly critical of how the US left Bagram, leaving at night without telling Afghan soldiers assigned to patrol the ocean.

“In one night they lost all goodwill for 20 years to leave as they did, at night, without telling the Afghan soldiers who were outside patrolling the area,” said Afghan soldier Nimatullah, who asked that only one name be used. .

Rauf, a soldier who served in Taliban strongholds in Helmand and Kandahar provinces, said that within 20 minutes of the US silent departure on Friday, the electricity had been cut and the base was plunged into darkness.

He said that the sudden darkness was a signal to a small army of thieves. They entered from the north, smashing the first barrier, looting buildings and loading anything not nailed into trucks.

On Monday, three days after leaving the US, Afghan soldiers were still collecting piles of rubbish that included empty water bottles, cans and empty energy drinks left behind by looters.

Meanwhile, Kohistani said the US and NATO involvement in Afghanistan for nearly 20 years is appreciated, but now is the time for the Afghans to step up.

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“We have to solve our problem. We have to secure our country and once again build our country with our own hands,” he said.

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