The final U.S. military planes left Kabul on Monday, military officials said, capping a frantic two-week evacuation effort and ending the longest war in American history.
Gen. Kenneth F. McKenzie, the head of U.S. Central Command, said the final American aircraft left the Afghan capital just before 3:30 p.m., just hours ahead of President Biden’s self-imposed Aug. 31 withdrawal deadline.
Several hundred American citizens are believed to still be in the country, which is now under the control of the Islamist Taliban, which ascended to power on Aug. 15 after the rapid collapse of the U.S.-backed Afghan government.