Afghanistan Times
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KABUL – The United States Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has announced that the U.S. Department of Defense is conducting a sweeping review of the chaotic 2021 withdrawal from Afghanistan, vowing it will result in “accountability.” However, critics are questioning whether the review will address deeper failures of America’s longest war — or merely focus on its final days.
The withdrawal, marked by a deadly suicide bombing at Kabul airport that killed 13 U.S. troops and 170 Afghans, closed a 20-year conflict that cost over 2,000 American lives. But questions linger: What does accountability truly mean, and who — if anyone — will be held responsible?
The review, which notably excludes the broader conduct of the war, comes amid longstanding allegations of systemic deception and mission creep. Former Afghanistan reconstruction watchdog John Sopko told Congress in 2020 that U.S. officials had incentives to distort the truth about progress. Yet, few faced consequences.
Experts and veterans say responsibility spans across administrations, military leadership, Congress, and U.S. allies. Jonathan Schroden, who served with the Afghanistan War Commission, called it “a systemic failure of many organizations and the collective failure of many individuals.”
Despite rare historical precedents of honest military appraisals, skepticism abounds. The U.S. military has often avoided punishing top brass, and some worry this review may follow suit.
Still, the effort raises hopes among some for overdue reckoning — and a clearer path forward.
