US watchdog blames Washington, Ghani for the fall of Kabul

Taliban supporters rejoice on the first anniversary of the fall of Kabul on a street in Kabul, Afghanistan on August 15, 2022 [File: Ali Khara/Reuters]

The United States sought to build “stable, democratic, accountable” Afghan governance institutions, but it ultimately failed, the Office of the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) concluded in a report published on Wednesday.

SIGAR pointed the finger at the US but also laid blame on former Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, who it said governed through “a highly selective, narrow circle of loyalists, destabilising the government at a critical juncture”.