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The Guardian - US
The Guardian - US
World
Julian Borger in Washington

US withdrawal triggered catastrophic defeat of Afghan forces, damning watchdog report finds

Ashraf Ghani Taliban Joe Biden Donald Trump United States Afghanistan
Afghan security forces training in Herat, Afghanistan, 21 April 2021.
Afghan security forces training in Herat, Afghanistan, in April 2021. Photograph: Jalil Rezayee/EPA

Afghan armed forces collapsed last year because they had been made dependent on US support that was abruptly withdrawn in the face of a Taliban offensive, according to a scathing assessment by a US government watchdog.

A report by the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (Sigar) on the catastrophic defeat that led to the fall of Kabul on 15 August, blamed the administrations of Donald Trump and Joe Biden as well as the Afghan government of Ashraf Ghani.

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