Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
Al Mayadeen's correspondent in Lebanon: IOF infiltrate Khallet Wardeh towards the municipality in the town of Aita al-Shaab, south of Lebanon.
Leaders of the United States, Egypt, Qatar, and Turkey sign a ceasefire agreement in Gaza.
Trump arrives in Sharm el-Sheikh
Israeli PM's office: PM informed Trump he would not attend Sharm el-Sheikh Summit on account of Jewish holidays.
Israeli media: Netanyahu makes last-minute decision to cancel trip to Sharm el-Sheikh.
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: Large crowds gather in Khan Younis to welcome the liberated Palestinian detainees, waving flags of Hamas and Islamic Jihad in celebration
Buses of released prisoners arrive in Ramallah
Israeli media: Netanyahu gifts Trump a "Golden Dove".
Israeli media: Netanyahu will take part in Sharm el-Sheikh Summit.
Trump's Air Force One lands in Tel Aviv

White House admits massive intel failure in hasty Afghan withdrawal

  • By Al Mayadeen English
  • Source: Agencies
  • 6 Apr 2023 22:15
  • 1 Shares
4 Min Read

The Biden administration blames the conditions created by Donald Trump for the way the planned 2021 withdrawal turned into a rout.

  • x
  • White House admits massive intel failure in hasty Afghan withdrawal
    US soldiers stand behind barbed wire as Afghans sit on a roadside near the military part of the airport in Kabul on August 20, 2021, Afghanistan (AFP)

The White House on Thursday released a long-awaited review of the hasty August 2021 US withdrawal from Afghanistan, admitting that there had been a massive intelligence failure in not predicting rapid Taliban victory.

"Clearly we didn't get things right" on intelligence, National Security Council Spokesperson John Kirby told reporters after the still classified report was sent to Congress.

But "ending a war, any war, is not an easy endeavor, certainly not after 20 years," Kirby expressed. "It doesn't mean it wasn't worth doing -- ending that war in Afghanistan."

In a declassified summary of the review, the White House blamed conditions created by President Joe Biden's predecessor Donald Trump for the way the planned 2021 withdrawal turned into a rout.

"President Biden’s choices for how to execute a withdrawal from Afghanistan were severely constrained by conditions created by his predecessor," the White House summary stated.

But it also acknowledged that the US intelligence services had failed to understand the strength of the Taliban movement and the weakness of the Afghan government's forces that Western countries had spent years propping up.

The summary claimed that when Biden entered office, "the Taliban were in the strongest military position that they had been in since 2001, controlling or contesting nearly half of the country."

The report insisted that nothing "would have changed the trajectory" of the withdrawal, and "ultimately, President Biden refused to send another generation of Americans to fight a war that should have ended for the United States long ago."

Read more: McCaul launches investigation into Afghanistan pullout decision

Related News

Afghanistan rejects Pakistan’s visit request, cites border tensions

Five killed, 100s injured as Pakistan suppresses pro-Palestine rally

Afghan territories fell 'like dominos'

In the summary, the White House blamed a deal struck previously between Trump's administration and the Taliban for putting the incoming Biden government in an impossible position.

"The departing Trump administration had left the Biden administration with a date for withdrawal, but no plan for executing it. And after four years of neglect -- and in some cases deliberate degradation -- crucial systems, offices, and agency functions that would be necessary for a safe and orderly departure were in disrepair," the document indicated.

"After more than 20 years, more than $2 trillion dollars, and standing up an Afghan army of 300,000 soldiers, the speed and ease with which the Taliban took control of Afghanistan suggests that there was no scenario -- except a permanent and significantly expanded US military presence -- that would have changed the trajectory," it added.

Kirby acknowledged that the US government did not manage to predict "how fast the Taliban were moving across the country" or "the degree to which they were constructing these deals in the hinterlands that kind of fell like dominos."

"We didn't anticipate how fast the Afghan national security forces were going to fold," he said. "I don't think we fully appreciated the degree of corruption that was in the officer ranks in the military."

"America is on a stronger strategic footing more capable to support Ukraine and to meet our security commitments around the world, as well as the competition with China, because it is not fighting a ground war in Afghanistan," Kirby claimed.

It is noteworthy that since the hasty US withdrawal from Afghanistan, Biden has blamed the February 2020 agreement Trump reached with the Taliban in Doha, Qatar.

The agreement has been blamed by analysts for weakening the then-US-backed Afghan government, which would collapse quickly a year later.

The agreement required the US to withdraw all forces by May 1, 2021. But Biden pushed a full withdrawal to September.

Read more: Intercept: US built a dependent Afghan army, setting it up for failure

  • Afghanistan
  • John Kirby
  • Joe Biden
  • Donald Trump
  • white house

Most Read

Palestinian journalist Saleh al-Jaafarawi in an undated image in Gaza, occupied Palestine (Social media)

Gaza Palestinian journalist Saleh al-Jafarawi killed by collaborators

  • Politics
  • 12 Oct 2025
Taylor Swift: The Life of a Showgirl

The Life of a No-Girl: The one verse Taylor Swift refuses to sing

  • Arts and Culture
  • 8 Oct 2025
Ceasefire in Gaza takes effect amid conflicting signals and bombings

Gaza ceasefire takes effect; 'Israel' resumes bombing, timing disputed

  • Politics
  • 9 Oct 2025
Illustration of fists breaking shackles, representing the liberation of Palestinian detainees from Israeli prisons. (Illustrated by: AL Mayadeen English/Batoul Chamas)

4 prominent Palestinian detainees to be freed: Who are they?

  • Palestine
  • 13 Oct 2025

Coverage

All
War on Gaza

Read Next

All
Freed Palestinian prisoners carry rifles as they arrive in the Gaza Strip following their release from Israeli jails, outside Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, Monday, October 13, 2025 (AP)
Politics

Palestinian resistance remains steadfast, victorious Larijani says

Lebanese Army Commander General Rodolphe Laffan inspecting the command structure of the 10th Infantry Brigade in Kfarskhna-Zgharta on October 13, 2025. (Lebanonese Army)
Politics

Lebanese Army chief: Israeli aggression threatens Lebanon's security

Hamas fighters escort buses carrying freed Palestinian prisoners arriving in the Gaza Strip after their release from Israeli jails, in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, Monday, October 13, 2025 (AP)
Politics

154 Palestinian prisoners exiled to Egypt under exchange deal

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrives before US President Donald Trump addresses the Knesset, Israel's parliament, Monday, October 13, 2025 in Occupied Al-Quds. (Kenny Holston/The New York Times via AP, Pool)
Politics

Netanyahu withdraws from Sharm el-Sheikh summit amid regional pushback

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS