US panel reviews nine million documents on Afghanistan withdrawal collapse

ISLAMABAD: A US panel investigating the 2021 Afghanistan withdrawal has reviewed nine million documents on the collapse, roughly 3,000 times more than the previous government inquiry, according to a statement published by the US Department of War.

The Afghanistan Withdrawal Special Review Panel has completed interviews with dozens of senior military and civilian leaders, the department reported on its website. Panel chairman Sean Parnell said the inquiry is the most “comprehensive military after-action review” in modern history.

A prior review commissioned under former Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin examined approximately 3,000 documents. The statement said that review was over-classified at the highest levels, keeping critical information from public scrutiny.

US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth established the panel at the direction of President Donald Trump. Among those interviewed were General Mark A. Milley, retired former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Kenneth F McKenzie Jr, the retired former Commander of US Central Command, and General Austin S. Miller, the retired former Commander of US Forces–Afghanistan.

Also interviewed was General Christopher T. Donahue. A Pentagon image distributed by AFP showed Donahue as the last US service member to board the final departing aircraft when US forces left Kabul airport on August 30, 2021.

AFP reported Taliban fighters entered the airport immediately after and declared Afghanistan had achieved “full independence.”

The withdrawal involved an 18-day airlift that evacuated more than 122,000 people, as reported by AFP. Correspondents on the ground described panic and pandemonium as thousands flooded the airport perimeter.

EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said it was “mathematically impossible” to evacuate all eligible Afghan personnel before the deadline.

A confidential UN threat assessment obtained by AFP indicated Taliban forces conducted targeted door-to-door visits to identify individuals who had worked with US forces, despite public promises of amnesty.

According to the US Department of War's statement, the panel is now integrating its documentary record and preparing findings. The final report is to be delivered to the Defense Secretary and the public in the coming months.