The U.S. general leading the war in Afghanistan, Austin Miller, relinquished command at a ceremony on Monday and quietly left the country, a symbolic end to America's longest conflict while Taliban insurgents gain momentum.
Miller, America's last four-star commander to serve on the ground in Afghanistan, climbed aboard a helicopter and lifted off from the military base in Kabul that long had been the nerve center for the two-decade-old war effort.
President Joe Biden has set a formal end to the U.S. military mission for Aug. 31 as he looks to disengage from a conflict triggered by al Qaeda's attacks on the United States on Sept. 11, 2001.