President Joe Biden will withdraw all U.S. troops from Afghanistan by Sept. 11, According to sources, Biden is expected to make the official announcement Wednesday. The full withdrawal will happen before or by the 20th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks, extending the May 2021 deadline set by the Trump administration.
The Taliban had threatened an increase in violence should the United States keep armed forces in the country beyond May 1. Sources said that the Biden administration hoped that by setting a new, specific date, it could avoid that violence.
A senior administration official told CNN that U.S. officials told the Taliban that any attack on U.S. troops in the meantime would be met with retaliation. There are currently more than 2,500 U.S. troops in Afghanistan.
