In Symbolic End to War, US General Departs Afghanistan

U.S. General Austin Miller (L) shakes hand with Afghan Defense Minister Bismillah Khan Mohammadi, at a ceremony in Kabul, as Miller relinquishes command during the final phase of America's withdrawal from the war in Afghanistan, on July 12, 2021. Phil Stewart/Reuters

KABUL —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 terrorists 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.