After 20 years, the United States military has left Bagram Airfield in Afghanistan, turning the base that was the epicenter of American military involvement over to the Afghan defense forces, the Associated Press reports.
Originally a relic of the Cold War, the airfield was built by Afghans with the assistance of the US in the 1950s. It was the initial point of landing for Soviet troops during its invasion of Afghanistan in 1979 and used throughout its occupation of Afghanistan that ended in 1989.
US forces upgraded the runways to more than two miles in length on the 38,000 acre facility. Located 40 miles north of Kabul, it was the central staging point for military operations in the region, including the mission that led to the elimination of Osama bin Laden.
After the final US forces left the base overnight, local looters entered the base, scavenging for anything of value. “They were stopped and some have been arrested and the rest have been cleared from the base,” Afghanistan’s district administrator for Bagram, Darwaish Raufi, said. “Unfortunately the Americans left without any coordination with Bagram district officials or the governor’s office. Right now our Afghan security forces are in control both inside and outside of the base.”