‘It was a sacrifice to no avail’: veterans, Gold Star families react to fall of Afghanistan

Over the past two decades, more than 750,000 US military personnel have been deployed to Afghanistan. In the middle of chaos in the country as the United States pulls out, many wonder if their sacrifices have not been wasted.

“I’m about to cry because it’s like we’ve given so much and like that it’s devastated,” said Juan Dominguez, who was a naval corporal when he was sent to the heart of the Taliban. from Helmand province. in 2010.

It was there that his battalion lost 25 men. Dominguez, who lost both legs and an arm, said his thoughts are with the Afghans who helped the Marines and are now at the mercy of the Taliban.

“We apparently turned our backs on them and just prayed, prayed for them because our government did not help them get out of this safe passage,” he said.

Retired Army Col. Dave Brostrom lost his son, Jonathan, at the Battle of Wanat in 2008.

“It’s a shame for this country to leave like this,” Brostrom said. “It’s very disheartening.”

“You know, my son died trying to protect his fellow soldiers, but for the ultimate cause of stabilizing the country and establishing good government, yes, it was a sacrifice that served no purpose,” he said. he said when asked if it seemed like his son died for nothing.

Over the past 20 years, more than 2,400 US servicemen have been killed and 22,000 injured in the war.

Amid criticism of the US pullout and its implementation, President Biden defended his decision Monday. He acknowledged that the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan “went faster than we expected”, but said he would not ask more US servicemen to risk their lives in the process. a conflict which “should have ended a long time ago”.

“I know that my decision will be criticized. But I would rather accept all these criticisms rather than pass this decision on to another president of the United States,” he said. “How many more generations of American daughters and sons would you want me to send to fight the civil war in Afghanistan when Afghan troops would not? How many more American lives is that worth?”