US President Joe Biden had announced on April 14 this year that American and NATO forces would withdraw from Afghanistan after two decades of war. Almost four months later, Taliban forces returned to capture the country with impossible speed.

Foreign powers have still maintained control over Kabul’s airport where evacuations continue, but thousands of Afghan citizens who wish to leave the country are stuck, some desperately clinging on to aircraft as they take off.

With Taliban's capture of the country, and no Western intervention, the United States’ longest war has come to an ignominious end. The retreat has refreshed memories of another great American disaster, the fall of Saigon.

The Saigon story

Saigon was the capital city of South Vietnam during the Vietnam War. It was later renamed Ho Chi Minh City after the communist leader who led North Vietnam.

The Vietnam War was fought mainly by a communist North Vietnam against the South Vietnam. The conflict, which lasted 20 years, involved several nations.

The US supported the South Vietnam government to stem the communist influence in that region.

US troops withdrew from South Vietnam in 1973 amid declining domestic support for the war.

In 1975, in a series of lightning fast advances, the North Vietnamese troops took over Saigon. Saigon was not only home to many Americans but also the American embassy.

On April 30, 1975, the city was fully occupied by North Vietnamese forces and the Americans needed to be evacuated immediately. However, landing aircraft proved impossible as the entire city was controlled by the North Vietnamese forces, though they could not directly attack American troops or strike the embassy due to the brokered peace agreement that saw the US withdraw from the war.

Helicopters ran evacuation missions, with over 7,000 people being eventually rescued in hours. Desperate South Vietnamese citizens grabbed onto helicopters hoping to be flown to safety. These heart-wrenching images have dominated the American consciousness for years.

The fall of Kabul

The fall of Kabul, much less bloody but quicker, is being compared to Saigon.

American and NATO forces are officially at peace with the Taliban, so the two forces cannot officially fire at each other.

While the Taliban have promised they will not harm or stop any foreign worker or diplomat from leaving the country, passenger and commercial flights have stopped operations at the Hamid Karzai Airport in Kabul.

While desperate Afghan citizens are trying to flee persecution, the only Afghans to be evacuated are those whom various governments are willing to rescue -- social activists, local allies, and those at risk of retaliation from the Taliban.

Several people have been killed at the airport. Foreign governments have sent additional troops to secure the airport and keep the crowds under control.

Just like Saigon, the US and its allies are abandoning the people of Afghanistan to a fate that many fear despite repeated promises that the nation would not be abandoned.

(Edited by : Shoma Bhattacharjee)

First Published:Aug 17, 2021 5:31 PM IST