WASHINGTON - US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth on Tuesday ordered the Pentagon to launch a comprehensive review of the US withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021.

In a memo, Hegseth said that the Department of Defense had a duty to investigate the operation, which he described as catastrophic. The withdrawal culminated in the deaths of 13 US service members in a suicide bombing at the Kabul airport.

"This remains an important step toward regaining faith and trust with the American people and all those who wear the uniform and is prudent based on the number of casualties and equipment lost during the execution of this withdrawal operation," the memo read.

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The withdrawal, which ended nearly 20 years of American military presence in Afghanistan, was overseen by then President Joe Biden and his national security team in August 2021. An ISIS-linked suicide bomber targeted the Kabul airport during the final days of the withdrawal, killing American troops and Afghans.

Hegseth called the withdrawal "disastrous and embarrassing."

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Both Hegseth and President Donald Trump have repeatedly criticized the Biden administration's handling of the exit.