We will never forget.
Sept. 11, 2001, will always be remembered. Some of us may recall listening to the radio and watching the Twin Towers crumbling to ashes as 2,753 lives were taken after hijacked flights 11 and 175 intentionally crashed into the North and South towers.
That night, President George W. Bush addressed the nation: “America and our friends and allies join with all those who want peace and security in the world. And we stand together to win the war against terrorism.”
This is what started the war against the Taliban.
Within a month of the attacks, Operation Enduring Freedom began Oct. 7, 2001. It involved air strikes on Taliban and al-Qaida forces, including the search for Osama Bin Laden. The operation’s purpose was to stop the Taliban from providing a safe haven to al-Qaida and end the latter group’s use of Afghanistan as a base for terrorist activities. As this operation developed, countries such as Germany, Italy, Netherlands, France and England became involved by sending thousands of troops to Afghanistan to aid the United States Army.
Many Americans were fueled by patriotism after the attack that September morning, and enlistments rose all around the U.S. as thousands joined to fight in the war against terrorism.
Since 2001, more than 2 million people have been sent to Iraq and Afghanistan. Nearly 6,000 soldiers have been killed and 52,000 declared wounded in action. Many of the soldiers who returned after their tour of duty suffered post-traumatic stress, major depression or traumatic brain injuries.
The war that started as a strong fight against terror with avid supporters quickly seemed to become a conflict that many American citizens were tired of hearing about and soon frowned upon.
On May 2, 2011, a United States Navy SEAL team killed bin Laden in Abbotabad, Pakistan, and NATO leaders endorsed an exit strategy for withdrawing forces just one year later.
President Barack Obama and Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel each issued statements proclaiming the termination of the combat mission in Afghanistan in December 2014 after 13 years of action.
With American troops being brought back home, the ones who remained had to help Afghan troops transition into defending themselves. What seemed to go unnoticed was that even though America had spent so long at war, the Taliban was not exactly packing up and going home. The enemy stayed together and, as many assumed, made a comeback after the U.S. and its allies went home.
With crises like those in Iraq and Syria dominating the White House’s foreign policy agenda, many fear that Obama and his administration will lose sight of Afghanistan and everything that has happened since Sept. 11.
The 1 percent who volunteered to serve in the armed forces and their families are some of the few Americans who still vividly remember these 13 years and the graphic details endured. They remember the pain, the struggles and the efforts. However, apart from this low percentage, everyone else seems to be trying to forget the long war that brought so much tragedy, ignoring what is currently happening with ISIS and America’s focus on new threats.
It sounds like the Bush administration all over again, when the White House and Congress wanted a war and the media were more than happy to cover it. The Obama administration recently submitted a draft war authorization against ISIS, according to an article in the New York Times written by Peter Baker.
Baker recently stated on CBS: “[The authorization] is not going to change what’s happening on the ground. President Obama has made clear whether it passes or not, he’s going to continue to do the exact same thing.”
Even though the United States has no actual reason to go to war, the president and Congress have found loopholes that have our country heading into a new conflict and the media seem to be getting all of us ready for what is to come in this new battle against ISIS.
A new war may be on the horizon, but we can’t just forget about the 13 years we went through and all the brave men and women who served our country, and simply flip the page to something new.
We can’t forget those who enlisted soon after 9/11 and learned to cope with trauma, heartbreak and the fading public interest with the fight in the Middle East.