US Armys commanding general of forces in Europe, Africa stepping down at Hegseths request
The US Army’s commanding general of forces in Europe and Africa is stepping down after roughly a year and a half at the coveted post, Fox News has confirmed.Gen.Christopher Donahue — who also leads NATO’s Allied Land Command — will relinquish his command on July 2, according to a statement from the Army.
Donahue’s deputy, Maj.Gen.
Christopher Norrie, will take over his duties after July 2.Donahue submitted his retirement papers at the request of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who has sought to shrink the number of generals and prioritize adding new GI’s.He is the latest military leader of more than two dozen to leave or retire early under Hegseth’s leadership.“The Army thanks Gen.
Donahue for his leadership of US Army Europe and Africa,” the Army said in a statement provided to Fox News.Donahue is best known as the last US soldier to leave Afghanistan in August 2021, marking the end of America’s nearly 20-year war launched after the Sept.11 attacks.
The moment he stepped onto a C-17 cargo plane was captured in an iconic photo taken through night vision goggles.At the time, he was the commander of the 82nd Airborne Division and was brought in to oversee security at Hamid Karzai International Airport during the chaotic withdrawal.The Marines, not Donahue’s forces, were in charge of securing Abbey Gate at the airport, which was attacked by a member of ISIS-K in a suicide bombing that killed 13 US service members and roughly 170 Afghan civilians.Donahue’s leadership of the evacuation, which saw roughly 124,000 Afghan citizens airlifted from the country, drew praise from both Democrats and Republicans, even though the broader withdrawal strategy was criticized as rushed and haphazard.President Donald Trump attacked former President Joe Biden over this for years, and last May, Hegseth ordered a new investigation of the withdrawal following earlier probes of the operation by the Pentagon, US Central Command, the State Department and Co...