Alla inlägg den 27 december 2014

Av loren adams - 27 december 2014 12:14

  KANEOHE BAY: President Barack Obama in a Christmas Day speech to US troops stationed in Hawaii hailed their “extraordinary dedication and sacrifices,” as Nato prepares to wrap up its combat mission in Afghanistan. 

After a morning of exchanging gifts with family members during their annual year-end vacation in his birth state, the president and First Lady Michelle Obama paid a visit late on Thursday to a Marine Corps base in Hawaii. 

As service members and their families tucked into a dinner of lobster, turkey, green beans, yams and other traditional Christmas Day fare, the president took the microphone to thank them for “extraordinary service” that he said has allowed the United States to hand responsibility for security to Afghan forces. 

“We’ve been in continuous war now for over 13 years. Next week we will be ending our combat mission in Afghanistan,” Obama told the crowd, to cheers and applause. 

“Because of the extraordinary service of the men and women in the armed forces, Afghanistan has a chance to rebuild its own country. We are safer. It’s not going to be a source of terrorist attacks again,” he said. 

Nato’s combat mission ends on Dec.31, although some troops will remain to support the Afghan army and police who have taken on responsibility for suppressing worsening violence nationwide. 

Flags were lowered at Kabul airport earlier this month as the US-led Nato force in Afghanistan marked the closure of its combat command centre. 

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