Operation Enduring Freedom Fast Facts

CNN Editorial Research

Updated 2058 GMT (0458 HKT) October 4, 2020

A US soldier puts a blanket on a detainee during a mission in southeast Afghanistan in 2004. American troops went to fight in Afghanistan following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. The combat mission, code-named Operation Enduring Freedom, lasted for 13 years until being <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2014/12/28/politics/obama-afghanistan-end-of-combat/" target="_blank">brought to an end</a> in December 2014. Thousands of American troops are still in the country, however, as part of the NATO effort to train and advise Afghan security forces. Some US forces are also carrying out counterterrorism missions in the country.
Photos: Afghanistan: America's longest war
A US soldier puts a blanket on a detainee during a mission in southeast Afghanistan in 2004. American troops went to fight in Afghanistan following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. The combat mission, code-named Operation Enduring Freedom, lasted for 13 years until being brought to an end in December 2014. Thousands of American troops are still in the country, however, as part of the NATO effort to train and advise Afghan security forces. Some US forces are also carrying out counterterrorism missions in the country.
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In this image taken from video, US President George W. Bush addresses the nation from the White House on October 7, 2001. He announced that US and British forces had begun airstrikes on Taliban and al Qaeda targets in Afghanistan. The United States linked the Sept. 11 attacks to al Qaeda, a group that operated under the protection of the Taliban regime in Afghanistan. The military operation was launched to stop the Taliban from providing a safe haven to al Qaeda and to stop al Qaeda's use of Afghanistan as a base for terrorist activities.
Photos: Afghanistan: America's longest war
In this image taken from video, US President George W. Bush addresses the nation from the White House on October 7, 2001. He announced that US and British forces had begun airstrikes on Taliban and al Qaeda targets in Afghanistan. The United States linked the Sept. 11 attacks to al Qaeda, a group that operated under the protection of the Taliban regime in Afghanistan. The military operation was launched to stop the Taliban from providing a safe haven to al Qaeda and to stop al Qaeda's use of Afghanistan as a base for terrorist activities.
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Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden is seen at an undisclosed location in this television image broadcast on October 7, 2001. Bin Laden praised God for the Sept. 11 attacks and swore America "will never dream of security" until "the infidel's armies leave the land of Muhammad."