Defense Secretary Gives Go-Ahead For U.S. Troops To Start Afghan Drawdown

U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper has given the go-ahead to begin a drawdown of American forces in Afghanistan, despite reports that the Taliban is ending a partial ceasefire and has resumed attacks on Afghan forces.Esper his troop withdrawal order to Army Gen. Scott Miller, the U.S. commander in Kabul, is with the Taliban, which calls for such a drawdown to begin within 10 days of its Saturday signing in Doha. "My instruction to the commander was, 'Let's get moving, let's show our full faith and effort to do that,' " Esper told reporters Monday at the Pentagon. "I've said on many occasions that I'm comfortable we can still conduct all the missions we need to conduct at [a force level of] 8,600."Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Mark Milley, who appeared with Esper, was asked about reports of a blast Monday in the eastern Afghan province of Khost that killed three civilians and wounded 11 more. The Taliban responsibility for the Khost explosion, which occurred at a soccer field.