America’s longest war, the two-decade-long conflict in Afghanistan that began in response to the September 11 attacks, killed tens of thousands of people and dogged four US presidents.

During the war, the United States initiated a series of attacks against Al-Qaeda, the terrorist group responsible for the fall of the Twin Towers, and propped up the Karzai government. Even with the massive cost of funding, the White House struggled to control the conflict in Afghanistan. It took a nearly failed democratic government, a staggering $2.26 trillion in military funding, and four US presidents for America to realize that they had stayed for too long.

Photo: Combat Outpost Jalrez, Afghanistan, 05.11.2010, photo by Sgt. Russell Gilchrest