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With the U.S set to complete the evacuation of its troops in Afghanistan by 31 Aug, the first half of 2021 saw record levels of civilian casualties.

Between 1 January and 30 June 2021, the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) documented 5,183 civilian casualties (1,659 killed and 3,524 injured), which is 47% higher compared to the first half of 2020, reversing the trend of the past four years of decreasing civilian casualties in the first six months of the year.

At its peak in 2011, the U.S had almost 110,000 troops deployed in Afghanistan and spent $100 billion a year (2010 - 2012). After the U.S, the U.K and Germany had the largest troop presence in Afghanistan, and they spent around $30 billion and $19 billion respectively over the course of the war.

An estimate by Brown University puts the cost of war (for the U.S) since 2001 at $2.2 trillion. The U.S spent $144.9 billion on reconstruction activities alone since 2002 (SIGAR), out of this $88.61 billion was spent on building up Afghan security forces.

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