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British forces have definitively left Camp Bastion in Afghanistan's Helmand Province, handing the base over to the Afghan National Army (ANA), the British Ministry of Defense (MoD) announced Monday.
The base was handed over to 215 Corps of the ANA, ending combat operations in the province.
The ministry said British troops and United States Marine Corps personnel, who had been serving under the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF)'s Regional Command (Southwest), redeployed to Kandahar after formally marking the end of combat operations at a ceremony on Sunday.
Helicopters and aircraft from Britain and the United States moved personnel to Kandahar Airfield to prepare for their return home, the MoD said in a statement.
"This is a historic moment for the UK's Armed Forces and we leave with our heads held high. This orderly transition underlines the progress that we have made alongside our allies over the past right years," British Defense Secretary Michael Fallon said.
He noted that British troops have transferred Camp Bastion to the ANA to use alongside their own Camp Shorabak which will "allow them to continue to ensure security and stability in that part of their country."
"In bringing our troops home, our efforts will now focus on the NATO Resolute Support Mission, developing the Afghan security ministries and training the future leaders of the ANA at the Officer Academy in Kabul," he said, proclaiming that "Afghanistan is no longer a safe haven for terrorists."
"Our ISAF partners have fought long and hard in this part of our country. It is now our responsibility to provide security on our own," Major-General Sayed Malouk, Commander 215 Corps of the ANA, was quoted in the MoD statement as saying.
Camp Bastion, built in early 2006, served as the hub of British and coalition forces operations in Helmand Province.
At the height of the British operation, it was the center of a network of 137 bases in the province, all of which have now been handed over to the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) or remediated, the MoD said.
Britain has had a military presence in Afghanistan since October 2001, when troops deployed as part of the NATO response to the Sept. 11 attacks in the United States that year.
The British effort moved to Southern Afghanistan when Task Force Helmand was formed in April 2006 to tackle a growing insurgency in the region, according to the MoD.
The ministry said that British and allied efforts in Helmand set the security context for the development of the ANSF, with recent ISAF operations focusing on training and mentoring Afghan forces.
In June 2013, the 340,000-strong ANSF took full responsibility for security across Afghanistan and since then they have been responsible for 99 percent of operations, it said.
However, some political analysts believe that the forces' withdrawal might encourage Taliban militants to intensify activities in the already volatile Helmand province. Enditem
