Monday morning, the last of American and British troops left Camps Leatherneck and Bastion in Afghanistan's Helmand province. As we've reported, this is a big deal symbolically, because Helmand saw some of the bloodiest fighting of the 13-year American-led war.
Over at Parallels, NPR's Sean Carberry takes a look at the big picture, asking, "With Marines gone, can the Afghan army hold off the Taliban?"
Here we'll leave you some images from the day:
![Marines onboard a helicopter at Kandahar Air Field upon the end of operations for the Marines and British combat troops in Helmand. Marines onboard a helicopter at Kandahar Air Field upon the end of operations for the Marines and British combat troops in Helmand.](http://media.npr.org/assets/img/2014/10/27/29768961_h32790688_custom-3c4983c4dcc9ab0b759f5bfdeab2a0527f64c298-s1000.jpg)
Marines onboard a helicopter at Kandahar Air Field upon the end of operations for the Marines and British combat troops in Helmand.
![CH-53E and Chinook helicopters with U.S. Marines take off from Camp Bastion in Helmand province, on Monday. CH-53E and Chinook helicopters with U.S. Marines take off from Camp Bastion in Helmand province, on Monday.](http://media.npr.org/assets/img/2014/10/27/29768961_h32790703_custom-42c2427b614754849dccacdee922013e7e577049-s1000.jpg)
CH-53E and Chinook helicopters with U.S. Marines take off from Camp Bastion in Helmand province, on Monday.
![U.S. Marines sit inside the cargo hold of a C-130J Super Hercules transport aircraft headed to Kandahar. U.S. Marines sit inside the cargo hold of a C-130J Super Hercules transport aircraft headed to Kandahar.](http://media.npr.org/assets/img/2014/10/27/457941120_custom-1ba7490bb0a1a1bd7d2592efaaa13fd2dd63d383-s1000.jpg)
U.S. Marines sit inside the cargo hold of a C-130J Super Hercules transport aircraft headed to Kandahar.
![A U.S. Marine unloads ammunition from a rifle magazine into his helmet after arriving in Kandahar from Camps Leatherneck-Bastion on Monday. A U.S. Marine unloads ammunition from a rifle magazine into his helmet after arriving in Kandahar from Camps Leatherneck-Bastion on Monday.](http://media.npr.org/assets/img/2014/10/27/457943718_custom-9bb013a8f3466a7f3cdd93274c3a548c4319aa74-s1000.jpg)
A U.S. Marine unloads ammunition from a rifle magazine into his helmet after arriving in Kandahar from Camps Leatherneck-Bastion on Monday.
![](http://www.google-analytics.com/__utm.gif?utmac=UA-5828686-4&utmdt=In+Photos%3A+Last+Of+U.S.%2C+British+Troops+Leave+Afghanistan%27s+Helmand+Province&utme=8(APIKey)9(MDE1MTIxMDg0MDE0MDQ3NTY3MzkzMzY1NA001))
300x250 Ad
300x250 Ad