This may be behind a paywall.
https://www.theatlantic.com/national-security/2026/06/army-general-pentagon-hegseth/687675/
General Chris C. D. Donahue was the last U.S. soldier to leave Afghanistan during the chaotic 2021 withdrawal. As the head of Army forces in Europe and Africa, he has helped bolster Ukraine in its fight to repel the Russian invasion. Now Donahue has become the latest casualty in Defense Secretary Pete Hegseths purge of the militarys senior ranks.
Donahues abrupt departure, after just 18 months in his role, is another sign of the upheaval. He was widely seen as one of the Armys rising starsa legendary Delta Force leader who was considered a top candidate for Army chief of staff or even chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staffhaving distinguished himself in wars of the past two decades. But Hegseth has sought to oust anyone who doesnt fit his idea of a military leader, including those involved in the calamitous American exit from Kabul under President Bidenno matter how well they performed there. Donahue is expected to announce as soon as tomorrow that he will be relinquishing his post later this summer, two people familiar with the matter told us.
A career Ranger and Special Operations commander, Donahue served in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Syria, climbing through the ranks during two decades of counterterrorism wars. As the U.S. military shifted its focus from hunting terrorist networks to preparing for conflicts against technologically sophisticated adversaries, Donahue did as well. In recent years, he took on a top role in Europe as the Pentagon adapted lessons from Ukraine and other modern battlefields. His departure continues the exit of a generation of combat-tested leaders at a time when Hegseth is reshaping the militarys senior ranks under a banner of less generals, more GIs.
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I retired from the Army in April 1995 after 28 years, one tour in Vietnam. Hegseth is not fit to carry Donahue's jock strap. I'll just leave it at that.