Dutch military mission to Afghanistan ends

The Dutch role is being taken over by American and Australian soldiers. No senior Dutch military staff or politicians attended the ceremony, news agency ANP reported.

Most of the 1,400 Dutch soldiers who were stationed in the southern province of Uruzgan have now left. The rest are preparing equipment to be brought back to the Netherlands.

In total 24 Dutch soldiers were killed and 140 injured in the four years the Netherlands has been part of the Nato mission.

In a letter to soldiers, foreign minister Maxime Verhagen said he had been impressed by the professionalism shown by Dutch soldiers. 'The Netherlands has taken its reponsibility and put its shoulders to the task of rebuilding Afghanistan and making it safe,' he said.