Four-star general ousted by Pete Hegseth gets standing ovation on his farewell

Army General Christopher Donahue on Thursday relinquished command of U.S. Army Europe and Africa in Wiesbaden, Germany, after he was reportedly ousted by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth last month. On his final walkout, Donahue got a hero's goodbye with soldiers and family members sending him off with a standing ovation, applause, and love. Even after his farewell, the Army and Pentagon are yet to give a reason for his sudden departure. 

The general, who is widely known as the last soldier to leave Afghanistan, spent most of his Army career in the secretive world of U.S. military special operations, first as an Army Ranger and later as a commando in the elite Delta Force. He was widely seen as a rising star in the Army, but he left his most recent role after just 18 months. "I love this team; it has been the honor of a lifetime to be a part of it. I'm proud of what we built, and I have absolute confidence in what you will build next," Donahue said during the relinquishment of command ceremony. Clips of his astonishing send-off have since gone viral on X. 

Donahue led the 82nd Airborne Division during the evacuation of Kabul and is regarded as the last soldier to leave Afghanistan, with the night-vision photo of him stepping onto the final C-17 becoming a defining image of the war. He is now set to be replaced by his deputy, Maj. Gen. Christopher Norrie, in an acting capacity until President Trump names a successor. Donahue was nominated by former President Biden.

Donahue's departure comes amid sweeping leadership changes at the Pentagon, with Hegseth removing or replacing at least a dozen senior leaders since last year. At the same time, the U.S. military is also reassessing its footprint in Europe, as President Donald Trump has pushed to pull American troops from the continent as he clashes with NATO. While military leaders can retire of their own accord, it is believed that Donahue's decision to do so, after just 18 months in his position, was not voluntary. CBS News, citing insider sources, reported that the general left as he "earned the ire of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth," while The Atlantic claimed his departure was "the latest casualty" in Hegseth's "purge of the military's senior ranks."

Even some GOP lawmakers were divided on the issue, with Republican Sen. Thom Tillis hammering Hegseth for making another "unforced" error. The lawmaker, who has ramped up criticism of the Trump administration since announcing his retirement, accused Hegseth of leading the Pentagon with "bro-culture bravado rather than restraint, humility and careful stewardship of the finest fighting force in the world." 

In his post on X, Tillis added that strong leaders are not threatened by accomplished commanders, but the weak ones are, and Hegseth's "paranoid micromanagement of senior military leaders and promotion lists is pure insecurity dressed up as reform." He further alleged that the Defense Secretary was more interested in purging people he perceives as disloyal to the President than "empowering proven patriots who can actually lead."