Washington, October 16 (RHC)-- U.S. President Barack Obama has announced the United States will halt its military withdrawal from Afghanistan, instead keeping thousands of troops in the country through the end of Obama’s term in 2017.  There are currently 9,800 U.S. troops in Afghanistan.

The new timeline will keep this number in place through 2016, before dropping to about 5,500 troops around early 2017, depending on conditions on the ground.

After 14 years of war, the Taliban now controls more of the country than at any point since the 2001 U.S. invasion.  President Obama had declared an official end to the U.S. combat mission in Afghanistan last year.