New Zealand to withdraw last few troops from Afghanistan by May

FILE PHOTO: Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern addresses supporters at a Labour Party event in Wellington, New Zealand, October 11, 2020. REUTERS/Praveen Menon

WELLINGTON (Reuters) - New Zealand said on Wednesday that it will withdraw its last remaining troops from Afghanistan by May, concluding the country's longest running deployment of military personnel, which has lasted two decades.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said New Zealand had deployed more than 3,500 defence and other agency personnel to the country since the U.S.-led invasion in 2001, with 10 New Zealanders killed in the line of duty.