Afghan crisis: US drone strikes vehicle with 'bombers' on way to airport

US President warns second Kabul airport terror attack likely in hours

A US airstrike Sunday targeted a vehicle carrying “multiple suicide bombers” from Afghanistan's Islamic State affiliate before they could target the ongoing American military evacuation at Kabul's international airport, officials said.
 
There were few initial details about the incident, as well as a rocket that struck a neighborhood just northwest of the airport, killing a child. The two strikes initially appeared to be separate incidents, though information on both remained scarce.
 
The strike came as the United States winds down a historic airlift that saw tens of thousands evacuated from Kabul's international airport, the scene of much of the chaos that engulfed the Afghan capital since the Taliban took over two weeks ago. After an Islamic State affiliate's suicide attack that killed over 180 people, the Taliban increased its security around the airfield as Britain ended its evacuation flights Saturday.

 

US military cargo planes continued their runs into the airport Sunday, ahead of a Tuesday deadline earlier set by President Joe Biden to withdraw all troops from America's longest war. However, Afghans remaining behind in the country worry about the Taliban reverting to their earlier oppressive rule — something fueled by the recent shooting death of a folk singer in the country by the insurgents.
 
Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid earlier said in a message to journalists that the US strike targeted a suicide bomber as he drove a vehicle loaded with explosives. Mujahid offered few other details.
 

Two American military officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss military operations, called the airstrike successful. They said the strike caused “significant secondary explosions” indicating the presence of a substantial amount of explosive material in the vehicle.
 
US President Joe Biden warned that conditions in Kabul during the final days of the US evacuation remain “extremely dangerous” and said his military commanders informed him during a briefing late on Saturday morning that an another attack is “highly likely in the next 24-36 hours.”
 
“I directed them to take every possible measure to prioritize force protection, and ensured that they have all the authorities, resources and plans to protect our men and women on the ground,” Biden said.

 
Americans were also told to leave the vicinity of Kabul airport immediately following a “specific, credible threat,” the US embassy in Afghanistan said in a statement, telling citizens to avoid traveling to the airport and avoid all gates.
 
Thirteen US military personnel were killed and 18 other American service members were wounded in a suicide bombing Thursday outside the gates of the Kabul airport, where the US has been running its evacuation operation. On Friday, the US launched a retaliatory strike that killed two members of ISIS-K, the Islamic State offshoot that has claimed responsibility for the attack.

 
Biden said the operation was led by US Central Command leader Kenneth McKenzie and that it “was not the last” against the group responsible for the airport bombing.
 
“We will continue to hunt down any person involved in that heinous attack and make them pay,” Biden said.
 
Despite the threat of another terror attack, Biden said his military commanders had assured him they had plans to protect Americans on the ground and could complete the evacuation and drawdown missions.
 
As of Saturday, the US had facilitated the evacuation of about 113,500 people since the Taliban swept to control of Afghanistan on August 14. Earlier, an additional 350 US citizens have told the State Department they are still seeking to leave the country.

 
The US strike against members of ISIS-K injured a third member of the group, though Defense Department spokesman John Kirby said the strike didn’t “get us in the clear” and described the threat from the group as “still active.”
 
While Kirby said ISIS-K “lost some capability to plan and conduct missions,” a US official said Friday night that the primary target of the attack didn’t have a direct link to Thursday’s assault in Kabul.
 
The official, who was granted anonymity to discuss the operation, said the target was killed by a Reaper drone while traveling in a vehicle. Kirby declined to name the people targeted or elaborate on their roles.

 
The latest strike marks at least the third time the Reaper, built by privately-held General Atomics, has been used in a high-profile attack. A Reaper firing laser-guided Hellfire missiles was used in a nighttime November 2015 attack in Syria that killed Islamic State terrorist Mohammed Emwazi, known as Jihadi John.
 
More recently, a Reaper fired two Hellfires during a night attack outside Baghdad International Airport in January 2020 that killed Iranian general Qassem Soleimani just after he arrived in Iraq.