US Retaliates in Afghanistan via Drone Strike
According to the US military, two high-ranking members of the terrorist militia Khorasan were killed in the drone attack against IS in Afghanistan.
According to the US military, two high-ranking representatives of the terrorist militia were killed in the US drone attack against an IS branch in Afghanistan. Another person was injured, said Major General William Taylor at the US Department of Defense.
After the unmanned airstrike in Nangarhar province, the US military had previously only stated that they had eliminated a “planner” belonging to the Islamist group IS-Khorasan, but it now appears that another member of the group was eliminated. According to current knowledge, there are no civilian victims, said Taylor.
The attack by the US Army was a reaction to the devastating suicide attack in Kabul, in which more than 150 Afghans and 13 US soldiers were believed to have been killed on Thursday. US President Joe Biden had announced retaliation in a first statement after the attack. He permitted his commanders to attack targets of the Islamist group in Afghanistan shortly afterwards.
It remains to be seen whether those killed in the US attack were directly involved in the attack in Kabul. According to the spokesman for the US Department of Defense, John Kirby, they were masterminds and promoters of the Afghan branch of ISIS. This was reason enough to take action against them.
The US also announced on Saturday that it had initiated the withdrawal of its troops from the airport in Kabul. The process has started, said Kirby. Thousands of people are still waiting at the airport for a chance to leave the country. The US troops are supposed to leave Afghanistan by Tuesday, according to Biden’s will. More than 5,000 US soldiers were still stationed at Kabul Airport on Friday.
Experts assume that the attack that has now taken place against IS-Khorasan will not have been the Americans’ last act of revenge against the terrorist militia.
