US Kabul airstrike targets suicide bomber

The US has carried out a drone strike against a vehicle threatening the Kabul airport that had been linked to the regional Islamic State chapter, spokesperson for US Central Command has said.

In what appeared to be a separate incident on Sunday, a rocket struck a neighbourhood just northwest of the airport, killing a child.

“US military forces conducted a self-defense unmanned over-the-horizon airstrike today on a vehicle in Kabul, eliminating an imminent ISIS-K threat” to Hamid Karzai International airport, said Bill Urban, a spokesman for the US command (CENTCOM).

“Significant secondary explosions from the vehicle indicated the presence of a substantial amount of explosive material,” he said, adding that there were “no indications at this time” of civilian casualties.

The US warned of a “specific, credible threat” near Kabul airport as its forces rush to complete evacuations from Afghanistan by the August 31 deadline and the Taliban prepares to take charge of the key airfield.

In a security alert, the US embassy in Kabul warned of an attack in specific areas of Kabul airport, including its access gates, as US President Joe Biden told reporters in Washington, DC, his commanders informed him another “attack is highly likely in the next 24-36 hours”.

Many Afghan civilians and 13 US soldiers were killed on Thursday in a suicide bombing at Kabul airport. The attack was claimed by the Islamic State in Khorasan Province, ISKP (ISIS-K).

Two senior US officials told Reuters news agency the US believes it was a successful strike and that the intended target was hit.

One US official said the strike was carried out by an unmanned aircraft piloted from outside Afghanistan.

Two witnesses said the blast appeared to have been caused by a rocket that hit a house in an area to the northern side of the airport but there was no immediate confirmation.

Source: Al Jazeera