The Pentagon reported that the US military attacked a member of the Islamic State (IS) in Afghanistan with a drone, whom he suspects was an “organizer” of the militia responsible for the double attack near the Kabul airport. In that attack, 13 US servicemen died, in the worst blow received in a decade.
After the double attack on Thursday, the president Joe Biden had promised that he would “hunt down” and “make pay” “wherever” those responsible for the attacks that bloodied the military withdrawal, marked by chaos, improvisation and criticism of the White House decision.
The retaliation occurred east of Kabul against an alleged member of the extremist militia who claimed responsibility for the two attacks, in which a total of around a hundred people died, according to various unofficial versions released by the international press.
The bombardment with an unmanned ship occurred in Nangahar province, Afghanistan. The first reports maintain that the target, “an organizer” of the Afghan branch of IS (Islamic State-Khorasan) died, according to the Pentagon in a statement. The spokesperson said that only one individual was killed in the attack and that no civilian casualties were reported.
After the drone attack, the US embassy in Afghanistan warned its citizens who are still in the country (it is estimated that there are about a thousand) to move away “immediately” from the gates of the airport in Kabul, where they must arrive in order to be evacuated, for fear of new attacks.
Flights from Kabul
Precisely, evacuation flights resumed amid fears of new attacks and shortly before the United States attacked with the drone. Hours before this retaliation, the United States had again warned that there were still “specific and credible threats” of more attacks before next Tuesday, the date set by Biden to complete the withdrawal of troops from his country from Afghanistan. after their defeat with the Taliban in the 20 years of their longest war.
The United States Department of Defense said that Saturday there were still 5,400 people inside the airport and that it will continue its evacuations by air “until the last moment.” So far, evacuees in the last 12 hours have exceeded 4,200, according to the White House.
Dozens of Taliban fighters, with heavy weapons, patrolled an area about 500 meters from the air station to prevent people from passing beyond. Many other Afghans are expected to leave the country through its land borders, and the UN refugee body (UNHCR) said there could be half a million more Afghan refugees this year “in the worst case scenario.”.
Meanwhile, the number of victims of the attacks rose this Saturday at least 97 Afghans killed and 160 wounded, according to what was reported by the Arab news chain Al jazeera. The American News Channel CBS News estimated the dead at 170 and the injured 200, citing a source in the health ministry of the deposed Afghan government.
The United States said on Friday that 13 of its soldiers were also killed and 18 wounded in the bombing, the largest US military loss in Afghanistan since August 2011. The United Kingdom reported that two Britons and the son of a British citizen were among the dead.
Evacuations
In New York, the Security Council, the highest UN body, urged the international community “to cooperate actively with the relevant authorities” to bring the perpetrators of the attack to justice.
The reconquest of power by the Taliban in Afghanistan reached 20 years after his previous government was overthrown by an international invasion led by the United States in the framework of the war “against terrorism” launched after the attacks of September 11, 2001 in that country.
His return to power has terrified many Afghans who fear reprisals for having collaborated or worked for foreign forces or that the Taliban will reimpose the draconian measures that characterized their previous government, when they carried out extrajudicial executions and deprived women of all rights.
Some Western countries have already ended their evacuationsin part to give the United States time to complete its own operations before removing the last 5,000 troops it has in Afghanistan on Tuesday, Aug. 31.
The UK said its evacuations will end in hours, while France announced on Friday night the end of its operation at Kabul airport.
The operation “started on August 15 at the request of the President of the Republic came to an end tonight,” Defense Minister Florence Parly tweeted and specified that “almost 3,000 people, including more than 2,600 Afghans” they were taken out of the country.
Spain and Italy also today ended their operationsas well as Germany, Sweden, New Zealand, Australia and Norway, many of them admitting to leaving people behind, including some 300 German citizens.
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