United States (US) President Joe Biden on Sunday, 29 August, (Saturday evening in the US) warned that another militant attack was highly likely in Kabul.
This warning comes amid US troops’ attempts to exit the Afghanistan capital, after two weeks of chaotic evacuation bids for foreigners and vulnerable Afghans.
According to Guardian, Biden warned that the situation in Kabul "continues to be extremely dangerous, and the threat of terrorist attacks on the airport remains high. Our commanders informed me that an attack is highly likely in the next 24 to 36 hours."
He further added:
“I directed them (US commanders) to take every possible measure to prioritise force protection, and ensured that they have all the authorities, resources and plans to protect our men and women on the ground. They assured me that they did, and that they could take these measures while completing the mission and safely retrograding our personnel.”
WHAT ELSE DID BIDEN SAY?
He also reportedly said that the US drone strike which killed two Islamic State targets, after 13 US troops had died in a bomb blast in Kabul on Thursday, would not be the last of such action.
“This strike was not the last. We will continue to hunt down any person involved in that heinous attack and make them pay. Whenever anyone seeks to harm the United States or attack our troops, we will respond.”US President Joe Biden, as per Guardian
WHAT IS THE PENTAGON SAYING?
Meanwhile, John Kirby, the Pentagon spokesperson, was quoted as saying that while the ISIS-K “have lost some capability to plan and to conduct missions,” following the drone strike, “make no mistake, nobody’s writing this off and saying, ‘Well, we got them. We don’t have to worry about Isis-K any more.’”
That is “not the case” Kirby stated.
As US troops hurtle towards the 31 August deadline for withdrawal from Kabul, the US military has begun to pull out. Reuters has quoted an official as saying that, as of Saturday, there were fewer than 4,000 US troops at the Kabul airport, while there had been 5,800 at the peak of the evacuation.
AND WHAT ABOUT THE TALIBAN?
While the Taliban, which took-over Kabul on 15 August, said they have arrested some suspects involved in Thursday's airport blast, they also condemned the US drone strike. Alleging that a woman and a child were wounded in the attack, a Taliban spokesperson told Reuters:
"The Americans should have informed us before conducting the air strike. It was a clear attack on Afghan territory.”
A spokesperson has also, as per Reuters, said the Taliban would take over the airport "very soon", after US forces pull out. They are also slated to announce a full cabinet soon.
BACKGROUND
The US military forces carried out a drone strike against an Islamic State-Khorasan (IS-K) "planner", a spokesperson for the US Central Command said on Friday, 28 August.
This came a day after after the suicide bombing near Kabul airport killed more than 170 people, including 13 US troops. The ISIS-K, the Islamic State's Afghanistan affiliate, had claimed responsibility for the attack.
In an address following the Kabul attack, US President Joe Biden had said, "To those who carried out this attack, as well as anyone who wishes America harm, know this: We will not forgive. We will not forget. We will hunt you down and make you pay. I will defend our interests and our people with every measure at my command."
The US has anticipated more attack attempts in the aftermath of the Kabul bombings.
(With inputs from Reuters and Guardian.)
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