MOSCOW – The death toll from the United States (US) airstrike that targeted a vehicle in the Afghan capital of Kabul yesterday has gone up to nine, all members of the same family, reported Sputnik.
There are six children, including a 4-year-old, a 3-year-old and two 2-year-olds among those killed. The brother who survived the attack told a local CNN journalist yesterday that they are “an ordinary family,” not affiliated with the Islamic State terrorist group that is banned in Russia.
Earlier, US central command spokesman Bill Urban said that a drone strike was carried out yesterday on a vehicle in Kabul, eliminating an Islamic State-Khorasan (Isis-K) terrorist group threat to the airport.
“We are assessing the possibilities of civilian casualties, though we have no indications at this time. We remain vigilant for potential future threats,” Urban said.
In a later update, the US central command said that there was a possibility of additional casualties resulting from the subsequent explosions caused by the US airstrike.
“We know that there were substantial and powerful subsequent explosions resulting from the destruction of the vehicle, indicating a large amount of explosive material inside that may have caused additional casualties,” Urban said.
He added that “It is unclear what may have happened, and we are investigating further.”
Afghan media reported yesterday that at least four children were killed in the airstrike that destroyed two vehicles and part of a residential building.
CBS said that the size of the secondary explosion suggests that the US strike destroyed a fully loaded car bomb, and did not just kill a suicide bomber riding in the car.
On Saturday, William Taylor of the US Army said that two Isis-K leaders were killed and another is injured in a US airstrike in the Nangarhar province of Afghanistan.
On Friday, the White House admitted there was clearly a breakdown in the security process that failed to prevent the Thursday suicide bombing at the Kabul airport, which reportedly left 170 dead, including 13 US troops. The attack, claimed by the Isis-K terrorist group, comes amid a chaotic US evacuation from Afghanistan following the Taliban’s takeover of Kabul on August 15. – Bernama, August 30, 2021
