A suicide bomber detonated an explosive device yesterday at the Abbey Gate entrance to Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, Afghanistan. The blast killed 13 U.S. service members, injuring 18 others. The Kabul airport attack also reportedly killed 90 Afghans, injuring up to 140 more. The death toll included women and children. Despite the devastating loss, U.S. officials vowed to continue evacuation plans.
Kabul Airport Attack Kills 10 U.S. Marines
“Let me be clear: while we’re saddened by the loss of life, both U.S. and Afghan [citizens], we’re continuing to execute the mission,” Marine Corps Gen. Kenneth F. McKenzie Jr., commander of U.S. Central Command, said during a Pentagon briefing.
Following the initial blast, another suicide bomber reportedly detonated a device at nearby Baron Hotel. The coordinated attack followed with rifle fire into the crowds. ISIS-K later took credit for the carnage.
“I saw bodies and body parts flying in the air like a tornado taking plastic bags … into the air. I saw bodies, body parts, elderly and injured men, women and children scattered in the blast site,” a former employee of an international development group with a U.S. special immigrant visa, told Reuters news agency, according to CNN.
“It is not possible to see doomsday in this life, but today I saw doomsday, I witnessed it with my own eyes,” he said.
The attack took a particularly hard toll on U.S. Marines, with 10 killed in action yesterday. The Marines deployed to Afghanistan in support of the massive evacuation, coming on the heels of a failed withdraw of U.S. troops from Afghanistan. The Taliban also gained control of a massive cache of U.S.-provided weapons during the fall of Afghanistan. Now President Joe Biden reportedly plans to contact the families of fallen Marines personally.
“We will not forgive. We will not forget.” The president continued: “We will hunt you down and make you pay,” the President said yesterday, promising a response to the attack by ISIS-K.
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