Suicide Attacks outside Kabul Airport, US Troops Killed

An American official said several members of the United States military were killed and others wounded in two suicide bombings at Kabul’s international airport.

John Kirby is the spokesman for the U.S. Department of Defense. Kirby said in a statement, “We can confirm that a number of U.S. service members were killed in today’s complex attack at Kabul airport. A number of others are being treated for wounds.”

He said on Twitter that there were two explosions, one outside the airport’s Abbey Gate and the other at a nearby Baron Hotel.

The U.S. and other Western nations had warned earlier in the day of a possible attack at the airport. The U.S., Australia, Britain and New Zealand advised their citizens not to go to the airport. Australia’s foreign minister said the area was under a “very high threat of a terrorist attack.”

Reuters news agency reported a Taliban official said at least 13 people including children had been killed. An Italian non-profit group said it was treating more than 60 wounded at a nearby hospital.

Adam Khan, an Afghan waiting near the airport’s Abbey Gate, told the AP that one bomb exploded in a crowd of people near him. He said several people appeared to have been killed and others, wounded. Reuters reported of video by an Afghan that shows blood and bodies in a street filled with wreckage.

The second explosion was at or near Baron Hotel, where many people, including Afghans, Britons and Americans, gathered in recent days before heading to the airport for evacuation.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the bombing. But an unnamed U.S. military official spoke to the Associated Press. He said that the attack was “definitely believed” to have been carried out by the Islamic State militant group.

A Taliban spokesman said his group “strongly condemns” Thursday’s attack. The group also said many Taliban fighters, on guard outside the airport, were among the wounded.

American forces secure the airport but the Taliban group is controlling the city and the surrounding area.

Evacuation is ending

A crowd of Afghans has been massing outside airport gates hoping to leave the country following the sudden capture of Kabul by the Taliban.

Last week, hundreds of people ran alongside an American military transport plane as it tried to take off. Some climbed onto the sides of the aircraft in hopes of finding a way out of the mountainous, land-locked country.

The U.S. and Western countries have removed nearly 100,000 people from Afghanistan in the past 12 days. Most are Afghans who worked with the countries. The AP reported that evacuation flights continued to take off from Kabul airport even as the area was hit.

President Joe Biden, however, has already ordered American troops to leave by August 31. Biden said earlier in the week, “The sooner we can finish, the better. Each day of operations brings added risk to our troops.”

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Wednesday that there could be as many as 1,500 American passport holders waiting for evacuation from Afghanistan. Some countries have already ended their evacuations and begun to withdraw their soldiers and diplomats.

Canadian forces halted their evacuations of around 3,700 Canadian and Afghan citizens on Thursday, saying they had stayed as long as they could.

The Islamic State in Afghanistan

Fighters loyal to Islamic State, or IS, began appearing in eastern Afghanistan at the end of 2014.

Western intelligence services said the group has a reputation for extreme violence. They said the group is fighting the Taliban both for ideological reasons and for control of local drug industry profits.

 

Hai Do adapted this story for VOA Learning English based on reporting from Associated Press, Reuters and VOA. Caty Weaver was the editor.

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Words in This Story

 

evacuation – n. removing people from a dangerous place

reputation – n. the common opinion about someone or something

ideological – adj. belong to a set of ideas or beliefs

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