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Afghanistan
US says drone strike kills alleged planner of Kabul airport bombing
2021-08-28
No doubt they killed someone. And given the thousands of ISIS-K hard boys recently released from Afghan prisons by the Talibs as they rampaged across the landscape, the odds are good the unnamed man deserved killing, even if not necessarily for the thing he is currently accused of.
[IsraelTimes] A US dronezap early Saturday killed a bad boy in the group blamed for the deadly suicide kaboom at the Kabul airport, US officials said, while American forces working under heightened security and threats of another attack pressed ahead in the closing days of the US-led evacuation from Afghanistan.

The attack in eastern Afghanistan killed a member of the country’s Islamic State
...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that they were al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're really very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear western pols talk they're not really Moslems....
 affiliate, US Central Command said.

The command spokesman, Navy Capt. William Urban, said officials knew of no civilian casualties. US officials gave no immediate information on the person killed, including any possible link to the suicide bombing.
NBC News adds:
"U.S. military forces conducted an over-the-horizon counterterrorism operation today against an ISIS-K planner," said Capt. Bill Urban, front man for U.S. Central Command, in a statement. "The unmanned Arclight airstrike
...KABOOM!...
 occurred in the Nangarhar
The unfortunate Afghan province located adjacent to Mohmand, Kurram, and Khyber Agencies. The capital is Jalalabad. The province was the fief of Younus Khalis after the Soviets departed and one of his sons is the current provincial Taliban commander. Nangarhar is Haqqani country..
 Province of Afghanistan. Initial indications are that we killed the target. We know of no civilian casualties."

Two U.S. defense officials familiar with the strike told NBC News that the target of tonight's dronezap was an ISIS-K fighter thought to be involved in planning for future attacks. The strike was in Nangarhar Province in eastern Afghanistan, where ISIS-K had a large presence several years ago before being largely ousted by the Afghan military and the Taliban
...Arabic for students...
The unnamed ISIS-K planner was riding in a vehicle with one associate at the time of the strike, driving in an isolated area. The defense officials said the strike was carried out by an MQ-9 Reaper drone and munitions that were selected for precision and in order to minimize any civilian casualties.
Update from Khaama Press at 6:00 a.m. EDT:
Local people in Jalalabad city said that the strike was carried out in Police District 7 of the city Saturday midnight.

As per the latest information, the US evacuation mission was not interrupted and the total number of evacuees now amounts to 111 thousand people.
Related:
Nangarhar: 2021-08-24 Taliban starts removing barricades from Kabul streets
Nangarhar: 2021-08-23 Taliban to hold grand gathering on new government in Kabul
Nangarhar: 2021-08-22 With a complete Taliban takeover, where does it leave the Islamic State in Afghanistan


From Russia Today:

Posted by:trailing wife

#33  Biden refuses to give the name of the targets which leads many to believe he is lying about their value.
Posted by: Ebbomoger Speaking for Boskone4589   2021-08-28 20:37  

#32  "That didn't take long but, Jen, can you tell us how long our intelligence has been monitoring this guy who they were able to finger and dispense with so quickly?"
Posted by: Anomalous Sources   2021-08-28 18:38  

#31  Throw the dog a bone.
Posted by: Dale   2021-08-28 13:39  

#30  ^ Yeah, and it's not like it was in Europe.
Posted by: Dron66046   2021-08-28 13:32  

#29  It's such a coup that DoD won't tell us the names of the targets...
Posted by: M. Murcek   2021-08-28 13:29  

#28  
On a long and dusty road
to no particular where,
a nameless bastard drives.

Maybe an urgent batch to drop;
dried poppies, jutebags
and insipid desert chives.

But the Department of State
and some DoD prelate
have fired blind ginsu knives.

"Yaay! Our men are avenged!
And Rrrrobinette revenged,
with the lamentation of his wives!"
Posted by: Dron66046   2021-08-28 13:20  

#27  ^ It's gonna be a looong day of Snark O' The Day candidates if these are any indication
Posted by: Frank G   2021-08-28 12:59  

#26  ^ LOL and sounds right.

One thing coming up this week in the MSM is that another stack of $20's will buy some footage of rescued Afghanis praising Mahmoud-al-Biden for their delivery. "You wlll give me all this money just to say Orange Man Is Bad? OK, Orange Man Is Bad. I want some singles with that, please."
Posted by: Matt   2021-08-28 12:51  

#25  Klingon #1: Come on, Mahmoud. We need a name.
Mahmoud the Weasel: OK, OK. The guy you want is Mohamed Mohamed al Jihadi.
K#1: (looks at his notes) Your 5th cousin twice removed on your wife's side?
MtW: Yes, he is the one. A very bad man. He has been a grave disappointment to the family.
(later that day)
MtW: Honey, I'm home! (waves stack of US $20s) And I got the money for the new couch!
Posted by: SteveS   2021-08-28 12:42  

#24  No doubt; probably of Northern Alliance stock.
Posted by: swksvolFF   2021-08-28 12:26  

#23  Maybe our partners in peace the Taliban told us *exactly* who the right guys were and where to find them.
Posted by: Secret Master    2021-08-28 12:17  

#22   It's curious little is mentioned about from where the drone was launched.

I saw something about it coming from the Middle East, Skidmark, but I’m afraid I don’t have a link. No doubt there will be boasting about that in the near future.
Posted by: trailing wife   2021-08-28 12:14  

#21  Took how many years to get bin Laden? Took how long to have the intel and a guy like Trump willing to get Suliemani? And they got this guy in a couple days? Riiiiiiight...
Posted by: M. Murcek   2021-08-28 12:09  

#20  I knew I could count on Rantburg to put it into proper perspective.
Posted by: Abu Uluque   2021-08-28 11:50  

#19  Glad to see I'm not the only skeptic.
Posted by: Abu Uluque   2021-08-28 11:49  

#18  #17A question about the Khaama Press article: They show the vehicle hit in the strike, and it looks like a golf cart.

Do the Afghans use golf carts in remote parts of Nangarhar province?
Posted by: Spats Gravigum9743 2021-08-28 10:58


....As much as I hate to say this, it's entirely possible - USAF used basic issue golf carts to shuttle people or parts along flightlines and maintenance centers.

Mike
Posted by: Mike Kozlowski   2021-08-28 11:08  

#17  A question about the Khaama Press article: They show the vehicle hit in the strike, and it looks like a golf cart.

Do the Afghans use golf carts in remote parts of Nangarhar province?
Posted by: Spats Gravigum9743   2021-08-28 10:58  

#16  It's curious little is mentioned about from where the drone was launched.
Posted by: Skidmark   2021-08-28 10:40  

#15  More lies
Posted by: Theque and Company1518   2021-08-28 10:17  

#14  /\ A drone strike on someone..... "thought to be involved."

If fok'ing don't work that way.
Posted by: Besoeker   2021-08-28 10:02  

#13  "an ISIS-K fighter thought to be involved in planning..." Thought to be involved? Thought to be involved??!!
Posted by: Bertie Crains2651   2021-08-28 09:55  

#12  "The telescreen was silent for a moment. Winston raised his head again. The bulletin! But no, they were merely changing the music. He had the map of Africa behind his eyelids. The movement of the armies was a diagram: a black arrow tearing vertically southward, and a white arrow horizontally eastward, across the tail of the first. As though for reassurance he looked up at the imperturbable face in the portrait. Was it conceivable that the second arrow did not even exist?"
Posted by: Thing From Snowy Mountain   2021-08-28 08:02  

#11  /\ I'll take 'deflect from their total F-UP' for $600. Alex.
Posted by: Besoeker   2021-08-28 06:58  

#10  

At one time I would have danced a jig reading this...

But given everything we have seen by this Admin P.P. handling of this Withdrawn. The suspicious 1/2 of my mind is screaming.

Did it happen, or is it an Lame PR attempt to deflect from their total F-UP?


Posted by:    2021-08-28 06:19  

#9  Uh, next time guys, if you're going to use a million dollar missile, try two for one!
Posted by: Fleck Whusing1259   2021-08-28 06:02  

#8  The unnamed ISIS-K planner was riding in a vehicle with one associate at the time of the strike, driving in an isolated area.


Don't insult our intelligence. We didn't all grow up taking methylphenidate.
Posted by: Dron66046   2021-08-28 02:31  

#7  Was his name Nakoula Basseley Nakoula ?

Posted by: Besoeker   2021-08-28 02:13  

#6  yep raj
Posted by: Chris   2021-08-28 00:59  

#5  "See! I got them! We are avenged!' - Pretender Biden
Posted by: CrazyFool   2021-08-28 00:40  

#4  I don't believe a thing they say. No credibility. Zero. Nada. None.
Posted by: Blackbeard Barnsmell6454   2021-08-28 00:34  

#3  'A stupid and futile gesture'
Posted by: Raj   2021-08-28 00:14  

#2  Pentagon drone strike on Afghanistan ISIS stronghold kills man believed to be planner behind Kabul airport bombing that left 13 US troops and 170 Afghans dead
Posted by: Skidmark   2021-08-28 00:10  

#1  More details emerge on Pentagon drone strike believed to have killed 'ISIS-K planner'
Posted by: Skidmark   2021-08-28 00:09  

00:00