US President Joe Biden has said the US evacuation mission will “not be deterred by terrorists” and that the US will “hunt down” those responsible for a deadly suicide bomber attack claimed by the “Islamic State.”
In a televised speech Thursday evening, President Joe Biden said US military is in the process of developing “operational plans to strike IS leadership, assets and facilities,” following a bombing outside Kabul airport that killed 12 US service members, along with at least 60 Afghan civilians.
The Islamic State’s Afghanistan affiliate, known as IS-K claimed responsibility for the attack.
“We will not be deterred by terrorists. We will not let them stop our mission,” Biden told reporters. “We will continue the evacuation.”
“We will not forgive. We will not forget. We will hunt you down and make you pay,” Biden said, referring to those responsible.
The president said there was no evidence that IS-K colluded with the Taliban to carry out the attack.
President Biden also said US forces would continue evacuation of US citizens and Afghan allies and would meet the August 31 pullout deadline.
He defended his decision to end the US combat mission in the country: “It was time to end a 20-year war.”
Terror group “Islamic State” (IS) said in a statement that it was behind the deadly twin suicide bombings at Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul on Thursday afternoon.
US military officials also confirmed that “ISIS” was responsible for the attack.
General Kenneth McKenzie, head of US Central Command, said the US airlift in Kabul will continue, adding that the two bombers were “assessed to have been ISIS fighters.”
“We continue to execute our number one mission, which is to get as many evacuees and citizens out of Afghanistan,” said General McKenzie.
“ISIS will not deter us from accomplishing the mission,” he said, adding that US forces were “prepared and ready to defend against” further “ISIS” attacks.
Earlier, McKenzie had confirmed that 12 American service members were killed in, the bombings and 15 others were injured.
The death toll makes it one of the deadliest incidents for American troops for the entire 20-year war in Afghanistan.
Thousands of people have been gathering outside the building over the past several days in a desperate attempt to flee on an evacuation flight.
One blast hit the airport’s Abbey Gate, while the other targeted a nearby hotel. McKenzie said the explosions were followed by a gunfight, and that efforts to evacuate about 1,000 US citizens estimated to still be in the country would continue. – DW.
