‘36 Islamic State fighters killed by massive bomb’
Islamic State denies suffering casualties in the bombing
Up to 36 suspected Islamic State operatives are reported to have been killed by the 21,000-pound “mother of all bombs” dropped by US military forces on a complex of mountainside caves and tunnels in Nangarhar province of Afghanistan.
The damage estimates came from Afghan military, which said no civilians were killed or wounded by the bombing that attracted worldwide focus once again to an ongoing war that seemed to have been eclipsed by conflicts in Syria and Iraq.
But Islamic State denied suffering casualties in the bombing. “Security source to Amaq agency denies any dead or wounded from yesterday’s American strike in Nangarhar using a GBU-43/B,” its news agency said on social media.
The strike came just days ahead of a visit by national security adviser HR Mcmaster to Afghanistan as part of the Trump administration’s review of policy for Afghanistan and the region.
The US has ceased combat operations in Afghanistan but maintains a force of about 9,000 personnel engaged in counterterrorism operations and in advisory role to local Afghan forces.
India, heavily invested in Afghanistan strategically and economically, will be watching closely for signs if the bombing was part of an escalation and greater US involvement.
The US has stepped up operations against IS and the Taliban, with its Air Force using nearly 500 weapons in the first three months of 2017, from 300 in the corresponding period in 2016.