Army Maj. Gen. William D. “Hank” Taylor speaks at a press briefing on Afghanistan, the Pentagon, Washington, D.C., Aug. 16, 2021. (DoD photo by Lisa Ferdinando)
By Gary Raynaldo DIPLOMATIC TIMES
WASHINGTON DC – A U.S. retaliatory airstrike killed 2 ISIS-K militants in Afghanistan Friday, the Pentagon confirmed today. The unmanned drone airstrike occurred in the Nangahar Province of Afghanistan was an over-the-horizon counterterrorism operation against an ISIS-K planner, according to the Pentagon. The airstrike came days after a suicide bomber killed 13 American soldiers at the Kabul airport. President Biden vowed to retaliate after Thursday’s terror attack. “To those who carried out this attack, as well as anyone who wishes America harm, know this: We will not forgive. We will not forget. We will hunt you down and make you pay,” President Biden said. Pentagon press secretary John Kirby said there was no intelligence sharing, coordination with the Taliban by the U.S. on the airstrike. Kirby and Army Maj. Gen. William “Hank” Taylor held a press briefing in the Pentagon Saturday to discuss the situation in Afghanistan.
“Two high profile ISIS targets were killed and one was wounded. We know of zero civilian casualties.”
-Army Maj. Gen. William “Hank” Taylor said Aug. 28, 2021.
Amy Maj. Gen. William “Hank” Taylor, Joint Staff deputy director for regional operations, briefs the media at the Pentagon, Aug. 27, 2021. (Credit: : Lisa Ferdinando, DOD)
Despite the suicide attack near the entrance to Afghanistan’s Hamid Karzai International Airport that killed 13 U.S. service members and injured scores of Afghan civilians, the “noble mission” to evacuate American and eligible Afghans out of the country will continue, said the Joint Staff deputy director for regional operations. Army Maj. Gen. William D. “Hank” Taylor and Pentagon Press Secretary John F. Kirby expressed “heartfelt condolences on behalf of the Defense Department to the families of those killed or injured, Afghans as well as Americans.”
