The US military struck back at the so-called Islamic State (ISIS) this Friday night, with a bombardment targeting two "high-profile" members of this international terrorist group based in Afghanistan.
Central Command said they
are believed to have been involved in planning the attacks at the Kabul airport.
The response came less than 48 hours after a devastating suicide bombing claimed by this group killed nearly 200 people at the Kabul airport, including 13 US servicemen.
An attacker detonated an explosive belt at the airport gate.
According to a spokesman for the Department of Defense, John Kirby, so far no civilian casualties have been reported.
Two defense officials familiar with the attack told NBC News, the sister network of Noticias Telemundo, that these ISIS members are also believed to
be involved in planning future attacks.
The bombing took place in eastern Afghanistan's Nangarhar province, where ISIS had a large presence several years ago before being largely driven out by the Afghan army and the Taliban.
Kirby added that neither Congress nor the Taliban were notified of the bombing.
The government did not give details of the identities of the targets of the attack, only saying that
one was "a planner and the other a facilitator."
They added that they were traveling in a vehicle at the time of the attack in an isolated area and that the attack was carried out by an MQ-9 Reaper drone with ammunition selected for accuracy to minimize civilian deaths.
The airstrike follows a promise that President Joe Biden made to the nation on Thursday when he said the perpetrators of the attack would not be able to hide.
"We will pursue them and make them pay," he
assured.
Pentagon leaders said at a press conference this Friday that they were prepared for any retaliation ordered by the president.
One of the planes of the Spanish Armed Forces, which has transported the military and Embassy personnel who remained in Afghanistan and who have arrived in Dubai from Kabul, on August 27, 2021. EFE / Ministry of Defense
"We have options there right now," said Major General Hank Taylor of the Pentagon's Joint Chiefs of Staff.
The Kabul airport attack was
one of the most devastating acts of terrorism in the past 20 years as the United States has led the occupation of Afghanistan.
The Pentagon and White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki warned this Friday that there is still a risk of new attacks by the Islamic State Khorasan or ISIS-K (for its acronym in English), the Afghan branch of the extremist organization.
The US embassy in Kabul asked all citizens on Friday afternoon to stay away from the airport and its access points, as there are alerts of another possible attack.