Four US Marines are among those killed in a series of suicide bomb attacks on Kabul on Thursday that happened hours after Westerners were warned to stay away from the airport amid an ‘imminent’ threat from ISIS.
The first blast was caused by an ISIS suicide bomber in a vest, according to unnamed government sources cited by Fox and Politico. It detonated outside The Baron Hotel, where Westerners were staying before their evacuation flights, shortly before 6.30pm local time.
A second explosion was reported nearby a short time later at the airport’s Abbey Gate, where crowds of Afghans have been gathering for more than a week in the hope of being put on one of the evacuation flights out. That explosion was caused by a car bomb.
US officials believe ISIS-Khorsasan (ISIS-K) were behind the attacks. Intelligence officials warned of an imminent threat from ISIS-K just hours earlier.
A CIA source told DailyMail.com on Thursday the Marines were among those killed. Other troops are feared to have been injured but the Pentagon will not confirm fatalities or give any other basic details.
Evacuation flights are still ongoing but it’s unclear who is getting on them or if any US planes are taking off. There are still as many as 1,000 Americans trapped in Afghanistan but their chances of escaping are getting slimmer by the minute and Thursday’s attack makes rescue even less likely.
Now, not even the airport – where there are several thousand US troops – is safe – a the White House is offering no plan on how to get people out.
Now, the options for those who remain stuck are;
- Hide in your homes and risk missing the chance to be flown out on one of the last evacuation flights
- Make a run for the Pakistan border, which is now overrun with Afghans and nearly 200 miles away
- Go to the airport, where there is a risk being killed in a bomb attack, shot at or getting lost in the crowd
President Biden hasn’t addressed the attack or indicated whether it will affect the US’s plan to stay until August 31, or force troops to clear out of the region earlier, leaving behind anyone who doesn’t make it to the airport before then.
Biden is not yet scheduled to speak today but a briefing is expected from the Pentagon. Earlier this month, Biden said any attack on US forces at the airport would be met with a ‘swift response’. He met with Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, Joint Chiefs Chairman Mark Milley and Secretary of State Antony Blinken at the White House on Thursday morning after the attacks.
Despite the escalating violence, the US’s top diplomat made the astonishing claim on Thursday morning, before the explosion, that it was ‘relatively safe’ on the ground and people should still be able to make their way there.
A White House official told DailyMail.com on Thursday: ‘The President met with his national security team this morning, including Secretary Blinken, Secretary Austin, Chairman Milley, and commanders on the ground. He will continue to be briefed on updates on the evolving situation throughout the day.
‘There will be updates to the President’s schedule, which we will share as they become available.’
Earlier on Thursday, US troops on the ground closed gates at the airport and the State Department warned people not to congregate at the airport. Britain told its citizens to run for the Pakistan border instead.
The Taliban claimed Kabul on August 14 and there has been a frantic scramble to get Western citizens and Afghan allies out of the region by August 31, the Taliban’s ceasefire deadline.
Now, Americans in Afghanistan are being told not to go to the airport.
