Kabul: At least six people, including four children, lost their lives in Afghanistan’s Kabul after a rocket failed to hit the Hamid Karzai International Airport on Sunday. Eyewitnesses said that the rocket had hit the house in Khwaja Bughra, west of the Kabul Airport, at around 4.55 pm local time.
“The rocket struck a house in Khwaja Bughra, a populated residential area in Police District 15, killing two adults and four children,” Hajji Karim, a representative of the neighbourhood in the municipality district, said, as reported by news agency IANS.
The fresh attack comes days after the deadly suicide at the eastern gate of the Kabul Airport in which more than 180 people, including 13 United States (US) troops, lost their lives. The attack was carried out by Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISIS-K), a group affiliated with the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS).
Another drone strike?
The US, meanwhile, on Sunday claimed that it carried out a drone strike and targeted a suicide bomber in a vehicle that was aiming to attack the Kabul Airport. This was the second such drone strike conducted by the US following the suicide bombings at the Kabul Airport.
Notably, the drone strike came a day after US President Joe Biden said that he has directed the officials to take all possible steps to avoid another terror attack at the Kabul Airport. Biden on Sunday had also warned that another attack is expected at the airport in the next 24 to 36 hours.
Civilian casualties in the drone strike?
Though there has not been any report on this, the US has said that it is aware of reports of civilian casualties in Kabul following its drone strike on an explosive-laden vehicle headed towards the airport.
Addressing the media, Captain Bill Urban, spokesman of the US Central Command, said that the Pentagon is still assessing the results of this strike, adding that it is deeply saddened by any potential loss of innocent life in the strike.
“We know that there were substantial and powerful subsequent explosions resulting from the destruction of the vehicle, indicating a large amount of explosive material inside that may have caused additional casualties. It is unclear what may have happened, and we are investigating further,” he said, as reported by news agency PTI.
Bureau Report
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