Kabul Airport has been targeted by a rocket attack on the eve of the deadline for US troops to withdraw from Afghanistan.
Islamic State has claimed responsibility for the early morning attack on Monday, saying “soldiers of the Caliphate targeted Kabul International Airport with six Katyusha rockets”.
“As many as five rockets were fired,” said Major General William ‘Hank’ Taylor at a Pentagon briefing.
He said three had “landed off the airfield with no effect”, one was intercepted by an anti-missile system, while the other landed “with no effect to the mission or any danger to our personnel”.
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A destroyed vehicle is seen where rockets were fired from in Kabul. Pic: AP
Although there have been no injuries reported, some of Monday’s rocket fire did appear to hit a neighbourhood by the airport, striking residential apartment blocks, according to witnesses cited by the Associated Press.
The rockets did not stop US military jets from leaving the airport, however.
Video has emerged showing what appear to be the remains of a four-door sedan used by the attackers – with six homemade rocket tubes mounted in place of backseats.
The attack came on the final day before all US personnel are due to leave Afghanistan, with one official telling Reuters its “core diplomatic staff” have now left.
It is not yet clear whether acting US ambassador Ross Wilson has departed, following UK ambassador Sir Laurie Bristow’s relocation to Doha on Sunday.
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Damage after US airstrike on ISIS-K target
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said President Joe Biden has been briefed on the latest situation.
“The president was informed that operations continue uninterrupted at Hamid Karzai International Airport, and has reconfirmed his order that commanders redouble their efforts to prioritise doing whatever is necessary to protect our forces on the ground,” Ms Psaki said in a statement.
Officials had previously warned that ISIS-K militants were looking to target the airport with rockets.
“We know that they [ISIS-K] would like to lob a rocket in there, if they could,” General Frank McKenzie head of US Central Command, told reporters in Washington last week.
“Now we actually have pretty good protection against that. We have our anti-rocket and mortar system.”
Mr Biden said on Saturday that the situation on the ground remained extremely dangerous, and that his military chiefs had told him another militant attack was highly likely within the next 24 to 36 hours.
On Sunday, American forces launched a drone strike in Kabul targeting a suicide bomber in a vehicle who was aiming to attack the airport.
Ten people from one family died in the attack, said relatives.
It came after last week’s suicide bomb attack at Kabul airport that killed between 92 and 169 Afghans, 13 US service members and three Britons.
There is increasing concern that ISIS-K militants will launch further attacks on the airport as US troops race to evacuate remaining American citizens and at-risk Afghans, before completing their own withdrawal by Tuesday.
