U.S. airstrike in Kabul last month killed 10 civilians including seven children, Pentagon says
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Marine Corps Gen. Kenneth McKenzie Jr., commander of the U.S. Central Command testifies before the Senate Armed Services Committee during its hearing on the “U.S. Central Command and U.S. Africa Command in review of the Defense Authorization Request for FY2022 and the Future Years Defense Program in Washington on Thursday, April 22, 2021.
CQ-Roll Call, Inc. | CQ-Roll Call, Inc. | Getty Images
WASHINGTON – The Pentagon said Friday that a U.S. drone strike in Kabul last month killed 10 civilians including seven children.
U.S. Marine Corps Commander Kenneth McKenzie stated that “this strike was undertaken in the earnest belief it would prevent an immediate threat to our forces, and the evacuees from the airport, however it was a mistake.”
“I am the combatant command. McKenzie, the U.S. commander for military operations in this region, stated that she was responsible for the tragic results of the strike.
The Pentagon originally said that the strike, which occurred Aug. 29, killed two ISIS-K fighters believed to be involved in planning attacks against U.S. forces in Kabul.
At the time of strike, Army Major General William Taylor stated that no civilian casualties were known. John Kirby, Pentagon spokesmen said that no coordination or notification was made with Taliban prior to the strike. The Defense Department didn’t notify any other country in the area nor U.S. legislators, he said.
The drone strike came on the heels of a suicide bombing that resulted in the deaths of 13 U.S. service members and dozens of Afghans outside the Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul.
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