SW News: The Islamic State has claimed responsibility for the twin blasts at the gates of Kabul airport on Thursday, August 26, that left 90 dead, including 13 US troops. The Islamic State said one of its suicide bombers targeted translators and collaborators with the American army.
Videos circulating on social media show dozens of bodies lying around a canal bordering the airport.
Since the death of 30 American soldiers in August 2011 when their helicopter was shot down, this is the first time a large number of US troops have been killed in Afghanistan. ISIS carried out the attack at a time when the US is racing to complete their withdrawal from the country.
Bishop Thomas Tobin of Providence has appealed to believers to join in fervent prayers for all those who died in the horrific violence in Afghanistan and for the families of the victims. “As St John Paul II reminds us, war is always a defeat for humanity,” he said in a tweet.
Meanwhile, US President Joe Biden has pledged to hunt down the perpetrators of the bomb blasts and said he had asked the Pentagon to plan strikes on ISIS targets.