US Drops ‘Mother Of All Bombs’ On ISIS Tunnels In Afghanistan

The United States has dropped its largest non-nuclear bomb on a network of tunnels and caves used by Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) fighters in Afghanistan. The 9,525 kg bomb was dropped in the Achin district of the Nangarhar province in eastern Afghanistan targeting a Daesh complex.

Nicknamed the “mother of all bombs", this is the first time that Massive Ordnance Air Blast bomb (MOAB) was deployed in a combat.

The Pentagon confirmed the use of the MOAB, and is in the process of assessing the potential damage inflicted by it. It is still not known how many IS militants were killed, or whether the bombing caused any civilian deaths.

“The strike was designed to minimize the risk to Afghan and US Forces conducting clearing operations in the area while maximizing the destruction of ISIS-K fighters and facilities,” the Pentagon said in a statement, using the term for the Islamic State’s Afghanistan branch.

The military also said the US “took every precaution to avoid civilian casualties with this strike.”

Soon after the bomb was dropped, US President Donald Trump said he was proud the military had carried out "another successful job”.

“Very, very proud of the people. A brilliant, another successful job,”Trump said.

Observers suggest that this may be in line with Trump's campaign speech to “bomb the shit out of” ISIS and its material resources.

White House spokesman Sean Spicer said in his press briefing that “We must deny them operational space, which we did.”

The bomb was dropped by an MC-130 aircraft, operated by Air Force Special Operations Command, according to the military sources. This is the first time a MOAB has been used in the battlefield, according to the US officials. The bomb was developed by the US during the Iraq War.