Taliban Kills Suspect Behind Kabul Airport Bombing That Slayed 13 Americans

Topline

The Taliban has killed the suspected plotter of a 2021 attack at the Kabul airport that killed 13 American service members and around 170 Afghans during a frantic U.S. evacuation effort, U.S. officials told multiple outlets, though details about the operation to kill the suspect have not been released.

Key Facts

Key Background

The suicide bombing outside Hamid Karzai International Airport on August 26, 2021, underscored the chaotic withdrawal of American troops from Afghanistan following 20 years of fighting with Islamic militants. The airport was effectively the last part of Kabul out of Taliban control after the group seized all of Afghanistan’s major cities in an 11-day period after a U.S. troop drawdown. The airport quickly became the site of turmoil after the Taliban swept the country, as Afghans hoping to leave as refugees rushed there in the hopes of escape—grimly leading to several Afghans falling to their deaths as they attempted to hold on to the outside of a departing Air Force C-17 plane. Domestically, the withdrawal from Afghanistan and the loss of 13 Americans ended President Joe Biden’s period of high approval ratings following his January 2021 inauguration. According to a FiveThirtyEight tracker, Biden’s approval rating to start August 2021 was 51.5%. By the end of the month, it had dropped to 47%. Biden’s disapproval marks have been higher than his approval ratings ever since.

Surprising Fact

ISIS-K was formed in 2015 as an offshoot of the Islamic State, which swept through Iraq and Syria and was known for its brutality. The group—composed of former Afghan and Pakistani Taliban fighters—took over small parts of eastern Afghanistan, but it was pushed back by U.S. and Taliban counter-offensives. Since the U.S.-backed Afghan government collapsed in 2021, the Islamic State has secured a stronger foothold in the country, though it still faces pressure from the Taliban, according to a trove of Pentagon documents leaked online and obtained by the Washington Post.

Tangent

The Taliban signaled it was open to social reforms and wanted to have a diplomatic relationship with the U.S. after it took control of Afghanistan, but relations between the two eroded after the Taliban enacted strict bans on education for women and girls and carried out so-called revenge killings targeting Afghans who worked with U.S. forces. The U.S. and Taliban have maintained limited channels of communication, though, as ISIS-K is considered a mutual enemy.

Further Reading

All 13 U.S. Troops Killed In Kabul Airport Attack Identified—Here’s What We Know About Them (Forbes)

Taliban Seize Key Northern City As Insurgents Close In On Kabul (Forbes)

Taliban Bans Women From Afghanistan Universities (Forbes)