Pentagon says threat to Kabul airport ‘real and active’

Washington DC [US], August 30 (ANI): Pentagon on Monday informed that threat of another terror attack targeting the Kabul airport is still “real” and “active.”

“The threat stream is still real, it’s still active and, in many cases, it’s still specific,” Pentagon spokesperson John Kirby said during a presser. “We are operating under the assumption that we need to be prepared for future potential threats,” he added said.

Ahead of the August 31 deadline to withdraw foreign troops, the US is continuing with its last bid efforts to evacuate people from Afghanistan.

The United States and coalition forces evacuated 1,200 people from Afghanistan over the past 24 hours, a White House official said on Monday. The total number since the end of July is approximately 122,300 people.

Speaking at the same presser, US Army Major General William “Hank” Taylor said military operations in Afghanistan continue, with our primary focus on the safety and security of troops who remain in Kabul.

“We continue to have the capability to evacuate and fly out those until the very end… we continue to work with the Department of State on that, and continue evacuation and military operations,” Taylor said.

“The self-defence strike successfully hit the target near Kabul airport. Significant secondary explosions from the targeted vehicle indicated the presence of a substantial amount of explosives material,” he added.

Earlier today, the death toll from a US drone attack near the Kabul airport climbed to 12. On Sunday, US Central Command had confirmed an airstrike on a car filled with explosives, prompted by the threat of the Islamic State-Khorasan terrorist group.

Prior to this, ISIS-K had claimed responsibility for the bombings at the Kabul airport on Thursday, which killed 13 US troops and over 170 other people. (ANI)