Britain warned it will need to cooperate with the Taliban to combat splinter cell that is risk home and abroad
General Sir Richard Barrons said today that the splinter terrorist cell which orchestrated the attack outside Kabul airport posed a risk at home and abroad.
He said that Britain and America were initially working with the Afghan intelligence service and had drones in the sky to root out and ‘neuter’ terrorist threats.
But now amid the chaotic withdrawal the NATO powers have been left relying on drone strikes to take out the group.
Sir Richard added: ‘So what this actually means is we’re going to end up co-operating, not just with the US, but with the Taliban in the future, in order to deal with ISIS-K.’
It came as the ambitious leader of ISIS-K became the Taliban’s most wanted enemy, with their soldiers saying they would ‘annihilate’ the terrorist group.
A Pentagon drone strike has today killed the ‘planner’ behind the bombing at Kabul airport which left 170 people dead including 13 US soldiers, two Britons and a child of a UK national.
US officials said the attack — which came just two days after the airport bombing — was approved by President Joe Biden.
US drone strike kills ‘planner’ behind Kabul airport bombing
A Pentagon drone strike has killed the ‘planner’ behind the ISIS suicide bombing at Kabul airport that left more than 170 people dead.
The missile struck an ISIS fighter while he was in his car with another Islamic state associate in Nangahar province, eastern Afghanistan. US officials said the strike was approved by President Joe Biden.
The retaliation came less than 48 hours after a suicide bombing claimed by the group killed 13 U.S. soldiers, two Britons and the child of a UK national outside an entrance to the runway.
U.S. Navy spokesman William Urban confirmed the military ‘conducted an over-the-horizon counterterrorism operation today against an ISIS-K planner.’
‘Initial indications are that we killed the target. We know of no civilian casualties,’ he added.
Britain’s rescue operation will end today, meaning as many as 1,250 Afghans eligible to take refuge in the UK, as well as up to 150 Britons, will be left behind.
Gen. Sir Nick Carter said on Saturday: ‘We haven’t been able to take everyone out and that is heartbreaking. We think that we’ve got most of the Afghans but I think there will be high hundreds who won’t have come out … and something has prevented them from coming, rather than any processing problem from our perspective.’
He added that U.S. troops now faced a ‘very difficult’ few days acting as the ‘rear guard’ to the withdrawal.
‘I think our American allies are going to be very challenged because the threat from ISIS-K has not gone away and of course there are still lots of desperate Afghans trying to get out,’ Sir Nick said.
Speaking to Times radio, General Barrons said: ‘Before we arrived at this current catastrophic outcome, we had a diplomatic presence, we had a relationship with the Afghan intelligence organisations and we were able to work with some of the very good but now completely dissolved elements of the Afghan security architecture.
‘We also had the benefit of the sort of drone eyes-in-the-sky that the US provides.
‘And now, all we have left is recourse to this over the horizon, drones support.
He added that the Kabul airport attacks showed the terror group was clearly a threat to the UK both at home and abroad.
‘What it does do is illustrate that ISIS-K is a risk to the United Kingdom, here at home, and to our interests abroad,’ he said.
Source:- Daily Mail
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