US Drone Attack Kills Seven Civilians, Taliban: If There Is A Threat, Report To Us, Not An Arbitrary Attack

Ilustrasi drone AS. (Wikimedia Commons/Lt. Col. Leslie Pratt)

JAKARTA - A Taliban spokesman said a US drone strike targeting a suspected suicide bomber in Kabul on Sunday caused civilian casualties, blaming the incident for not coordinating with the Taliban.

Spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid told Chinese state television CGTN seven people were killed in the US drone strike, describing US actions on foreign soil as unlawful.

"If there is a potential threat in Afghanistan, it should be reported to us, not an arbitrary attack resulting in civilian casualties", Mujahid said in a written response to CGTN.

Earlier, Pentagon officials said suicide car bombers had prepared to attack the airport in Kabul, where US troops are in the final stages of withdrawing from Afghanistan, on behalf of ISIS-K or ISIS Khorasan, the Islamic State's local affiliate of its two enemies. West and the Taliban.

US Central Command (CENTCOM) said it was investigating reports of civilian casualties from Sunday's drone strike.

"We know that there was a subsequent large and powerful explosion resulting from the destruction of the vehicle, indicating a large number of explosives inside which may have caused additional casualties", CENTCOM said.

Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid (standing). (Twitter/@Natsecjeff)

Last week, Mujahid had issued a similar condemnation of a US drone strike on Saturday that killed two Islamic State militants in the eastern province of Nangarhar. He said two women and a child were injured in the attack.

As previously reported, the US carried out its second drone strike against the Islamic State group-K, following a suicide bombing last Thursday in the Kabul airport area, which killed dozens of civilians including 13 US soldiers.

In connection with this drone strike, a US official confirmed the site of Sunday's attack was in the Khaje Bughra neighborhood of Kabul.

"US military forces carried out an unmanned aerial strike over the horizon today on a vehicle in Kabul, eliminating the imminent ISIS-K threat at Hamad Karzai International Airport", CENTCOM US spokesman Captain Bill Urban said.

"We believe we hit our target. A significant secondary explosion from the vehicle indicates the presence of a large number of explosives".

The Taliban, who now control Afghanistan, condemned Sunday night's drone strike, saying the US had violated the country's sovereignty.

Taliban spokesman Bilal Kareemi said the US actions were not right and should have been in coordination with their side.

"It is not right to carry out operations in other regions. The US should have told us. Whenever the US carries out such operations, we condemn them", he criticized.