Roberta Aguirre
On 26 August 2021, a suicide bombing took place at Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, Afghanistan, killing at least 182 people, including 13 US troops and 169 Afghan civilians. The Islamic State-Khorasan Province (ISIS-K) claimed responsibility for the attack, which occurred during the evacuation from Afghanistan following the fall of Kabul to the Taliban on 15 August 2021. This marked the first American military casualties in the War in Afghanistan since February 2020.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Date and Time | 26 August 2021, 17:50 local time (13:20 UTC) |
| Location | Kabul International Airport, Kabul, Afghanistan |
| Type of Attack | Suicide bombing and gunfire |
| Casualties | 182+ killed, including 169+ Afghan civilians and 13 US military personnel; 150+ injured |
| Perpetrators | Islamic State – Khorasan Province (ISIS–K) |
| Warning | Hours before the attack, US diplomats and embassies of the US, UK, and Australia warned citizens of security threats and told them to leave the airport |
| Context | Evacuation from Afghanistan following the fall of Kabul to the Taliban on 15 August 2021 |
| US Response | Unmanned airstrike on 27 August against suspected ISIS–K members; second drone strike on 29 August targeting a vehicle suspected of carrying ISIS–K members |
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What You'll Learn
The Islamic State-Khorasan Province (ISIS-K) claimed responsibility for the attack
On 26 August 2021, a suicide bombing took place at Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, Afghanistan, during the evacuation from Afghanistan. The attack killed at least 182 people, including 169 Afghan civilians and 13 members of the United States military, the first American military casualties in Afghanistan since February 2020.
The Islamic State-Khorasan Province (ISIS-K), an affiliate of militants who previously battled U.S. forces in Syria and Iraq, claimed responsibility for the attack. ISIS-K is a sworn enemy of the Taliban and has been linked to a series of terrorist incidents, including in Australia, Canada, China, Denmark, Finland, France, and Hungary, among others. ISIS-K named the bomber as Abdul Rahman al-Logari, suggesting the killer was Afghan.
In the wake of the attack, U.S. President Joe Biden vowed to hunt down the leaders of ISIS-K and exact revenge. He ordered military commanders to develop plans to strike ISIS assets, leaders, and facilities. Biden also stated that the United States had an idea of who had ordered the attacks, although it was not certain.
Prior to the attack, there were growing security concerns as hundreds of members of ISIS-K escaped from jails at Bagram and Pul-e-Charkhi. The Pentagon and U.S. diplomats in Kabul warned of the increased threat of a terrorist attack by ISIS-K following the fall of Kabul to the Taliban on 15 August 2021. Biden received multiple reports of a possible attack during the week preceding the incident and warned of the growing threat posed by ISIS-K to American personnel and civilians near the airport.
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182 people were killed, including 13 US troops
On 26 August 2021, a suicide bombing at Kabul Airport killed over 180 people and injured more than 150. The Islamic State's Afghanistan affiliate (ISIL-KP or ISIS-K) claimed responsibility for the attack. The attack took place during the evacuation from Afghanistan, with a crowd of local and foreign civilians having fled to the airport to be evacuated.
The death toll included 13 US troops, marking the first American military casualties in the War in Afghanistan since February 2020. The remaining victims were Afghan civilians. This included seven children, who died in a subsequent US drone strike aimed at presumed Islamic State members suspected of planning the attack.
The attack occurred just two weeks after the Taliban retook the capital, and the airport was the only way out of Afghanistan at the time. Security concerns had been growing, and US diplomats in Kabul had warned American citizens of security threats at the airport, urging them to leave the area. The Pentagon also warned of an increased threat of a terrorist attack by ISIS.
In the days following the attack, the US conducted two drone strikes in Kabul, targeting suspected ISIS-K members. The first strike, on 27 August, was against three suspected members in Nangarhar Province. The second strike, on 29 August, targeted a vehicle that was believed to be carrying ISIS-K members but instead killed an Afghan aid worker and their family.
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The Taliban takeover of Afghanistan
On 26 August 2021, a suicide bombing took place at Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, Afghanistan, killing at least 182 people, including 169 Afghan civilians and 13 US military personnel. This attack occurred during the evacuation from Afghanistan, as a crowd of local and foreign civilians fled to the airport to escape the Taliban takeover. The Islamic State – Khorasan Province (ISIS–K) claimed responsibility for the attack.
In the days and weeks following the fall of Kabul, the situation in Afghanistan rapidly deteriorated. The Taliban annulled the constitution and existing laws, and they continued to expand their draconian restrictions on women and girls. The UN reported that about 85% of Afghans lived on less than one dollar a day, and more than half of the country's population needed humanitarian assistance. Of those, 12 million people were food insecure, and 2.9 million experienced emergency levels of hunger.
The human rights situation in Afghanistan also worsened under the de facto Taliban authorities. Women and girls faced gender persecution and were deprived of their rights to freedom of movement and expression. The Taliban also marginalized ethnic and religious groups, denying them political participation, access to public services, and humanitarian assistance. Arbitrary arrests, torture, and extrajudicial executions of former government employees, journalists, and critical voices continued.
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US troops were set to officially withdraw from Afghanistan
On 26 August 2021, a suicide bombing at Kabul International Airport in Kabul, Afghanistan, killed 13 US troops and approximately 170 Afghan civilians. This attack occurred during the evacuation from Afghanistan, as a crowd of local and foreign civilians fled to the airport to escape the Taliban takeover. The Islamic State – Khorasan Province (ISIS–K) claimed responsibility for the attack.
In a speech on 16 August 2021, President Joe Biden defended the decision to withdraw, stating that the US had achieved its primary objective of ensuring Afghanistan would not be used as a base for attacks on America. He acknowledged that the Taliban's takeover of Afghanistan was likely, but argued that prolonging the war would not have resulted in a durable Afghan government. Biden also emphasised that the withdrawal would be careful and gradual, stating, "We will not conduct a hasty rush to the exit."
However, the withdrawal of US troops left Afghanistan vulnerable to terrorist groups such as al-Qaeda, ISIS-K, and the Taliban's Haqqani Network. The leader of al-Qaeda, Ayman al-Zawahiri, was openly living in Kabul and encouraging attacks on American interests before being killed in an airstrike in July 2022. The House Foreign Affairs Committee has initiated investigations into the Biden administration's handling of the withdrawal, citing failures in decision-making, planning, and execution.
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US diplomats in Kabul warned American citizens to leave the airport
On 26 August 2021, a suicide bombing took place at Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, Afghanistan, during the evacuation from the country. The Islamic State-Khorasan Province (ISIS-K) claimed responsibility for the attack, which killed at least 182 people, including 169 Afghan civilians and 13 members of the United States military.
Hours before the attack, US diplomats in Kabul warned American citizens to leave the airport due to security threats. The UK Armed Forces Minister, James Heappey, also warned of a "highly credible threat" of an attack by ISIS militants. The embassies of the US, the UK, and Australia issued similar warnings, highlighting the high-security threats involving the airport.
The warnings from diplomats and officials came amidst growing security concerns after the fall of Kabul to the Taliban on 15 August 2021. The Taliban's capture of the city left Hamid Karzai International Airport as the only route out of Afghanistan. The threat of an attack by ISIS-K increased as hundreds of its members escaped from jails at Bagram and Pul-e-Charkhi.
On the day of the attack, a suicide bomber detonated an explosive belt at Abbey Gate, one of the entrances to the airport. Following the explosion, gunfire erupted, and all gates to the airport were closed. ISIS-K gunmen opened fire into the crowd, and US troops returned fire. The attack transformed a scene of desperation into horror, as thousands of people had gathered at the airport, seeking to flee the Taliban takeover.
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Frequently asked questions
The Kabul airport attack happened on 26 August 2021.
The attack killed 13 US service members and roughly 170 Afghan civilians. However, some sources place the number of Afghan civilians killed at 60.
The Islamic State-Khorasan Province (ISIS-K) claimed responsibility for the attack. In 2023, the leader of the ISIS-K cell that organized the attack was believed to have been killed by Taliban security forces.
