US Drops Massive Bomb on Tunnels it Says Belonged to Islamic State

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Washington, 17 Rajab 1438/14 Apriln2017 (MINA) – The Pentagon said Thursday it used a massive bomb in Afghanistan on an Islamic State tunnel complex in Nangarhar province.

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The GBU-43 bomb, which goes by the nickname MOAB for massive ordnance air blast bomb, was dropped from a US aircraft at 7:32 pm (1502 GMT) on the tunnel complex in Achin “as part of ongoing efforts to defeat ISIS-K in Afghanistan in 2017,” DPA reported, citing Pentagon in a news release.

“The strike was designed to minimize the risk to Afghan and US forces conducting clearing operations in the area while maximizing the destruction of ISIS-K fighters and facilities,” the statement said, referring to Islamic State by an alternate acronym.

The MOAB is also known as the “mother of all bombs,” according to CNN.

The network reported that the nearly 10,000-kilogramme device is guided by the global positioning system (GPS) and is America’s most powerful non-nuclear bomb.

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The military is currently assessing the damage, CNN said, adding that sources said General John Nicholson, commander of US forces in Afghanistan, signed off on the use of the bomb. (T/RS5/RS1)

Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)

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