More than 170 people were killed, including 13 U.S. troops, and at least 200 more were injured in an airport attack at Hamid Karzai International Airport on Thursday, August 26, 2021. 

Two suicide bombers and several gunmen attacked Afghans as they tried to flee from the country after the Taliban takeover, which occurred around a week before. 

Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said one explosion occurred near the airport entrance while the other occurred near a hotel close to the airport. 

Despite the attack, the U.S. government continues to evacuate people and is still sending out flights.

The head of the U.S. Central Command, Gen. Frank Mckenzie, said that alternate routes were being used to transport evacuees and that around 5,000 people were waiting for flights.

The Islamic State group has claimed to be behind the attack, while it is unsure whether the Taliban have any relation to it.

On August 27, 2021, the U.S. Central Command said in a statement that they had organized an airstrike against an ISIS-K planner.

"U.S. military forces conducted an over-the-horizon counterterrorism operation today against an ISIS-K planner. The unmanned airstrike occurred in the Nangarhar Province of Afghanistan," said Capt. Bill Urban, a spokesman for the U.S. Central Command.

A day earlier, in a speech at the White House, U.S. President Joe Biden stated that he had directed the U.S. military to order an airstrike against ISIS.

"We will respond with force and precision at our time, at the place we choose and at the moment of our choosing. Here's what you need to know: These ISIS terrorists will not win," Biden said on Thursday. “We will not forgive. We will not forget. We will hunt you down and make you pay,”

By Alexandria Kim