Donald Trump 'very proud' after dropping 'Mother of All Bombs' on Afghanistan
The weapon was used to target Isis militants and the order was given in January 2017
Donald Trump has said he was "very proud of" dropping the "mother of all bombs" on Afghanistan.
US command used a cargo plane to drop the the largest non-nuclear weapon ever used in combat by the American military in Nangarhar province near the Pakistan border – a remote area where members of an Isis affiliate were operating.
White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer said the bomb targeted tunnels and caves Isis fighters used to "move around freely".
Mr Trump praised the US military and said the mission was "very successful".
"Everybody knows exactly what happened and what I do is I authorise my military. We have the greatest military in the world and they've done their job as usual. So, we have given them total authorisation," he said.
The order was signed off by US Central Command's General Joseph Votel and the Pentagon have confirmed to The Independent that General John Nicholson "received authorities" to go after Isis Khorosan, what the local Isis affiliate calls themselves, in January 2017.
It remains unclear whether that was part of the "total authorisation" Mr Trump mentioned earlier or whether this was a specific order given by him to Mr Nicholson.
Mr Trump alluded once again to the previous Obama administration in his comments. He said that there is a "tremendous difference" between "the last eight weeks and compare that to really what's happened over the last eight years."
The bombing comes on the heels of a US missile strike in Syria which was in response to a chemical attack believed by the administration to be carried out by the Syrian President Bashar al Assad's regime.
Comments
Share your thoughts and debate the big issues
Please be respectful when making a comment and adhere to our Community Guidelines.
You can find our Community Guidelines in full here.
- -1) ? 'active' : ''">
Newest first
- -1) ? 'active' : ''">
Oldest first
- -1) ? 'active' : ''">
Most liked
{{/moreThanOne}}Please be respectful when making a comment and adhere to our Community Guidelines.
You can find our Community Guidelines in full here.
- -1) ? 'active' : ''">
Newest first
- -1) ? 'active' : ''">
Oldest first
- -1) ? 'active' : ''">
Most liked
{{/moreThanOne_p}}Follow comments
Vote
Report Comment
Subscribe to Independent Minds to debate the big issues
Want to discuss real-world problems, be involved in the most engaging discussions and hear from the journalists? Try Independent Minds free for 1 month.
Already registered? Log inReport Comment
Delete Comment
About The Independent commenting
Independent Minds Comments can be posted by members of our membership scheme, Independent Minds. It allows our most engaged readers to debate the big issues, share their own experiences, discuss real-world solutions, and more. Our journalists will try to respond by joining the threads when they can to create a true meeting of independent minds. The most insightful comments on all subjects will be published daily in dedicated articles. You can also choose to be emailed when someone replies to your comment.
The existing Open Comments threads will continue to exist for those who do not subscribe to Independent Minds. Due to the sheer scale of this comment community, we are not able to give each post the same level of attention, but we have preserved this area in the interests of open debate. Please continue to respect all commenters and create constructive debates.