BY JOSEPH TREVITHICK
The Taliban has tried to assassinate U.S. Secretary of Defense James Mattis months after he bluntly acknowledged the Afghan government and its American-led coalition partners were losing the war in the country against Taliban insurgents and terrorists, including ISIS. The brazen attack on Hamid Karzai International Airport in the capital Kabul comes as the U.S. government is still struggling to implement a new vision for the conflict.
In the attack on Sept. 27, 2017, the Afghan insurgents fired at least 40 rounds at the airport, including rocket propelled grenades and mortar bombs, according to reports. Mattis had earlier arrived for an official visit, but the timing was unannounced precisely due to these types of security concerns.
There is no indication that the Secretary was ever in any actual danger from the inaccurate bombardment. It did reportedly kill one civilian, wound nearly a dozen more, and lead to a firefight in a nearby neighborhood where Afghan troops killed four militants. An official statement from the U.S.-led coalition said it had conducted an air strike in support of the Afghan response, but that "tragically, one of the missiles malfunctioned, causing several casualties."
“A lot is riding on this of course as we look toward how do we put an end to this fighting and the threat of terrorism to the Afghan people, to the international community and how do we put this into a path of political reconciliation,” the top American defense official said later in the day at the Presidential Palace, speaking alongside Afghan President Ashraf Ghani. “We are here to set the military and security conditions for that but recognize ultimately the responsibility for the Afghan leadership under your direction.”
http://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/14675/taliban-tries-to-kill-mattis-as-us-struggles-with-new-afghanistan-strategy
