US airstrikes on Taliban surged in war’s final month amid failed bid to prevent Afghan army’s collapse
by Dan Lamothe
• The Washington Post • December 18, 2021
U.S. airstrikes against the Taliban surged in August, rising to levels not seen in nearly a year as part of the final, failed attempt to prevent the Afghan army’s collapse as militants rapidly took over the country, according to data disclosed Friday.
The burst of attacks came as Taliban fighters encircled numerous provincial capitals and ultimately seized control of Kabul, Afghanistan’s capital, on Aug. 15. About 153 U.S. bombs or missiles were dropped by U.S. war planes and drones that month, up from 18 in July, the data showed.
Until Friday, the U.S. Air Force had not released such a report for nearly two years.
The data does not include strikes launched by the Afghan air force, which routinely carried out bombing until disbanding along with the central government. Nonetheless, the numbers offer a fresh look at how the American military scrambled in the waning days of its longest war, as the situation on the ground grew increasingly desperate for U.S.-trained Afghan forces being overpowered by the Taliban’s assault.
https://www.stripes.com/theaters/middle_east/2021-12-18/us-airstrikes-taliban-afghan-armys-collapse-4012197.html
