The Pentagon said US forces dropped the military’s largest non-nuclear bomb on an ISIL target in eastern Afghanistan.
Pentagon spokesman Adam Stump said the bomb is known as the GBU-43/B Massive Ordnance Air Blast, which contains 11 tons of explosives. It has been nicknamed the "Mother Of All Bombs" in a play on its formal identification.
CGTN Photo
The bomb hit a tunnel complex in the Achin district of Nangarhar Province, according to a statement from the United States military in Afghanistan. There was no mention of how many militants were killed.
The target was believed to be used by ISIL fighters near the border with Pakistan. It was dropped from a MC-130 aircraft, a cargo plane with a rear door.
Army General John W. Nicholson, commander of US forces in Afghanistan, said the strike was designed to minimize the risk to Afghan and US forces conducting clearing operations in the Achin area “while maximizing the destruction” on ISIL fighters and facilities. He said ISIL has been using improvised explosive devices, bunkers and tunnels to strengthen its defenses.
“This is the right munition to reduce these obstacles and maintain the momentum of our offensive against ISIS-K,” he added, using the US military’s acronym for the ISIL affiliate in the country.
The Massive Ordinance Air Blast was first tested in 2003. /File photo of US Department of Defense
The US has not confirmed the results of the strike, but according to a BBC report citing a local official, many ISIL militants were killed, including the brother of a senior leader.
US President Donald Trump called it “another successful job.”
How powerful is the MOAB?
The Massive Ordnance Air Blast bomb, or MOAB, is 30 feet (about 9.14 meters) in length and 21,600 pounds (9,795 kilograms) in weight, and was developed in 2002. The MOAB was first tested in 2003 during the Iraq war, but it had never been used in combat.
According to a CNN report, when the bomb entered its final stages of testing, military officials said the MOAB was mainly conceived as a weapon employed for “psychological operations.” It is expected to create a huge blast that would “rattle Iraqi troops and pressure them into surrendering or not even fighting”.
Screenshot of US Former Defense Secretary William J. Perry's tweet on MOAB
Former US Defense Secretary William Perry explained the difference in power between a MOAB and nuclear bomb, saying that the MOAB explosive yield is only 0.011 kilotons, while typical nuclear yield is 10-180 kilotons.
(Source: Agencies)
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