US Sending B-52 Bombers to Afghanistan

By Staff, Agencies

The Pentagon announced that the military is sending a number of long-range B-52 bombers and additional troops to Afghanistan and boosting its presence in the Middle East region.

Pentagon spokesman John Kirby told reporters on Friday that US Military Secretary Lloyd Austin has approved the addition of several B-52 bombers to Afghanistan, and will keep the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower in the Gulf.

The Pentagon claimed that the military build-up in the region is part of its full troop withdrawal from Afghanistan.

"It would be foolhardy and imprudent not to assume that there could be resistance and opposition from the Taliban," Kirby said. "We're going to make this a safe orderly deliberate and responsible" withdrawal.

Kirby also said the Pentagon might also deploy additional ground forces to Afghanistan, for logistics support and force protection.

The news comes days after US President Joe Biden announced that Washington would withdraw troops from Afghanistan by Sept. 11, twenty years after America launched its longest war against the impoverished country.

Under a February 2020 “peace” deal between the Taliban and the Trump administration, Washington vowed to withdraw all 2,500 US troops remaining in Afghanistan. In return, the Taliban pledged to stop attacks on US troops.

The Taliban have said the United States has breached its agreement with the group for the troop withdrawal from Afghanistan.