2016 Bagram Airfield bombing

Last updated
2016 Bagram Airfield bombing
Part of War in Afghanistan (2001–present)
Parwan in Afghanistan.svg
Location of Parwan Province in Afghanistan
Location Bagram, Parwan Province, Afghanistan
Coordinates 34°56′46″N69°15′54″E / 34.946111°N 69.265°E / 34.946111; 69.265
Date12 November 2016
05:30 am (UTC+04:30)
Target Bagram Airfield
Attack type
Suicide bombing
Weapons Explosive belt
Deaths5 (+1 bomber)
Injured18
Perpetrators Taliban
Motive American occupation of Afghanistan

The 2016 Bagram bombing took place on November 12, 2016, when a suicide bomber managed to penetrate the security layer of Bagram Airfield, the largest U.S. military base in Afghanistan located about 45 km north of Kabul, detonating his vest near a group of soldiers who were en route to Modern Army Combatives Training. Four U.S. citizens were killed (2 soldiers and 2 contractors, while at least 17 others were injured, including 16 Americans and 1 Polish citizen. One injured soldier died a month later from complications due to injuries sustained in the blast raising the total killed to 5. [1] [2] [3]

Contents

Attack

According to Abdul Wahid Sediqi, spokesman for the governor of Parwan Province Mohammad Asim Asim, the attacker was employed by a subcontractor of Virginia-based engineering and construction firm Fluor Corporation. [4] He had been constructing the vest over a period of time on the base. [3] After successfully passing through at least one checkpoint, he approached a sidewalk where a group of soldiers were gathering prior to the Veteran's Day running event, detonated his explosive vest around 05:38 local time. [2] Two U.S. soldiers and two U.S. private contractors were killed, in addition to the bomber. Among the 17 injured were 16 U.S. service members and one Polish soldier. [3]

The bombing was the deadliest single incident involving U.S. troops since a December 2015 suicide attack at the same base which killed six troops.

Aftermath

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the bombing in a statement issued by their spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid, confirming the sports ground was the intended target, and adding that the attack had been planned for four months. [3] [2]

In response to the bombing, Bagram Airfield was placed under lockdown, while additional security measures were taken at all other locations in Afghanistan for Resolute Support Mission forces. The Embassy of the United States in Kabul was closed for the following day as a precautionary measure. [2]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bagram Airfield</span> Military base in Afghanistan

Bagram Airfield-BAF, also known as Bagram Air Base, is located 11 kilometres (6.8 mi) southeast of Charikar in the Parwan Province of Afghanistan. It is under the Afghan Ministry of Defense. Sitting on the site of the ancient Bagram at an elevation of 1,492 metres (4,895 ft) above sea level, the air base has two concrete runways. The main one measures 3,602 by 46 metres, capable of handling large military aircraft, including the Lockheed Martin C-5 Galaxy. The second runway measures 2,953 by 26 metres. The air base also has at least three large hangars, a control tower, numerous support buildings, and various housing areas. There are also more than 13 hectares of ramp space and five aircraft dispersal areas, with over 110 revetments.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Taliban insurgency</span> Insurgency during the War in Afghanistan

The Taliban insurgency began after the group's fall from power during the 2001 War in Afghanistan. The Taliban forces fought against the Afghan government, led by President Hamid Karzai, and later by President Ashraf Ghani, and against a US-led coalition of forces that has included all members of NATO; the 2021 Taliban offensive resulted in the collapse of the government of Ashraf Ghani. The private sector in Pakistan extends financial aid to the Taliban, contributing to their financial sustenance.

The 2007 Bagram Airfield bombing was a suicide attack that killed up to 23 people and injured 20 more at the Bagram Airfield in Afghanistan, while Dick Cheney, the Vice President of the United States, was visiting. The attack occurred inside one of the security gates surrounding the heavily guarded base 60 km north of Kabul.

There were 2,402 United States military deaths in the War in Afghanistan, which lasted from October 2001 to August 2021. 1,921 of these deaths were the result of hostile action. 20,713 American servicemembers were also wounded in action during the war. In addition, 18 Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) operatives also died in Afghanistan. Further, there were 1,822 civilian contractor fatalities.

The May 2010 Kabul bombing occurred on May 18, 2010, in Kabul, Afghanistan. 18 people, including 5 US soldiers and a Canadian soldier, were killed and 52 were injured when a NATO convoy was targeted by a Taliban suicide attacker. It was the deadliest attack against NATO forces in Afghanistan since September 2009, when six Italian soldiers were killed by a suicide bomber. Two full colonels and two lieutenant colonels were killed in this attack, making it the deadliest attack against ranking officers in Afghanistan. With this attack, the total number of Americans killed in Afghanistan crossed one thousand.

The following lists events from 2014 in Afghanistan.

The following lists events that happened in 2013 in Afghanistan.

The following lists events that happened during 2015 in Afghanistan.

The 2015 Kabul Parliament attack occurred on June 22, 2015, when members of the Taliban detonated a car bomb outside the National Assembly in Kabul then attacked the building with assault rifles and RPGs. Two civilians and seven Taliban died in the attack.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2015 Bagram Airfield bombing</span> 2015 bombing in Afghanistan

On December 21, 2015, in Bagram, a suicide bomber blew himself up, killing six NATO service members.

The following lists events that happened during 2016 in Afghanistan.

Events in the year 2017 in Afghanistan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2014 Bagram Airfield bombing</span> 2014 suicide bombing in Afghanistan

On 8 July 2014, a Taliban suicide bomber riding a bicycle attacked a joint Afghan-ISAF reconnaissance mission in the vicinity of Qalandar Khel Village in front of the Korean Clinic.

Two bombings on 5 September 2018 at the Maiwand Wrestling Club in Qala-e-Nazer in Dasht-e-Barchi, a predominantly Hazara neighborhood of western Kabul, left at least 20 people dead and 70 others wounded, the deadliest attack on Kabul's Shia since the 15 August suicide bombing. The responsibility for the attacks was claimed by ISIL.

Events from the year 2019 in Afghanistan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2019 Bagram Airfield attack</span> Taliban bombing and attack on a US airfield in Afghanistan

In the early morning of December 11, 2019, the Taliban attacked Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan, which at the time was controlled by the United States military. The attackers used two car bombs which killed two civilians and injured 80 others.

Events in the year 2020 in Afghanistan.

On 8 October 2021, an ISIS-K suicide bombing occurred at the Shia Gozar-e-Sayed Abad Mosque in the Afghan city of Kunduz. Over 50 people were killed, and another 100 were injured, but according to an estimate by the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan, more than 100 people were killed and wounded.

References

  1. "Explosion Kills 4 Americans At Bagram Airfield, Largest NATO Base In Afghanistan". NPR. 2016-11-13. Retrieved 2016-11-13.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Bagram Airfield: 4 dead in blast at US base in Afghanistan". CNN. 2016-11-13. Retrieved 2016-11-13.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "Bomber Kills 4 Americans at U.S. Base in Afghanistan". The New York Times. 2016-11-13. Retrieved 2016-11-15.
  4. "Report: Lax security allowed suicide bomber to kill 5 on Bagram Airfield". Army Times. 2017-12-13. Retrieved 2019-12-16.