A top US military commander has conceded that a drone strike in Kabul last month that left 10 civilians dead was a "mistake". The us had earlier said that the drone strike had targeted ISIS-K terrorists days after a suicide bombing at the Kabul airport. Later it came to light that 10 civilians, including up to seven children, were killed in the strike.
Briefing reporters on the results of the investigation of the August 29 strike, General Frank McKenzie, the commander of the US Central Command, also said it was "unlikely that the vehicle and those who died in the drone strike were associated with ISIS-K or were a direct threat to US forces".
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However, the strike must be considered in the context of the on-ground situation at the Hamid Karzai International Airport following the ISIS-K attack that killed 13 soldiers, sailors, and Marines and more than 100 civilians. Also, a substantial body of intelligence had indicated the imminence of another attack, he said.
Gen. McKenzie said that having thoroughly reviewed the findings of the probe and supporting analysis, he is convinced that as many as 10 civilians, including up to seven children, were tragically killed in that drone strike.
"It was a mistake, and I offer my sincere apology. As the combatant commander, I am fully responsible for this strike and this tragic outcome," he told reporters at a Pentagon news conference.
US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin also apologized to the relatives of those killed in a statement.
"I offer my deepest condolences to surviving family members of those who were killed," Austin said in a statement.