First Time Ever Used in
Combat – Yay, “We're #1”
Washington (CNN) — The US military dropped
America's most powerful non-nuclear bomb on ISIS targets in Afghanistan
Thursday, the first time this type of weapon has been used in battle, according
to US officials.
The bomb is the “Massive
Ordnance Air Blast Bomb (MOAB)” nicknamed by the troops: “Mother of All Bombs”
was dropped at 7:32 p.m. local time. The MOAB, officially the GBU-43-B (GBU: Guided Bomb Unit) bomb, is a 30-foot-long, 21,600-pound,
GPS-guided munition so large it has to be dropped by parachute from the C-130
aircraft and then released to dive as most bombs do – nose first on the target.
Officials
said the target was an ISIS cave and tunnel complex and personnel in the Achin
district of the Nangarhar province, a remote area in the country's east which
borders Pakistan.
Press Secretary Sean Spicer said: “The United States takes the fight against ISIS very
seriously and in order to defeat the group we must deny them operational space,
which we did. The strike targeted a system of tunnels and cave that ISIS fighters
use to move around freely.” (I Note: The BDA (Bomb Damage Assessment) is pending, as well as enemy casualties (remains unknown).
Noteworthy is the fact that Mr. Trump
declined to say whether he personally signed off on the strike, but did say: “Everybody knows exactly what happens. So, what I do
is I authorize our military. We have given them total authorization and that's
what they're doing.” Asked about what “total authorization” meant, a senior
administration official declined to specify whether the President indeed
ordered the strike in Afghanistan, saying
simply: “We don't approve every strike. This administration has moved
further away from dictating military strategy from the White House.”
It's
a change Trump and Sec. Def. Mattis wanted, implying that the President granted
military commanders broader latitude to act independently which Trump now touts
as making a “tremendous difference” in the fight against ISIS.
Recall
that during his campaign, Trump vowed to eradicate ISIS, saying he would “Bomb the shit” out of the terror
group also known as ISIL. Right on cue, Republican hawks were quick to voice
their support for this first in history of warfare strike such as: “I hope
America's adversaries are watching & now understand there's a new sheriff
in town," tweeted Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) reserve JAG officer – who apparently
knows combat in the courtroom at least?
Graham’s tweet: “Pleased the Air Force dropped the MOAB against ISIL
in Afghanistan. Must be more aggressive against ISIL everywhere- including Afghanistan.”
(I Note: Boy
I hope ISIS does not set up some cell somewhere in the U.S. and start some planning
and hiding and stuff, otherwise Trump and Graham will drop bombs here as Graham
said: “… aggressive against ISIL everywhere…”
Oops might be too late at that point you think)?
Q: Why does Trump think or perceive
that he has to keep pushing the limits on warfare … this bomb now the first one
used in combat. You have wonder why our adversaries, real or imagined plan to
hit us, too. Seems Trump is ratcheting up the Geo. W. Bush doctrine of
preemptive warfare: That is a deliberate decision to begin a war like Bush did
telling us about invading Iraq: “It is better to destroy Saddam Hussein's regime now than to
deal later with a regime armed with nuclear weapons or other WMD later.”
(I Note: How'd that turn
out? Well, for one thing, the world knows that WMD scare tactic turned out to be
one a huge lie – one of the biggest in history of warfare).
Stay tuned – Donald John “Rambo” Trump ain’t done yet – he’s just getting started.
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