The attack, launched from outside Afghanistan, is the first by the U.S. military following Thursday’s suicide bombing at Kabul airfield.
The United States destroyed, by controlled detonation, Eagle Base, the last CIA outpost located outside Kabul Airport, Afghanistan.
The blast at the base, which was heard all over Kabul, was intended to ensure that any equipment or information fell into the hands of the Taliban, U.S. officials told The New York Times.
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The Eagle Base began operations at the beginning of the war in an old brick factory, and was used throughout the conflict. Over time it went from being a small outpost to being an expanding center that was used to train the anti-terrorist forces of Afghanistan’s intelligence agencies.
“They were an exceptional unit. They were one of the main means used by the Afghan government to keep the Taliban at bay for the last 20 years. They were the last to fight and suffered many casualties,” said Mick Mulroy, a former CIA officer who served in Afghanistan.
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As detailed by NYT, the complex was extremely safe and was designed to be almost impossible to penetrate into. Walls up to 3 meters high surrounded the enclosure, and a thick metal door opened and closed quickly to allow vehicles to pass.
Once inside, vehicles had to go through three external security checkpoints where documents were registered and reviewed before they were allowed to enter the base.
While the destruction of the base came after the ISIS-K attack on Kabul airport that killed some 170 Afghans and 13 members of the US service, it had already been planned in advance. However, its detonation, hours after the attack, alarmed many people in Kabul, who feared it was another terrorist attack.
With information from infobae.com