MOAB Bomb Kills 36 ISIS Militants In Afghanistan Airstrike, ‘Mother Of All Bombs’ Facts

The Afghan Ministry of Defense has reported that 36 ISIS militants were killed when the U.S. dropped the ‘mother of all bombs’ on an Islamic State complex in Afghanistan. The massive MOAB bomb is nearly nine feet in length and weighs in at almost 10,000 kgs. According to the DoD the MOAB is the largest non-nuclear conventional weapon in existence.

The U.S. bomb was dropped on an ISIS tunnel complex in the Nangarhar province of Afghanistan. The “mother of all bombs” was dubbed from the ear-splitting blast from the weapon.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MZ8j4QlYcYk

ISIS fighters were using three underground tunnels. The MOAB bomb also destroyed weapons and ammunition, according to the Daily Mail. A Defense Ministry spokesman confirmed that no civilians were hurt.

Former Afghan President Hamid Karzai condemned the attack as “an inhuman and most brutal misuse of our country.” The ministry added the bomb struck a village near Momand valley.

According to reports, ISIS fighters were using a vast network of caves. The bomb also destroyed a large stash of weapons.

The Afghanistan President, Ashraf Ghani, approved of the strike and said the strike was “designed to support the efforts of the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) and US forces…conducting clearance operations in the region.”

“Precautions were taken to avoid civilian casualties with this air strike.”

Multiple Afghan officials have asserted that they had no information about the bombing prior to it happening, as per CNN.

When asked if the bombing will send a stark message to North Korea, Trump revealed that he wasn’t too concerned about the “message.”

“I don’t know if this sends a message; it doesn’t make any difference if it does or not… North Korea is a problem, the problem will be taken care of.”

Mark Toner, the U.S. State Department spokesman said Washington is “working with the government of Afghanistan and our partners in the region in order to deny any terrorist organization — that includes al Qaeda as well — a safe haven or any kind of material support on the ground.”

MOAB Bomb a.k.a ‘Mother Of All Bombs’ Facts

The GBU-43/B Massive Ordnance Air Blast Bomb is the largest non-nuclear bomb ever used by the U.S. in a conflict. The bomb was first tested in 2003 but had never deployed in combat before. Deploying such a large bomb isn’t easy.

So, how can a bomb of this colossal size be deployed?

The world’s largest aircraft used to carry bombs cannot manage to carry MOAB’s incredible size and weight. A parachute will pull the bomb out of the plane on a pallet that will quickly separate from the explosive. The bomb can only be deployed out of the back of large cargo plane using this incredibly unique system.

Sean Spicer disclosed new information to reporters at a White House press conference about the bombing.

“At around 7pm local time in Afghanistan last night the United States military used a GBU-43 weapon in Afghanistan. The GBU-43 is a large, powerful and accurately delivered weapon. We targeted a system of tunnels and caves that Isis fighters used to move around freely, making it easier for them to target US military advisers and Afghan forces in the area.”

Spicer did not answer any further questions about the MOAB bomb at his regular press briefing and referred journalists to the Department of Defense.

BREAKING: US forces in Afghanistan released footage of #MOAB strike against #ISIS targets https://t.co/ltRyZ4plcZ pic.twitter.com/wuX1FvPSd8

— RT (@RT_com) April 14, 2017

The incredible blast emanating from the massive bomb is equivalent to 11 tons of dynamite. The nuclear weapon which was dropped on Hiroshima had a full blast yield of 15 tons of TNT.

An Afghan army soldier who was driving toward the targeted area affected by the MOAB bomb revealed to the Guardian what the explosion felt like.

“The explosion felt like a big earthquake, even in the surrounding districts.”

[Featured Image by USAF/Getty Images]