Donald Trump has thanked Pakistan for helping in arresting the ISIS terrorist suspected to be behind the 2021 Kabul airport bombing. On August 26, 2021, the bomber blasted a device at the packed Hamid Karzai International Airport as many citizens attempted to flee Afghanistan mere days after the Taliban brutally seized control of the Afghan capital. The suicide bombing killed 170 Afghan nationals and 13 U.S. troops. Heartbreaking pictures from the incident were released later, sending shockwaves through the world. The images showed people desperately trying to escape the Taliban takeover, clinging onto departing aircraft and on top of some planes.
During his first Congressional address for his second term, Donald Trump announced that Pakistan had played a major role in arresting “the top terrorist responsible” for the heinous Kabul airport bombing. It has been reported that the suspect is an Afghan national. Calling the incident an “atrocity,” the U.S. President stated that the ISIS boss has been extradited to “face the swift sword of American justice.”
Trump also hailed Pakistan for assisting in “arresting the monster.” However, he didn’t provide much details of the operation. Meanwhile, Shehbaz Sharif, the Prime Minister of Pakistan, announced that the arrested terrorist is named Mohammad Sharifullah, who is known as a top commander for Islamic State Khorasan, one of ISIS’ most lethal branches.
Shariff also thanked Donald Trump for acknowledging Pakistan’s role in the operation, and appreciating the country’s counter-terrorism efforts in Afghanistan. Taking to X (formerly Twitter), he wrote “We will continue to partner closely with the United States in securing regional peace and stability.”
We thank US President Donald Trump for acknowledging and appreciating Pakistan’s role and support in counter terrorism efforts across the region, in the context of Pakistan Security Forces’ recent apprehension of ISKP’s top tier operational commander Shareefullah, who is an…
— Shehbaz Sharif (@CMShehbaz) March 5, 2025
Meanwhile, discussing Pakistan’s help in arresting the Abbey Gate attack suspect, South Asia Institute director at The Wilson Center, Michael Kugelman, wrote on X that the country is trying to “leverage US concerns about terror in Afghanistan and pitch a renewed security partnership.” He emphasized that Pak’s role in the whole operation should be seen in this context.
Following the brutal bomb attack, the United States withdrew its last military troops from Afghanistan back in August 2021. While addressing Congress on Tuesday, Trump also took a jab at his Democratic rival, Joe Biden, for a “disastrous and incompetent withdrawal from Afghanistan.”
Two years after the Kabul airport bombing, The White House announced that another Islamic State Official, who was involved in plotting the attack, had been killed in an operation by the country’s new Taliban government.
Meanwhile, Pakistan accused Afghanistan of failing to eradicate militants sheltering in the country. However, the Taliban government denied such accusations. Although, since the U.S. and Nato withdrawal from Afghanistan, Pak’s strategic importance has diminished significantly, militancy has bounced back in the border areas.
In the last few years, Islamic State Khorasan has staged a concerning number of international attacks, including the deadly Moscow concert hall gunning that took 140 lives and the Iranian bombing last year, which caused 90 deaths.
