Pakistani intelligence officers confirmed the arrest of a suspected senior planner of the 2021 Kabul airport bombing yesterday, a day after President Donald Trump announced the arrest in his address to Congress.
The suspect, Mohammad Sharifullah, was captured in Pakistan’s Balochistan province after a coordinated effort with US intelligence. Sharifullah was extradited to the US and appeared in federal court yesterday to face charges of providing material support to a foreign terrorist organization, resulting in death. If convicted, Sharifullah faces a maximum penalty of life in prison. Officials say Sharifullah is a member of ISIS-Khorasan and admitted to planning the deadly suicide bomber attack at the Kabul airport’s Abbey Gate.
The bombing took place amid the withdrawal of US forces from Afghanistan, killing 13 US service members and roughly 170 Afghan civilians. The attack was part of the chaotic departure that concluded America’s longest war and undermined public confidence in former President Joe Biden’s administration.
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