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2021 Kabul Airport Attack

ONGOING2021Hamid Karzai International Airport (Abbey Gate), Kabul, Afghanistan3 SOURCESUPDATED JUL 2026

Documents violence · crimes against children · ongoing investigation — written to inform, not to shock.

Illustrative

On 26 August 2021, at approximately 17:50 local time, a suicide bomber detonated an explosive belt at Abbey Gate, one of the entry points to Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, Afghanistan. The attack occurred amid the chaotic 2021 evacuation from Afghanistan, as thousands of Afghan and foreign civilians gathered at the airport seeking to flee following the Taliban's takeover of Kabul on 15 August 2021. The Islamic State – Khorasan Province (ISIS–K) claimed responsibility, naming the bomber as Abdul Rahman al-Logari.

At least 182 people were killed, including 169 Afghan civilians and 13 members of the US military — the first American military fatalities in the Afghanistan war since February 2020. The dead Americans included eleven Marines, one soldier from the 8th Psychological Operations Group, and one Navy corpsman. Two of the Afghan civilians killed were British dual nationals, and one was the child of a British national. At least 150 more people were injured, including 18 US military personnel. Following the explosion, gunfire erupted; US officials attributed some of this to ISIS–K gunmen, though eyewitnesses told reporters that at least some gunfire and resulting deaths came from panicked US troops, a possibility the Pentagon acknowledged at a 28 August news conference. In April 2024, CNN reported on previously undisclosed GoPro footage from a US Marine that showed extensive gunfire following the blast, which CNN said contradicted Pentagon accounts describing minimal gunfire; the Pentagon maintained its prior findings that all casualties stemmed from the bombing itself.

In the days after the bombing, the United States conducted two airstrikes. On 27 August, an airstrike in Nangarhar Province killed two people described by US officials as ISIS–K "planners and facilitators." On 29 August, a US drone strike targeted a vehicle near Kabul airport believed to be linked to ISIS–K; the strike instead killed ten Afghan civilians, including seven children. An investigation by The New York Times found the driver was Zemari Ahmadi, an aid worker for Nutrition and Education International, and that suspicious "packages" observed by surveillance may have been water containers rather than explosives. US Central Command later confirmed that no ISIS–K members were killed in the strike and that all those killed were innocent civilians; officials including Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley confirmed this finding, though Milley had earlier called the strike "righteous."

World leaders, including US President Joe Biden, condemned the airport bombing, with Biden vowing to pursue those responsible. In April 2023, the Taliban reportedly killed the (unnamed) primary plotter of the attack. In March 2025, US officials announced the arrest in Pakistan of Mohammad Sharifullah, who was charged in relation to planning support for the attack; his trial opened on 21 April 2026.

Key facts

Victims
Kareem Nikoui, Zemari Ahmadi
Date
2021
Location
Hamid Karzai International Airport (Abbey Gate), Kabul, Afghanistan
Case status
ongoing

Case timeline

  1. 2021-08-15

    Kabul falls to the Taliban; Hamid Karzai International Airport becomes the sole route out of Afghanistan.

  2. 2021-08-16

    The Pentagon warns the US Congress of an increased terrorist attack threat from ISIS following the fall of Kabul.

  3. 2021-08-22

    President Biden warns that the longer US troops remain in Afghanistan, the greater the threat ISIS poses to personnel and civilians near the airport.

  4. 2021-08-26

    A suicide bomber detonates an explosive belt at Abbey Gate outside Kabul airport, killing at least 182 people, including 169 Afghan civilians and 13 US service members.

  5. 2021-08-27

    The United States launches a drone strike in Nangarhar Province, killing two people described as ISIS–K members.

  6. 2021-08-28

    The Pentagon acknowledges the possibility that some deaths at the airport resulted from US gunfire rather than the explosion.

  7. 2021-08-29

    A US drone strike near Kabul airport kills 10 Afghan civilians, including 7 children, after targeting a vehicle mistakenly believed to be linked to ISIS–K.

  8. 2021-09-17

    USCENTCOM commander Kenneth McKenzie confirms it is unlikely any ISIS–K members were killed in the 29 August drone strike.

  9. 2023-04

    The primary plotter of the ISIS–K cell behind the attack is reported killed by Taliban security forces.

  10. 2024-04

    CNN reports on newly disclosed GoPro footage showing extensive gunfire after the explosion, contradicting Pentagon accounts of minimal gunfire.

  11. 2025-03

    US officials announce the arrest in Pakistan of Mohammad Sharifullah, charged in connection with planning the attack.

  12. 2026-04-21

    The trial of Mohammad Sharifullah opens.

Best coverage

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People

  • Mohammad Sharifullah

    CHARGED

    Also known as "Jafar"; charged with providing and conspiring to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization resulting in death, for allegedly planning al-Logari's route into the airport. Trial opened 21 April 2026.

    citation on file

  • Kareem Nikoui

    VICTIM

    US service member killed in the 26 August 2021 bombing at Abbey Gate.

    citation on file

  • Abdul Rahman al-Logari

    CHARGED

    Named by ISIS–K as the suicide bomber who detonated the explosive device at Abbey Gate; not reported as apprehended or tried.

    citation on file

  • Zemari Ahmadi

    VICTIM

    Afghan aid worker for Nutrition and Education International, killed along with nine others including seven children in the 29 August 2021 US drone strike; identified by The New York Times investigation as having no connection to ISIS–K.

    citation on file

Places

Hamid Karzai International Airport (Abbey Gate), Kabul, Afghanistan

34.5586, 69.2203

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Common questions

What happened to the victim?
A suicide bomber detonated an explosive device at Abbey Gate outside Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul on 26 August 2021, killing at least 182 people, including 169 Afghan civilians and 13 US service members, during the evacuation from Afghanistan. ISIS–K claimed responsibility. Subsequent US airstrikes, including a 29 August drone strike that killed 10 Afghan civilians, followed the attack.
Where did the crime happen?
Hamid Karzai International Airport (Abbey Gate), Kabul, Afghanistan.
What is the current status of the case?
Status: ongoing. Last verified July 2026.

Sources

  1. 2021 Kabul airport attackwikipedia · Wikipedia · 2026-07-07
  2. Contemporaneous coverage of the Kabul airport attacknews · CNN · 2026-07-07
  3. Investigation into the 29 August 2021 Kabul drone strikenews · The New York Times · 2026-07-07

Last verified JUL 2026

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