Achin district is located in Afghanistan's Nangarhar province, a mountainous region that shares a border with Pakistan.
"The enemy had created bunkers, tunnels and extensive mine fields, and this weapon was used to reduce those obstacles so that we could continue our offensive in southern Nangarhar", he said, adding U.S. and Afghan forces at the site had seen "no evidence of civilian casualties".
The bomb's official name is GBU-43B and it unleashes 11 tons of explosives. It's the most destructive non-nuclear weapon in the USA arsenal and Thursday's blast marked the first time it has been used in conflict.
The Massachusetts Democrat, who has become a leading critic of the Republican president, raised questions about the Trump administration's military strategy following a Thursday night town hall-style meeting in Salem.
A group gathers around a GBU-43B on display at the Air Force Armament Museum on Eglin Air Force Base in Florida.
.The US military was quizzed Friday on whether the 21,600-pound behemoth, known as the "mother of all bombs" for its extraordinary force, was necessary for that particular target. "It was another successful event".
He added: "In Afghanistan, the United States could score a major tactical victory if this bomb ends up eliminating large numbers of ISIS fighters". It was first tested in 2003, but the Nangarhar strike represented the first time the huge weapon has been used in combat.
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United States military officials say the Taleban controls about a third of Afghanistan, while ISIS is said to control a relatively small area in Nangarhar province, adjoining the border with Pakistan. It's estimated 600 to 800 Islamic State fighters are in Afghanistan.
"I want to reassure the people of Afghanistan that we took every possible precaution to prevent civilian casualties".
Afghanistan's ambassador to the US, Hamdullah Mohib, said the colossal MOAB was dropped after fighting had intensified over the last week.
Mufti Khan, a resident of Achin in Nangarhar, said: "The whole house was shaking".
Security experts say IS had built their redoubts close to civilian homes, but the government said thousands of local families had already fled the area in recent months of fighting.
Afghan commandos arrive at Pandola village near the site of a US bombing in the Achin district of Jalalabad, east of Kabul, Afghanistan, Friday, April 14, 2017. The two militant movements are rivals of each other. An American special forces soldier was killed last Saturday in Nangarhar while conducting anti-IS operations.
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