Two IS militants killed in eastern Afghan airstrike: local gov't

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In a press briefing on Friday, Gen John Nicholson, commander of United States forces in Afghanistan, said: "We have USA forces at the site and we see no evidence of civilian casualties nor have there been reports". The strike came as U.S. President Donald Trump prepares to dispatch his first high-level delegation to Kabul, amid uncertainty about his plans for the almost 9,000 American troops stationed in Afghanistan.

Also on Saturday, Khogyani said a district leader and three others were wounded when their vehicle was targeted by a bomb.

The bomb's destructive power, equivalent to 11 tonnes of TNT, pales in comparison with the relatively small atomic bombs dropped on Japan at the end of World War Two, which had blasts equivalent to between 15,000 and 20,000 tonnes of TNT. He said there were no civilian casualties.

ISIS established its branch in the Afghanistan-Pakistan region in January 2015, less than a month after former President Barack Obama declared an end to the USA combat mission in Afghanistan.

"It was a strong position and four times we had operations [attacking the site] and it was not possible to advance", he said, adding that the road leading to the complex "was full of mines".

White House press secretary Sean Spicer said the bomb had "targeted a system of caves that Isis fighters use to move freely around, making it easier for them to target USA military advisors and Afghan forces in the area".

"We were unable to see each other at home because of the excessive dust inside the room", he said.

Afghan officials had earlier said the bombing had killed 36 IS fighters.

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Karzai also said it was a violation of Afghanistan's sovereignty and a violation of the environment.

Trump hailed the mission in Achin district as "very, very successful".

Estimates about IS's numerical strength inside Afghanistan vary, ranging from several hundred to a few thousand fighters. "The Trump administration made a lot of noise with this bomb, but the general state of play on the ground remains the same: The Taleban continues to wage a formidable and ferocious insurgency".

"Let me be clear - we will not relent in our mission to fight alongside our Afghan comrades to destroy ISIS-K in 2017", he added, referring to ISIS's regional wing known as the Khorasan province.

The Site Intelligence Group, which tracks extremist organizations, reported Friday on a statement from the Afghan Taliban condemning the US for its "terrorist" attack.

He once said the invasion of Afghanistan was a mistake, though he later walked back that statement, saying he "always supported" USA involvement in the country. The two militant movements are rivals.

In March, U.S. forces conducted 79 "counterterror strikes" against Islamic State in Nangarhar, killing as many as 200 militants, according to the U.S. military command in Kabul. In the past year, they have largely concentrated on thwarting a surge of attacks by the Taliban, who have captured key districts, such as Helmand province, which US and British troops had fought bitterly to return to the government.

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