US identifies Kabul airport suicide bomber

The U.S. military has for the first time publicly named the suicide bomber behind the deadly attack at Kabul airport during the chaotic final days of the American withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021.

The identification was part of findings from a supplemental review ordered by U.S. Central Command to build on the military’s initial investigation by taking into account information and claims that have since surfaced.

The review also found that members of a Marine scout sniper platoon at the airport who believed they had the bomber in their crosshairs were mistaken, and they would not have been able to prevent the attack, ABC News reported.

In a recent briefing with reporters about the review, U.S. officials identified Abdul Rahman al-Logari as the perpetrator of the attack that killed 13 American service members and some 170 Afghans on Aug. 26, 2021.

Al-Logari had been a member of Daesh-Khorasan since 2016, according to a member of the review team from the US army.

At one point he was detained by coalition forces and held in custody, according to the review official.

Daesh claimed responsibility for the attack at Abbey Gate shortly after the bombing, praising al-Logari for committing the attack.

Republican Congress members have repeatedly raised the possibility the bombing could have been prevented in their attacks on the Biden administration’s handling of the withdrawal, largely based on testimony from former Marine Sgt. Tyler Vargas-Andrews, a member of one of the sniper teams providing overwatch near Abbey Gate.

In a March 2023 House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing, Vargas-Andrews claimed his team had a suspicious man matching a description of the suspected Abbey Gate suicide bomber in his sights before the deadly explosion on Aug. 26. He said they were denied permission to fire and prevent the blast, which claimed two of his own limbs.