• General Kenneth McKenzie said ISIS-K was firing at US military planes in Kabul to no avail.

• But he warned that non-military jets helping evacuate people lack such defense systems.

• ISIS-K took responsibility for Thursday’s explosions that killed at least 95 Afghans and 13 US soldiers.

• See more stories on the Insider business page.

ISIS’s Afghan branch fires ineffectively at US military planes at Kabul airport, but other planes are vulnerable, a senior US general has warned.

Marine Corps Gen. Kenneth F. McKenzie Jr., commander of the United States Central Command, said Thursday he believed ISIS-K wanted to attack planes entering and exiting Kabul airport, where citizens foreigners, foreign troops and Afghan refugees are evacuated after the Taliban take power.

“We know ISIS would like to attack these planes if they can,” he said, adding that he did not believe the terrorist group currently has the capacity to demolish the plane. .

“They shot our planes on occasion to no avail. We think this will continue. And we will, but as you know military planes have a variety of self-defense systems.”

“Who [are] more vulnerable are actually charter planes and other planes arriving that don’t have these systems, ”he said.

McKenzie said the United States is keeping a close eye on threats to their planes “because the reality of the plane is the only way for us to get people out of there. So we’re very sensitive to threats to our planes. planes “.

His comments came after two explosions at Kabul airport on Thursday that killed at least 95 Afghans and 13 US soldiers.

ISIS-K has claimed responsibility for the attacks. The Pentagon and President Joe Biden blamed the group for the attacks, with Biden vowing revenge.

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