Neither would directly say whether Trump authorized use of largest non-nuclear weapon ever used in combat in Afghanistan<\/b>
Last Updated Apr 13, 2017 9:34 PM EDT
President Trump didn\u2019t say Thursday whether he specifically authorized the use of the \u201c mother of all bombs \u201d in Afghanistan hours earlier, simply remarking his White House has given the military \u201ctotal authorization.\u201d
\u201cWhat I do is I authorize my military,\u201d Mr. Trump said in response to reporters\u2019 questions about the bomb drop during a White House meeting with first responders from the recent Atlanta bridge fire.
White House press secretary Sean Spicer also refused to say during Thursday\u2019s press briefing whether Mr. Trump specifically authorized the bomb dropped on an ISIS cave complex in Afghanistan , or whether Mr. Trump was briefed ahead of time, referring all questions to the Pentagon. The bomb was the largest U. S. non-nuclear weapon ever used in combat, with an explosive value equivalent to 11 tons of TNT.
The site where the \u201cmother of all bombs\u201d was dropped on an ISIS complex in Afghanistan.
\u201cWe targeted a system of tunnels and caves that ISIS fighters used to move around freely, making it easier for them to target U. S. military advisers and Afghan forces in the area,\u201d Spicer said, before refusing to answer questions about the explosives.
\u201cThe United States took all precautions necessary to prevent civilian casualties and collateral damage,\u201d Spicer added.
White House press secretary Sean Spicer held a shorter-than-usual press briefing after the Pentagon said that the U. S. military had dropped a mas…
Pentagon officials said the strike had been in the works for months and that the bomb was moved into Afghanistan during the Obama administration, CBS News national security correspondent David Martin reports. Authority to use it had been delegated to Gen. John Nicholson, the U. S. commander in Afghanistan, although he notified Washington in advance.
Spicer\u2019s approach to the use of the bomb in Afghanistan differed significantly from his approach to last week\u2019s missile strike , a strike Mr. Trump authorized specifically. After that strike, the White House offered a rundown of the events leading up to the event and generally answered reporters\u2019 questions.
The MOAB, nicknamed the \u201cmother of all bombs,\u201d was produced in an Air Force research lab in 2003 to put pressure on then-Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein in anticipation of the Iraq War.
In this handout provided by the Department of Defense, A Massive Ordnance Air Blast (MOAB) weapon is prepared for testing at the Eglin Air Force Armament Center on March 11, 2003, in Valparaiso, Fla.
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Just how many almonds does he really eat, anyway?<\/p>\n

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