SAN DIEGO – At least thirteen US service members were killed in an attack by the Islamic State militant group outside Kabul’s airport, where Americans and allies were being evacuated from Afghanistan.
ISIS-K, known as the Islamic State Khorasan, claimed responsibility for the “martyr attack” on Thursday, which involved a suicide bomber who detonated an explosive belt at the airport gate.
ISIS gunmen also opened fire on soldiers and civilians, according to Marine General Frank McKenzie, the head of US Central Command. were among the dead 1 1 US Marines, Many are based at Camp Pendleton, north of San Diego.. Officials said eighteen service members were injured.
President Joe Biden said on Thursday that fallen service members were “on guard at the airport” when they were killed.
“They are the backbone of America, what is best for the country,” he said.
The names of the Marines were withheld by the Pentagon until their families were informed, but some of the dead were identified by relatives and political leaders.
NBC News has confirmed the identities of some of the service members killed.
David Lee Espinosa
Espinoza, 20, was a Marine from Laredo, Texas. the city said Facebook Friday: “Your acts of courage and bravery will always be remembered in our community.”
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott tweeted That he ordered the state flags to be half-masted. “These heroes should never be forgotten,” he said.
NBC affiliate KGNS Laredo said that although Espinoza was born in the city, he grew up in Rio Bravo.
Darin Taylor Hoover
Hoover was a US Marine Staff Sergeant from Utah. His father told an NBC colleague KSL He is proud of his son of Salt Lake City that he worked hard with respect. His uncle Jeremy Soto told the station that Hoover spent his adult life as a Marine.
“He’s a hero,” Soto said.
Utah Governor Spencer Cox said in a statement: “Staff Sergeant Hoover served valiantly as a Marine and died serving his fellow countrymen in Afghanistan as well as America’s allies. We pay tribute to his country.” Respect the tremendous bravery and commitment, even as we condemn the senseless violence that resulted in his death.”
US Representative Blake Moore, R-Utah, said in a statement: “We will forever be grateful for his sacrifice and his legacy. He spent his last moments serving our state and our nation, and we will never forget his unwavering devotion. “
ryan nusso
According to an NBC affiliate, Knauss, 23, was from East Tennessee. WBIR of Knoxville. A family member said that he had just completed training in psychological operations and that he is looking forward to serving in Washington, D.C.
US Representative Tim Burchett, R-Tennessee, tweeted: “Ryan Knauss laid down his life outside Hamid Karzai International Airport to help people he didn’t know. That’s what true heroism looks like.”
Reilly McCallum
McCollum, a US Marine, was identified as a 2019 graduate of Jackson Hole High School by Wyoming State Superintendent of Education Jillian Balo.
“My arms are tightly wrapped around Reilly’s loved ones and I pray that she finds some rest,” Balo said in a statement.
Government Mark Gordon, tweeted“I am devastated to learn that Wyoming lost one of its own in yesterday’s terrorist attack in Kabul.
McCollum’s Facebook profile states that he lived in Oceanside, California, next to Camp Pendleton.
A woman, who identified herself as her sister, said on Facebook that she had been deployed to Afghanistan to assist in the evacuation of Americans and allies from the country.
Karim Nikoui
The city of Norco, California, identified the US Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Karim Mai’lee Grant Nikoi, who was based at Camp Pendleton.
The city said in a statement that Nikoi, who was part of the US Army Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps at Norco High School, was “committed to serving his country and has his mother, father and siblings behind him.”
hunter lopez
The Sheriff’s Association in Riverside, Calif., which represents rank-and-file members of the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department, said in a statement that Lopez was the son of Sheriff’s Captain Herman Lopez and Deputy Alicia Lopez. They identified him as a US Marine Corps corporal.
“Hunter was a victim of vicious evil and was executed because he wore a United States Marine uniform with love and pride,” the union said in a statement.
Sheriff Chad Bianco said, “I am incredibly sad and heartbroken for the Lopez family as they grieve at the loss of their American hero.”
Jared Schmitz
Lance Cpl. According to Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Missouri, Schmitz was from Wentzville, Missouri. “I promised his family that his service and his legacy will not be forgotten,” he said tweeted Friday.
State Representative Nick Schroer called him “a true American hero”. Facebook Post.
Schmitz’s father told a St. Louis-area radio station that his son was one of the service members recalled To assist Afghanistan in the pullout.
Romero reported gains from San Diego and from Washington, D.C.
Reema Abdelkader has contributed.