# Bombing in Afghanistan **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 11, 2001, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bombing-in-afghanistan/80936 "2001-09-11T22:09:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2001, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bombing-in-afghanistan/80936/1 "2001-09-11T22:09:50Z")
The madness isn’t over… CNN reports bombing in Afghanistan… ---
**Author:** ![gooti](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/eb8c5e/32.png) [@gooti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gooti)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2001, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bombing-in-afghanistan/80936/2 "2001-09-11T22:13:11Z")
I hope and pray they have the right target-if it is indeed retaliation. ---
**Author:** ![Ruby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/13edae/32.png) [@Ruby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruby)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2001, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bombing-in-afghanistan/80936/3 "2001-09-11T22:13:26Z")
The video clearly shows tracer fire from what appears to be missles. Apparently Afghanistan has been having a civil war for quite some time so it’s not necessarily a retaliation from us. There is certainly unconfirmed “facts” that Bin Laden is responsible for this travesty. ---
**Author:** ![Rossarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/3e96dc/32.png) [@Rossarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rossarian)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2001, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bombing-in-afghanistan/80936/4 "2001-09-11T22:14:34Z")
Everyone seems to be assuming this is retaliatory strikes bu the US. My first thought was that it is the Northern Alliance responding to the attempted assassination (or succesful, no one’s sure) of Ahmed Shah Massoud, their head leader. That’s my guess. ---
**Author:** ![gobear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8dc957/32.png) [@gobear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gobear)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2001, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bombing-in-afghanistan/80936/5 "2001-09-11T22:16:22Z")
_sigh_. The dark, bestial part of my nature says, “Good, let them suffer!” The decent half says, “Please, Goddess, no more civilian deaths. Don’t hurt innocent people.” By all means, kill the Taliban officials and the bin Laden terrorists, but all I can think of is some poor Afghan woman getting blown to smithereens because people she doesn’t know killed other people she doesn’t know. ---
**Author:** ![Arden\_Ranger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b487fb/32.png) [@Arden\_Ranger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arden_Ranger)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2001, 10:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bombing-in-afghanistan/80936/6 "2001-09-11T22:17:26Z")
CNN reportors say they cannot confirm where the fire is coming from, whether it’s from their own civil war or from us. But he does say it is not typical compared to what he has been seeing previously. ---
**Author:** ![Padeye](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a9a28c/32.png) [@Padeye](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Padeye)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2001, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bombing-in-afghanistan/80936/7 "2001-09-11T22:24:36Z")
MSNBC reports that it isn’t a US action in Kabul. ---
**Author:** ![Ruby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/13edae/32.png) [@Ruby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruby)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2001, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bombing-in-afghanistan/80936/8 "2001-09-11T22:34:10Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Padeye \* > \*\*MSNBC reports that it isn’t a US action in Kabul. \*\* CNN is now reporting the same. The president is to brief the country at about 9:00 pm EST. ---
**Author:** ![Billdo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/billdo/32/315_2.png) [@Billdo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Billdo)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2001, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bombing-in-afghanistan/80936/9 "2001-09-11T22:34:51Z")
CNN reported that White House Press Secretary Ari Fleisher stated that the Kabul explosions are not a result of US retaliation. ---
**Author:** ![headshok](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e56c9b/32.png) [@headshok](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/headshok)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2001, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bombing-in-afghanistan/80936/10 "2001-09-11T22:35:31Z")
Wolf Blitzer just confirmed on CNN that the White House is denying that the explosions in Kabul are a result of US action. Apparently, it’s part of the ongoing civil war over there. ---
**Author:** ![Arden\_Ranger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b487fb/32.png) [@Arden\_Ranger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arden_Ranger)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2001, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bombing-in-afghanistan/80936/11 "2001-09-11T22:56:13Z")
Food for thought from [MSNBC](http://www.msnbc.com/news/627086_asp.htm) > [@](#): > > Excerpt: > THE SCALE of the attacks and the loss of life — mostly in New York City’s World Trade Center, but also in Pittsburgh and Washington — ensured that “no option has been taken off the table,” senior U.S. officials said. Asked if that included nuclear weapons, one senior official said: “I said no option is out of the question. That’s precisely what I mean.” ---
**Author:** ![LifeOnWry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/96bed5/32.png) [@LifeOnWry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LifeOnWry)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2001, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bombing-in-afghanistan/80936/12 "2001-09-11T23:20:56Z")
This is so sad. Heard an interviewer on the radio ask some government official whether the US citizenry is prepared for the possibility of war. Whoever this official was, he said, “After today, yes.” My opinion only, but that is not “prepared for war”. It’s bloodlust and vengeance. I understand the feelings behind it. I, too, am angry and horrified at these tragedies, but also horrified by the prospect of war. Don’t ask me what the solution is, I don’t know. But somehow I can’t get my head around the idea that we should avenge the taking of innocent lives by taking more lives. No lectures please, I’m just venting and hoping that whoever is in charge of these decisions can manage to be cool-headed and open-hearted. ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2001, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bombing-in-afghanistan/80936/13 "2001-09-12T15:48:02Z")
My friends in England said that it could be China who did this. That would be interesting. Well, we just have to wait & see who wants to claim doing it. Osama said taht he didn’t do it & if he did, I would think he would be bragging about it as it would make him a King in his area. I agree though, those missles aren’t ours. ---
**Author:** ![Tansu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/67e7ee/32.png) [@Tansu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tansu)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2001, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bombing-in-afghanistan/80936/14 "2001-09-12T16:04:49Z")
The explosions in Kabul are reported to be from helicopter gunships belonging to the North Afghanistan based opposition to the Taleban. The Afghan opposition said they were retaliating for an assassination attempt on their leader. It is possible that they also wished to create panic and fears of US retribution. Osama bin Laden is the chief suspect at this time.