The Pentagon has confirmed that the US Military has dropped the largest non-nuclear bomb called M.O.A.B an acronym for Massive Ordinance Air Burst Bomb at a suspected ISIS headquarters in afghanistan. The attack was in retaliation for the death of a Green Barrett soldier in the country a few days before during a firefight with Taliban and ISIS insurgents. The bomb is also nicknamed the "Mother of all bombs" due to its massive size.
What is M.O.A.B.?
The MOAB is America's largest non-nuclear weapon, which is a 21,000 lbs conventional bomb, which is designed to destroy any target, even a highly bomb-proofed bunker utterly.
The bomb was dropped on an area, which was suspected to house a large contingent of ISIS fighters in the Nangahar province in the Afghanistan. This is the most destructive attack the US made in the country after the US was pulled out of the country. Nangahar Province is in a mountainous area in North Afghanistan near the Pakistan border. The Pakistan border is one of the most problematic areas in Afghanistan as ISIS insurgents easily cross this area to fight with the Taliban.
What is the impact of M.O.A.B. in modern warfare?
This was the first time the "Mother of all bombs" was deployed on an enemy target. Though it was part of the Air Force arsenal during the Iraq war, it was only during this attack was the bomb first used in combat.
An ordinance of this size can easily demolish and devastate any structure in any kind of terrain. Ever in the mountainous area of Nangarhar, this massive weapon can easily destroy tunnels and even bunkers that have been dug into the mountain itself. This weapon is also not nuclear, so radiation will not be a hazard, making it an effective weapon for destroying highly defended strategic targets.
As compared by Fox News, a single Tomahawk missile used to bomb Syria after the alleged chemical attack of Assad's forces on a rebel-held village weighed only 1,000 lbs. Weapons of this type are essential for eliminating targets of opportunity without committing soldiers into the area. This has been the tactic used by the United States to neutralize enemy targets without essentially sending squads of infantry.
The Pentagon also said that they had made all the precautionary measures to avoid civilian casualties in the attack. It is still not sure how the military will be able to halt the surge of ISIS fighters helping Taliban insurgents in Afghanistan, which is slowly gaining ground in the area. According to military intelligence, the Taliban has now gained more ground today than it had during the start of the Afghan war 16 years ago.