Archiv: Kenneth Franklin Mckenzie Jr.


30.01.2024 - 06:00 [ Pentagon ]

U.S. Central Command Releases Report on August Abbey Gate Attack

(Feb. 4, 2022)

A total of 11 Marines, a soldier and a sailor were killed in the ISIS-K attack with a total of 45 wounded.

Contrary to first reports, it was not a complex attack. „The investigation found that a single explosive device killed at least 170 Afghan civilians and 13 U.S. service members by explosively directing ball bearings through a packed crowd into our men and women at Abbey Gate,“ McKenzie said. „The investigation found no definitive proof that anyone was ever hit or killed by gunfire either U.S. or Afghan. This conclusion was based upon the careful consideration of sworn testimony of more than 100 witnesses, and especially those witnesses and Observation Towers — both American and British — who were in locations unaffected by the blast, and that had commanding views of the scene before, during and after the explosive attack.“

16.09.2023 - 00:29 [ Washington Post ]

Pentagon to revisit Kabul airport bombing with new witness interviews

Gen. Michael E. Kurilla, who oversees U.S. Central Command, ordered the additional interviews “to ensure we do our due diligence” with information that came to light after the military closed its investigation of the incident, Michael Lawhorn, a Central Command spokesman, said in a statement. By itself, the move does not formally reopen the investigation, completed in November 2021, but the general could determine that doing so is necessary once the additional interviews are complete.

(…)

The attack’s suspected mastermind was killed by the Taliban earlier this year, U.S. officials disclosed in April.

29.09.2021 - 08:57 [ Zachary Cohen, National security reporter @CNN / Twitter ]

Gen. McKenzie again says he is responsible for drone strike that killed 10 civilians but seems to defend decision to fire, citing similar intel for other successful strikes. Still a lot of questions about what transpired before strike, including civilian casualty estimates.

It happened in my area of responsibility, so I‘m the responsible officer for that strike,” McKenzie said during a Senate hearing on Tuesday.

McKenzie said he was under “no pressure” and “no one in my chain of command below me was under any pressure to take that strike.”

29.09.2021 - 08:53 [ theHill.com ]

Five takeaways from the Senate‘s hearing on Afghanistan

Austin said military officials had discussed “a range of possibilities,” but no one planned for the possibility the Afghan government would collapse as quickly as it did.

“We certainly did not plan against a collapse of the government in 11 days,” Austin told lawmakers in response to a lawmaker question.

28.09.2021 - 20:13 [ C-SPAN / Youtube ]

Secretary of Defense & Joint Chiefs Chair and Others Testify on Afghanistan Withdrawal

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, Joint Chiefs Chair General Mark Milley, and General Kenneth McKenzie, commander of U.S. Central Command, testify on the Afghanistan withdrawal.

01.09.2021 - 13:16 [ theGuardian.com ]

Raab rejects US claims Britain indirectly to blame for Kabul attacks

(31.08.2021)

“We coordinated very closely with the US, in particular around the Isis-K threat, which we anticipated although tragically were not able to prevent, but it is certainly right to say we got our civilians out of the processing centre by Abbey gate, but it is just not true to suggest that other than securing our civilians inside the airport that we were pushing to leave the gate open.

“In fact, and let me just be clear about this, we were issuing changes to travel advice before the bomb attack took place and saying to people in the crowd, about which I was particularly concerned, that certainly UK nationals and anyone else should leave because of the risk.”

01.09.2021 - 13:06 [ DailyMail.co.uk ]

US military ‚blames BRITAIN for making Kabul suicide attack death toll worse‘: Leaked Pentagon papers say airport gate had to be kept open for UK evacuees – as questions grow over how many were killed by panicked troops firing on civilians

(30.08.2021)

The British Ministry of Defence declined to respond to allegations they were to blame for keeping the gate open, but said in a statement: ‚Throughout Operation Pitting we have worked closely with the US to ensure the safe evacuation of thousands of people.

01.09.2021 - 12:56 [ theGuardian.com ]

Report reveals US decision to keep open Kabul airport gate before attack

(30.08.2021)

The Pentagon criticised the leaking of the call details reported in Politico, telling the news website: “This story is based on the unlawful disclosure of classified information and internal deliberations of a sensitive nature.

“As soon as we became aware of the material divulged to the reporter, we engaged Politico at the highest levels to prevent the publication of information that would put our troops and our operations at the airport at greater risk. We condemn the unlawful disclosure of classified information and oppose the publication of a story based on it while a dangerous operation is ongoing.”

01.09.2021 - 12:32 [ Politico.com ]

Exclusive: Pentagon prepared for ‘mass casualty’ attack at Kabul Airport hours before explosion

(30.08.2021)

Commanders calling in from Kabul relayed that the Abbey Gate, where American citizens had been told to gather in order to gain entrance to the airport, was “highest risk,” and detailed their plans to protect the airport.

“I don’t believe people get the incredible amount of risk on the ground,” Austin said, according to the classified notes.

On a separate call at 4 that afternoon, or 12:30 a.m. on Thursday in Kabul, the commanders detailed a plan to close Abbey Gate by Thursday afternoon Kabul time. But the Americans decided to keep the gate open longer than they wanted in order to allow their British allies, who had accelerated their withdrawal timeline, to continue evacuating their personnel, based at the nearby Baron Hotel.

16.06.2021 - 09:33 [ i24news.tv ]

IDF chief Kohavi to make postponed Washington trip; discuss Gaza, Iran

Kohavi was initially set to meet with Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley, head of the US Central Command Gen. Kenneth McKenzie Jr., and head of the US Special Operations Command Gen. Richard D. Clark, according to The Jerusalem Post.

02.02.2021 - 15:01 [ i24news.tv/ ]

Israel‘s security cabinet to meet Wednesday over Iran issue: report

The meeting comes amid US State Secretary Antony Blinken’s latest remark to NBC that Tehran could enrich enough uranium to produce a nuclear bomb in a “matter of weeks.”

02.02.2021 - 13:56 [ U.S. Central Command / Twitter ]

Gen McKenzie appreciated the gracious hospitality and expansive discussions on regional security with Defense Minister Gantz and IDF Chief of the General Staff LTG Kochavi last week. @Israel_MOD @IDF

02.02.2021 - 13:49 [ Grayzone ]

How CENTCOM Chief McKenzie manufactured an Iran crisis to increase his power

(15.01.2021)

Almost immediately after taking command at CENTCOM in March 2019, McKenzie launched his campaign of political manipulation. By requesting additional forces to contain a supposedly urgent Iranian threat, McKenzie triggered the dispatch of an aircraft carrier strike group and a bomber task force to the Middle East. A month later, he told reporters he believed the deployments were “having a very good stabilizing effect,” and that he was in the process of negotiating on a larger, long-term U.S. military presence.

As a result of his maneuvering, McKenzie succeeded in acquiring 10,000 to 15,000 more military personnel, bringing the total in his CENTCOM realm to more than 90,000. The rapid increase in assets under his command was revealed in a Senate hearing in March 2020.

28.01.2021 - 11:33 [ Jerusalem Post ]

CENTCOM chief arriving in Israel for talks with Kochavi on Iran

McKenzie’s arrival – he is scheduled to spend one day in Israel – is the first high-level visit by a top American official since Joe Biden was sworn in as president last week.

12.07.2020 - 08:43 [ Jordan News Agency (Petra) ]

King receives US CENTCOM commander

His Majesty King Abdullah on Saturday received Commander of the US Central Command Gen. Kenneth F. McKenzie, Jr., and discussed the strategic partnership between the two countries, especially military and security cooperation.

26.01.2020 - 05:10 [ Matti@eGutenberg / Twitter ]

US forces step up Islamic State operations in Syria | January 26, 2020 – „The tempo is coming back,“ General Kenneth „Frank“ McKenzie jnr, who heads US Central Command,

26.01.2020 - 05:08 [ Washington Post ]

In Syria, U.S. steps up Islamic State operation, but for how long, no one knows

“The tempo is coming back,” Gen. Kenneth “Frank” McKenzie Jr., who heads U.S. Central Command, said during a visit to a constellation of tiny American outposts in eastern Syria.

American troops in Syria, like those in neighboring Iraq, shifted their focus from anti-extremist operations to force protection after a Jan. 3 strike in Baghdad killed Maj. Gen. Qasem Soleimani, Iran’s most influential military figure.

30.11.2019 - 14:51 [ Jerusalem Post ]

Joint Chiefs Chairman Milley visited Israel, met IDF chief Kochavi

(25.11.2019)

The general’s trip comes as part of a series of visits by several high ranking military chiefs including the head of the US Air Force Gen. David Goldfien, USAFE (United States Air Forces in Europe – Air Forces Africa) Commander Gen. Jeffery L. Harrigian and the Commander of US Central Command (CENTCOM) Gen. Kenneth McKenzie.

12.10.2019 - 10:04 [ Pentagon ]

DOD Statement on Deployment of Additional U.S. Forces and Equipment to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

At the request of U.S. Central Command, Secretary of Defense Mark Esper authorized the deployment of additional U.S. forces and the following equipment to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia:

12.10.2019 - 10:02 [ theHill.com ]

US to deploy additional troops, aircraft, missile systems to Saudi Arabia

Defense Secretary Mark Esper had authorized the deployment last month at the request of U.S. Central Command and informed Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and the country‘s defense minister of the action earlier Friday.

21.08.2019 - 17:23 [ UPI.com ]

Bahrain joins U.S.-led coalition safeguarding Persian Gulf shipping

The confirmation came after Gen. Kenneth McKenzie, chief of CENTCOM, and other top U.S. commanders met with Bahrain‘s king in the capital, Manama. Bahrain is the headquarters of the U.S. Fifth Fleet.

22.06.2019 - 10:03 [ Spectator ]

Making Centcom great again

What Centcom officers were worried about is that they would take a back seat to the European and Pacific commands. In fact, there’s a clear, if unstated, pecking order among the commands, retired Col. Kevin Benson, a former director of the Army’s School of Advanced Military Studies, notes. ‘The three most important commands are in Europe, which is Eucom, the Pacific, which is Pacom and now, because of Iran, the Middle East – which is Centcom. Southcom, the Southern Command, is almost always last in priority.’

21.06.2019 - 08:12 [ Tulsi Gabbard, candidate for President / Twitter ]

.@realDonaldTrump Your Iran strategy has been ill-advised and short-sighted. Change course now. Return to the Iran nuclear agreement before it’s too late. Put aside your pride and political calculations for the good of our country. Do the right thing.

21.06.2019 - 06:03 [ New York Times ]

Trump Approves Strikes on Iran, but Then Abruptly Pulls Back

It was not clear whether Mr. Trump simply changed his mind on the strikes or whether the administration altered course because of logistics or strategy. It was also not clear whether the attacks might still go forward.

Asked about the plans for a strike and the decision to hold back, the White House declined to comment, as did Pentagon officials. No government officials asked The New York Times to withhold the article.

21.06.2019 - 05:57 [ Haaretz ]

Report: Trump Approved Military Strikes Against Iran but Pulled Back After Planes Were in Air

U.S. President Donald Trump approved military strikes against Iran in retaliation for downing of American global hawk drone but pulled back after planes were in the air and ships were in position, according to a report by the New York Times citing administration officials.

The report claimed the order to halt attacks on Iranian radar and missile batteries came after intense debate at the White House among top security officials and congressional leaders.

21.06.2019 - 05:44 [ New York Times ]

Want War With Iran? Ask Congress First

From the U.S.S. Maine in Havana Harbor in 1898 to the U.S.S. Maddox in the Gulf of Tonkin in 1964, maritime incidents, shrouded in the fog of uncertainty, have lured the United States into wars on foreign shoals. Which is why cooler heads must prevail — and Congress must be consulted — as American and Iranian forces inch closer to open conflict in and around the Strait of Hormuz.

21.06.2019 - 05:34 [ taskandpurpose.com ]

‚We are there to deter aggression‘ — Pompeo addressed CENTCOM on Iran mere moments before Shanahan announced his departure

(19.06.2019)

Pompeo, who arrived in Tampa on Monday, met with Marine Gen. Kenneth McKenzie Jr. and Army Gen. Richard Clarke, commanders of U.S. Central Command and U.S. Special Operations Command respectively, to align the Government‘s efforts in the Middle East, according to Central Command.

The meeting focused on deterrence plans against Iran after U.S. officials blamed the country for two recent oil tanker attacks in the Gulf of Oman.

21.06.2019 - 05:26 [ Tagesschau.de ]

Drohnen-Abschuss über dem Iran: US-Armee bestreitet Grenzverletzung

Den USA ist dieser Punkt besonders wichtig: Washington widerspricht dem Vorwurf, das Militär habe die iranischen Grenzen verletzt. Es habe vor dem Abschuss keine Provokation von US-Seite gegeben, erklärte Navy Captain Bill Urban vom Central Command.

20.06.2019 - 16:59 [ BBC ]

Strait of Hormuz: US confirms drone shot down by Iran

Iran‘s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) said the aircraft had violated Iranian airspace, and that the incident sent a „clear message to America“.

But the US military insisted the drone had been over international waters at the time, and condemned what it called an „unprovoked attack“ by the IRGC.

18.06.2019 - 05:42 [ CNN ]

US sending 1,000 additional troops to Middle East amid Iran tensions

„In response to a request from the US Central Command for additional forces, and with the advice of the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and in consultation with the White House, I have authorized approximately 1,000 additional troops for defensive purposes to address air, naval, and ground-based threats in the Middle East,“ acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan said in a statement.

15.06.2019 - 00:53 [ Jeremy Hunt, Foreign Secretary (UK) / Twitter ]

I condemn yesterday’s attacks on vessels in the Gulf of Oman. UK’s assessment concludes that responsibility for the attacks almost certainly lies with Iran. These latest attacks build on a pattern of destabilising Iranian behaviour and pose a serious danger to the region

15.06.2019 - 00:01 [ CNN ]

Iranian boat fired missile at US drone prior to tanker attack, US official says

In the hours before the attack on the two tankers in the Gulf of Oman on Thursday, the Iranians spotted a US drone flying overhead and launched a surface-to-air missile at the unmanned aircraft, a US official told CNN.
The missile missed the drone and fell into the water, the official said.

14.06.2019 - 23:57 [ CNBC.com ]

Japanese oil tanker owner disagrees with US military that a mine caused blast near Iran

„We received reports that something flew towards the ship,“ Yutaka Katada, president of Kokuka Sangyo, said at a press conference Friday. „I do not think there was a time bomb or an object attached to the side of the ship,“ he said, adding that a projectile landed above the waterline. (…)

The Pentagon did not immediately respond to CNBC‘s request for comment.

20.05.2019 - 05:23 [ Donald J. Trump, President of the United States ]

If Iran wants to fight, that will be the official end of Iran. Never threaten the United States again!

20.05.2019 - 05:20 [ New York Times ]

Rocket Hits Green Zone in Baghdad as Tensions Flare Between U.S. and Iran

The heavily guarded compound was already on a heightened state of alert after nonemergency personnel there and at the United States Consulate in the northern city of Erbil were ordered last week to leave.

The order came after the Trump administration announced that new intelligence indicated a heightened risk that Iranian forces or proxies were considering an imminent attack on American forces or interests in the Persian Gulf or Iraq.

15.05.2019 - 08:27 [ taskandpurpose.com ]

CENTCOM corrects British general: US forces in Iraq and Syria on heightened alert for Iranian attacks

„There‘s been no increased threat from Iranian-backed forces in Iraq and Syria,“ Maj. Gen. Chris Ghika, a deputy commander for the U.S.-led coalition against ISIS, told reporters at a Pentagon news briefing. „We are monitoring the Shia militia groups carefully and if the threat level perceives to go up them we will raise our force protection levels accordingly.“

But after being pressed by reporters on the matter, Ghika engaged in verbal gymnastics to try to say he was on the same page as the White House by saying the coalition monitors a range of possible threats and it raises and lowers security levels appropriately.

15.05.2019 - 08:25 [ Washington Times ]

Saudi crown prince holds quiet meeting with head of U.S. Central Command

(14.04.2019)

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman met quietly Monday with the head of U.S. Central Command, Gen. Kenneth F. McKenzie, and the two men discussed continued “cooperation” between the two nations in fighting terrorism, according to Riyadh’s state-run news agency.

15.05.2019 - 08:20 [ Stripes.com ]

Bomber task force completes first CENTCOM mission as Iran warns US forces to leave region

(13.05.2019)

B-52H Stratofortress aircraft assigned to the 20th Expeditionary Bomb Squadron from Louisiana’s Barksdale Air Force Base took off from Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar, U.S. Air Forces Central Command said in a brief statement Monday. Additional bombers in the task force had been deployed to an unspecified base in the Middle East.

“They’re here to defend our forces and interests,” said Lt. Col. Christine Millette, a spokeswoman for Air Forces Central Command. Millette did not provide further mission details.

31.03.2019 - 23:34 [ The Defense Post ]

US Marine Corps General McKenzie replaces retiring Votel as CENTCOM Commander

Newly promoted General Kenneth F. McKenzie on Thursday, March 28 took over the leadership of United States Central Command, which oversees U.S. military operations in the Middle East including the conflicts in Syria and Afghanistan. At a ceremony led by Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan, McKenzie pledged to continue the work done by his predecessor, General Joseph Votel, who is retiring.