Psaki Dodges On Consequences For Botched Kabul Airstrike

White House press secretary Jen Psaki dodged questions about whether there will be any consequences for U.S. military officials following a botched drone strike in Kabul that killed 10 innocents, including seven children, in August.

While the Pentagon initially reported that the drone strike on a white Toyota Corolla had killed “at least one” ISIS-K terrorist, it admitted Friday that the U.S. had fired on the wrong target. In fact, the missile dispatched zero terrorists, instead killing an Afghan native who had worked with U.S.-based humanitarian groups, along with members of his family. Gen. Kenneth McKenzie, the head of U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) stated Friday that he did not anticipate any disciplinary action.

Psaki detailed President Joe Biden’s response when he learned the strike killed civilians, but dodged on the question of any consequences. (RELATED: FLASHBACK: Watch Chairman Mark Milley Lie Five Times In One Minute About The Infamous ISIS-K Strike)

“What was the president’s response when he learned about that?” a reporter asked.

“The president’s view — and all of our view — is that the loss of any civilian life is a tragedy, as was made clear in the comments by the secretary of defense, and by General McKenzie,” Psaki responded. “This was done in error, and clearly the investigation that will continue is something the president broadly supports.”

The reporter then pressed Paski on whether there would be any consequences for military officials.

“I think what’s important is that the secretary of defense and Gen. McKenzi came forward and made very clear that they wanted to see [the investigation] move forward quickly, they want it to be as transparent as possible,” Psaki said.

“It’s also important to note what the circumstances were here when this strike was made. This was a scenario where there were direct threats from ISIS-K against our troops who were on the ground in Afghanistan,” she added. “Obviously there was a horrific tragedy that happened, but I’m not going to predict what the impact will be.”

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The U.S. carried out the strike on August 29 in reaction to the bombing of U.S. service members at the Kabul airport.

“I offer my condolences to the family and friends of those killed. This strike was taken in the earnest belief that it would prevent an imminent threat to forces at the airport. It was a mistake and I offer my sincere apology. As a commander, I’m fully responsible for this strike and its tragic outcome,” McKenzie told reporters in a Friday press conference.

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