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American warplanes dropped more bombs on Afghanistan in 2019 than at any other time in at least a decade, according to the US Air Force. In 2019 alone, the US dropped 7,423 separate munitions on targets in Afghanistan, where the US has been fighting several militant groups since it invaded the country following the September 11, 2001 attacks.

The figure was published by US Air Forces Central Command and represents a dramatic surge in bombings in Afghanistan compared to the peak of President Barack Obama’s ‘surge’ in 2009, when 4,147 bombs were dropped.

Since President Donald Trump was elected in 2016 the US has ramped up bombing runs over Afghanistan as the White House removed earlier restrictions that provided greater oversight over air raids aimed at preventing civilian casualties, AFP said.

The UN and rights groups have said the increase in airstrikes across the country by US and Afghan forces have resulted in a major upswing in civilian casualties.

SOURCE: AFP News Agency

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