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U.S. military commanders vowed to hunt down the leaders of Islamic State after Thursday's suicide bomb attack on Kabul airport, pledging to exact revenge on the long-time U.S. adversary for the deaths of dozens of Afghans and U.S. troops.

"We will not forgive. We will not forget. We will hunt you down and make you pay," U.S. President Joe Biden said in emotional remarks at the White House, promising that group's actions would not stop a mass evacuation airlift.

Islamic State Khorasan (ISIS-K), an affiliate of militants who previously battled U.S. forces in Syria and Iraq, said it had carried out the attack, which killed dozens of people - including Afghans who were trying to leave the country and at least a dozen U.S. service members.

In claiming responsibility, Islamic State said a suicide bomber "managed to reach a large gathering of translators and collaborators with the American army at 'Baran Camp' near Kabul Airport and detonated his explosive belt among them, killing about 60 people and wounding more than 100 others, including Taliban fighters."

A Taliban official told Reuters the group arrested an ISIS fighter at the airport a few days ago and under interrogation he told them about plans for attacks. In response, the Taliban said it postponed gatherings in public places and advised its top leaders not to gather.

Biden said he had ordered military commanders to develop plans to strike ISIS assets, leaders and facilities. "We will respond with force and precision at our time at a place we choose in a moment of our choosing," he said.

He said the United States had an idea of who had ordered the attacks, although it was not certain.

ISIS-K is a sworn enemy of the Taliban. But U.S. intelligence officials believe the movement used the instability that led to the collapse of Afghanistan's Western-backed government this month to strengthen its position and step up recruitment of disenfranchised Taliban members.

'NOBLE MISSION'

Thousands of U.S. troops have deployed to Kabul's airport to conduct a massive airlift of U.S. citizens, Afghans who helped U.S. forces and others who fear for their freedom and safety now that the Taliban has seized power in Afghanistan.

"We have put more than 5,000 U.S. service members at risk to save as many civilians as we can. It's a noble mission. And today, we have seen firsthand how dangerous that mission is," Marine General Frank McKenzie of U.S. Central Command told reporters at the Pentagon. "ISIS will not deter us from accomplishing the mission, I can assure you of that."

He warned more attacks were expected, although the military was doing everything possible to prepare.

McKenzie said the United States was prepared to use attack aircraft to defend the airport if necessary, including with AC-130 gunships. "We'll be prepared to do that, should it become necessary to defend the base," he said.

Thursday's attack also underscored concerns over the U.S. counterterrorism capability in Afghanistan, with no U.S. troops or reliable partners left, jails emptied of militants and the Taliban in control. read more

Washington went to war in Afghanistan after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks by militants who had found safe harbor in the country when it was last ruled by the Taliban.

Independent U.N. experts had already told the Security Council in a report published last month that ISIS-Khorasan had expanded its presence to several provinces, including Kabul, and that fighters had formed sleeper cells.

"The group has strengthened its positions in and around Kabul, where it conducts most of its attacks, targeting minorities, activists, government employees and personnel of the Afghan National Defence and Security Forces," the report said.

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres reported to the Security Council in June that attacks claimed or attributed to ISIS-Khorasan increased to 88 between March and June, compared with 16 during the same period in 2020. (Reuters)

 Malaysian Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob unveiled his cabinet on Friday, re-appointing the finance minister and several others from the previous administration, in the hope of restoring political stability amid a COVID-19 crisis.

Ismail Sabri was sworn in as prime minister last week, succeeding Muhyiddin Yassin who had resigned after failing to cling onto a razor-thin majority in parliament. read more

He takes charge as public anger grows over the government's floundering attempts to contain a surge in COVID-19 cases and revive an economy battered by extended lockdowns, with the central bank slashing its 2021 growth forecast twice this year.

Ismail Sabri named as finance minister Tengku Zafrul Aziz, who had held the post in Muhyiddin's administration.

He also named four senior ministers to head the international trade, defence, works and education portfolios, all of whom had served in the previous government.

"The formation of this cabinet is a re-formulation based on the current situation, in order to maintain stability and prioritising the interests and safety of the Malaysian people above all," Ismail Sabri said in a televised address.

He said each ministry will need to prove its early achievements within the first 100 days, adding that the government aimed to reopen economic activities in stages with the coronavirus expected to become endemic.

The Southeast Asian nation has the highest per capita COVID-19 infection rate in the region, with more than 1.6 million reported cases, including 15,211 deaths.

On Thursday, it reported a daily record of 24,599 new coronavirus cases and 393 fatalities.

Vaccination rates, however, have ramped up. Nearly half of Malaysia's 32 million population are fully vaccinated, including 60.2% of all adults.

Khairy Jamaluddin, who had spearheaded Malaysia's inoculation programme as science minister, will now be in charge of the health ministry, swapping portfolios with Adham Baba, who will oversee the vaccine roll-out next, Ismail Sabri said.

The presence of familiar figures in the cabinet line-up raised doubts on whether the new administration will be up to the task of avoiding the previous government's mistakes, amid public fury over its flip-flopping lockdown policies and failure to act against politicians who violated rules.

"It's not a reformulated cabinet, it's a sort of mutually reshuffled cabinet in the sense with the same old faces, mutually exchanging some ministerial portfolios," said Oh Ei Sun, a senior fellow with Singapore's Institute of International Affairs.

"I don't keep a lot of hope on this new cabinet being able to perform any better than the last cabinet, because they are the same old people."

Ismail Sabri's appointment saw the return of his party, the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), to the top office, after it was toppled in an election three years ago amid widespread corruption allegations.

He is Malaysia's third prime minister since the 2018 polls, after UMNO pulled its backing for Muhyiddin last month, citing his failure to manage the pandemic.

Analysts have said Ismail Sabri could face instability as well, with continued infighting within UMNO while coalition partners such as Muhyiddin's alliance have said its support for the new premier was conditional on him taking a strong stand against graft.

Several UMNO leaders were charged with corruption after the election, including president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and former premier Najib Razak, who remain influential figures within the party. Both deny wrongdoing. (Reuters)