Kareem Nikoui: 'Gen Milley must resign,' say parents of Marine slain in Kabul bombing
Devastated parents of late US Marine Kareem Nikoui are demanding accountability from US officials after the Kabul suicide bomber was officially identified.
On August 13, just hours after the US military warned of an imminent terror threat, a suicide bombing took place at the Hamid Karzai International Airport. The vicious attack claimed the lives of at least 13 US service members and wounded 18 others. Scores of Afghans also lost their lives in the attack. One of those who died was Steve Nikoui and Shana Chappell's 20-year-old son Kareem.
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“I’d like to see General Milley resign,” Steve Nikoui told 'Fox & Friends' host Rachel Campos-Duffy. “He should be held responsible for this. He’s the Joint Chiefs of Staff [chairman].” He continued, “they let the Taliban dictate the evacuation. I don’t feel any of them have been held accountable. And the president, he hasn’t taken any accountability on it either.”
Shana Chappell echoed the sentiment, arguing that servicemembers died in Kabul because of American officials’ decisions. “I’m still waiting for them to be held accountable for it. For some reason, they want to put the blame on everyone but themselves, but it is actually their fault all of this happened,” she stated. “The 13 that are dead, that is their fault.”
The gold star mother made waves when she extended an invitation to former President Donald Trump to her son's funeral on September 18 at the Harvest Christian Fellowship in Riverside, California. This was after she blasted President Joe Biden in the wake of the ISIS-K suicide bombing attack, saying the commander-in-chief had "blood on his hands" over the tragedy.
“I’m frustrated," Steve Nikoui told Fox News. "We were able to keep our son alive for the last 20 years. Then he goes and joins the military to serve our country and our country can’t protect him the way that he needs to be protected." He added, “We still haven’t got the autopsy report. We have reasons to believe that our son was shot by gunshots.”
The parents revealed how there was a firefight following the bombing just outside the airport gate, followed by another attack at the nearby Baron Hotel where many sought refuge as they tried to flee the war-torn country. “He wanted to be a Marine since he was a toddler… it was just something that he had always wanted,” Chappell said of her beloved son. “It’s still kind of unreal that he’s even gone.”
Just days after the tragedy, Steve Nikoui told The Daily Beast that he wanted to “respect the office” of the president, but didn't have much love for Biden. He said he was happy that Trump was in office when Kareem joined the Marines. “I really believed this guy didn’t want to send people into harm’s way,” he said of the former POTUS. Meanwhile, he blasted Biden. “They sent my son over there as a paper pusher and then had the Taliban outside providing security,” Nikoui said. “I blame my own military leaders… Biden turned his back on him. That’s it.”