By: Earnest Jones | 05-06-2017 | News
Photo credit: Shimabukuro | Dreamstime.com

Pope Francis:'Mother' should not be used to describe a bomb

Pope Francis criticized the U.S. military for having named its largest non-nuclear explosive devices as the Mother of All Bombs. Pope emphasized that the word mother should not be used to describe a dangerous mother.

The lethal weapon was used by the U.S. Air Force on an Islamic State tunnel complex in Afghanistan last month. The non-nuclear bomb has been labeled MOAB, a term that has been picked up by media outlets.

In a statement made by Pope, he expressed his disgust with the use of the word mother by saying that he was ashamed when he heard the name. The Pope was speaking to students on Saturday. He also emphasized that a mother gives life but the MOAB gives death, adding that it does not make sense to call the non-nuclear device a mother.

U.S. Air Force dropped the bomb, officially designated as the GBU-43 Massive Ordnance Air Blast (MOAB) on suspected Islamic State fighters in eastern Afghanistan last month. The nickname has been used in briefings and reporting on the attack.

Pope Francis is scheduled to meet U.S. President Donald Trump on May 24 in a potentially awkward encounter given their opposing positions on immigration, refugees, and climate change. This comes after he’s been criticizing the naming of the US military's largest non-nuclear explosive ever used in combat as "the mother of all bombs".

The US dropped the bomb on ISIS target in Afghanistan, reports indicate that it weighs 21,600lb (9,800kg). Pentagon said it was dropped from a US aircraft in Nangarhar province, targeting tunnel complex used by IS.

The explosive is officially called the GBU-43/B Massive Ordnance Air Blast Bomb (MOAB) but is widely known as the mother of all bombs. The device was first tested in 2003 but had not been deployed in combat before. Pope’s comments come ahead of his meeting with US President Donald Trump on 24 May, an encounter that many suggest will be awkward.

Source:

http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/pope-ashamed-to-hear-the-word-mother-used-to-describe-a-deadly-bomb/article/2622348

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