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The U.S. military dropped the most powerful non-nuclear bomb in its arsenal Thursday on a cave and tunnel complex that it said was used by Islamic State fighters in eastern Afghanistan, a stark reminder of a U.S. war now in its 16th grinding year.

The behemoth bomb, officially called the Massive Ordnance Air Blast, or MOAB, is also known as the "mother of all bombs." It is 30 feet long, weighs nearly 11 tons and produces a devastating above-ground explosion that sends a mushroom cloud roiling high in the sky.

Originally developed for the 2003 invasion of Iraq, the MOAB has never been used in combat before.

Like the U.S. retaliatory missile strike in Syria last Friday, however, use of the monster munition in Afghanistan is more symbolic than tactical since it is unlikely to change the course of Americas longest war.

President Trump praised the attack as a "very, very successful mission." He indicated that he had given the Pentagon a free hand to use the weapon as part of his vow to step up the war on Islamic State.

"We have given them total authorization and thats what theyre doing and frankly thats why theyve been so successful lately, he told reporters at the White House. If you look at whats happened over the last eight weeks and compare that really to whats happened over the past eight years, youll see theres a tremendous difference, tremendous difference.

ALSO:U.S. military says misdirected airstrike in northern Syria killed 18 allied fighters

While the Pentagons formal rules of engagement have not changed, military commanders appear to have taken greater liberties in recent weeks and made more mistakes.

A series of misdirected U.S. attacks in Iraq, Syria and Yemen have led to a noticeable increase in reported civilian casualties. Earlier Thursday, the U.S. military announced an air strike this week had accidentally killed 18 rebel fighters battling Islamic State in northern Syria in the worst friendly-fire incident of that conflict.

The military said the giant MOAB was dropped from the rear door of an MC-130 cargo plane at 7:32 p.m. Thursday as part of a U.S.-backed offensive on an Islamic State stronghold in Achin district in Nangarhar province.

The bomb initially falls with a parachute to slow its descent and give the aircraft time to get away safely. Then a GPS system guides the bomb to its target.

The munition detonates before it hits the ground, igniting a flammable fuel mist that supposedly obliterates everything in a 1,000 yard radius, sends a lethal shock wave more than a mile and a half away, and creates a mushroom cloud nearly five miles high.

The strike was designed to minimize the risk to Afghan and U.S. forces conducting clearing operations in the area while maximizing the destruction" to the militants, the statement said.

Gen.John W. Nicholson, commander of U.S. forces in Afghanistan, said the militants used bunkers and tunnels to thicken their defense.

This is the right munition to reduce these obstacles and maintain the momentum of our offensive," Nicholson said.

White House spokesman Sean Spicer said the massive bomb targeted tunnels and caves that militants used to move around freely, making it easier for them to target U.S. military advisers and Afghan forces in the area.

He said U.S. commanders took all precautions necessary to prevent civilian casualties and collateral damage as a result of the operation."

Speaking by phone from Achin district, Sher Nabi, a commander with the Afghan Local Police, said the bomb landed about a half mile outside the town of Shogal, near the border with Pakistan.

Nabi, who commands a 60-man unit of the government militia, said Afghan security forces have carried out operations in the area for several days against suspected Islamic State supporters.

Nabi said that the bomb killed "many militants" and destroyed their weapons. There were no immediate reports of civilian casualties.

The air strike apparently was in the same area where Army Staff Sgt. Mark R. De Alencar, a 37-year-old Green Beret from Maryland, was killed on Saturday after coming under fire.

He was the first American service member killed in combat this year in Afghanistan, and the 1,833rd since the U.S.-led invasion in late 2001.

The GBU-43 bomb was developed in 2002 to put pressure on then-Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein to cease and desist or the United States would not only have the means but use them against the unpopular tyrant, the Air Force said in 2005 news release.

ALSO:White House calls Russian denials on Syrian gas attack a 'coverup'

It was tested at Eglin Air Force Base in Florida but was not used in Iraq. On March 11, 2003, a test produced a mushroom cloud visible from 20 miles away, the release said.

Another U.S. munition, officially called the Massive Ordinance Penetrator, or MOP, is designed to penetrate hardened bunkers. At 30,000 pounds, it is even heavier than the MOAB but carries less explosive power.

Special correspondent Sultan Faizy contributed from Kabul, Afghanistan.

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Air Force drops non-nuclear 'mother of all bombs' in Afghanistan - Los Angeles Times

Officials on Monday identified the American special forces soldier who was killed over the weekend in a combat operation against Islamic State extremists in Afghanistan.

Staff Sgt. Mark R. De Alencar, 37, of Edgewood, Maryland, was killed Saturday in Nangarhar Province, Afghanistan after his unit came in contact with enemy forces using small arms fire during combat operations, according to the Department of Defense.

De Alencar was assigned to 1st Battalion, 7th Special Forces Group located at Eglin Air Force Base in Florida, according to the DoD.

US SPECIAL FORCES SOLDIER KILLED IN AFGHANISTAN OPERATION AGAINST ISIS

The ISIS terror group has a growing presence in eastern Afghanistan, where it has battled both Afghan forces and the much larger and more powerful Taliban.

Insurgents killed at least 13 Afghan security forces in separate attacks, officials said Sunday.

Munir Ahmad Farhad, spokesman for the governor of the northern Balkh province, said a roadside bomb killed nine security forces and wounded several others the night before in the Chimtal district, where they were waging an ongoing operation against the Taliban. He said five insurgents have been killed and dozens wounded.

Fox News' Jennifer Griffin and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Officials identity US soldier killed in Afghanistan operation ...

NPR	300 Marines To Deploy To Afghanistan : NPR NPR Rachel Martin talks with Marine Brig. Gen. Roger Turner about the U.S. strategy in Afghanistan as the U.S. prepares to send 300 Marines to Helmand province. and more »

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300 Marines To Deploy To Afghanistan : NPR - NPR

Tensions between Russia and the U.S. are again flaring up in the Middle East, but this time its not about Syria or chemical weapons. Instead, the conflict is over a potential peace deal in Afghanistan that could bring an end to 16 years of war that has ravaged the country. The Kremlin is slated to hold a meeting Friday in Moscow aimed at brokering a resolution between the Afghan government and the Taliban. Washington has refused to attend, instead accusing Russia of arming Taliban fighters and undermining NATOs efforts to bring peace and security to the region.

The meeting is the third peace summit held by Moscow since December. At the first,Moscow only invited China and Pakistan to the table, angering both Washington and Kabul. At the second, in February, it invited Afghanistan, but excluded the U.S. Now, finally invited to the talks, the Trump administration says it questions Russias motives.

Russia has denied giving weapons to Taliban fighters, while conceding that it did reach out to the militant group in its efforts to broker the peace deal. Russia has also called for an end to sanctions against Taliban leaders.

As a candidate ahead of the November elections, Trump said he would improve relations with Russian President Vladimir Putin, but his White House has already caught Moscows ire after vowing to uphold sanctions against Russia, introduced after the countrys annexation of Crimea from Ukraine, and, more recently, ordering an airstrike against the Syrian government on April 6 in response to a chemical weapons attack that killed more than 80 people. The bombing marked the U.S. first military action against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, a close ally to Russia. Moscow described the strike as an act of aggression.

Read more: Donald Trump's approval rating stayed pretty much the same after he ordered airstrikes in Syria

Its perhaps a sign of how bad things have become that the Kremlin, which once awarded Secretary of State Rex Tillerson itsOrder of Friendship, initially denied that Putin would meet with him during his official visit to Moscow on Tuesday and Wednesday. Officials were expected to discuss how to end Syrias nearly six-year civil war. Putin has met with other U.S. secretaries of state in the past.

Russias relationship with the Taliban is of major concern to Washington. The Taliban controlled Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001 until the U.S.-led invasion that divided the nation. The militants now rule over roughly half of Afghanistans population and Afghan President Ashraf Ghani has repeatedly urged Taliban leaders in recent years to agree to a peace deal.

Russia could be looking to regain influence in Afghanistan after its 1979 invasion and 10-year occupation of the Central Asian nation. Afghanistan is considered strategically important, particularly in relation to economic and national security concerns in nearby India, Pakistan and Iran, while Afghanistan has also claimed its mineral resources are worth around $3 trillion.

Moscow says its reason for getting involved in peace talks is to prevent instability from spilling over to central Asia. Russias special envoy for Afghanistan, Zamir Kabulov, claimed last month that any accusations from the Afghan government and its allies over alleged weapons deals were being used to justify their own failure on the battlefield. Russia has also said its particularly worried about the presence of the Islamic State group, which the Taliban opposes. Despite the Kremlins concerns, security experts say the group is not a significant threat to Afghanistan or the wider region.

In assisting the militants, Russia would also undermine NATO forces in the region at a time of growing tensions between Russia and NATO in Europe. Defense Secretary James Mattis told reporters at a press conference in London on March 31 that he was aware of Russian activity concerning the Taliban. I'm not going to say at this point if that has manifested into weapons and that sort of thing, but certainly what they're up to there in light of their other activities gives us concern, Mattis said.

Another senior defense official was less cautious. I think it is fair to assume [Russia] may be providing some sort of support to [the Taliban], in terms of weapons or other things that may be there, U.S. Central Command chief General Joseph Votel told members of Congress on March 29. I believe what Russia is attempting to be [is] an influential party in this part of the world.

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After Syria, the US And Russia Are Now Clashing Over Afghanistan - Newsweek

Afghan Ambassador to the U.S., Hamdullah Mohib, speaks with USA TODAY Editorial Board writer Gregg Zoroya about Afghanistan's progress against the Taliban and its preparation to fight with fewer U.S. forces. USA TODAY Opinion

In this photograph taken on February 9, 2017, an Italian soldier from NATO's Resolute Support Mission (2L) trains Afghan National Army (ANA) soldiers at the Kabul Military Training center on the outskirts of Herat.(Photo: Aref Karimi, AFP/Getty Images)

Afghanistans military should be able to carry on the fight against Taliban insurgents mostly without the help of U.S. and other foreign troops by 2020, Afghanistans ambassador to the United States said Tuesday.

By 2020 our security forces will be able to have what they need to carry on the fight on their own for the most part, Hamdullah Mohib toldthe USA TODAY editorial board.

Were not talking about creating a new military, Mohib said. What were talking about is adjusting what we already have.

He said the forecast assumes there won't be any major changes in the security threat in Afghanistan. The Islamic State has made some inroads in the country, though is not considered a major threat.

Mohib said Afghans fledgling air force also is growing more self reliant.

U.S. troops have been in Afghanistan since 2001, when they overthrew a Taliban regime for providing safe haven to the al-Qaeda terrorist groupbehind the Sept. 11attacks.

Even if Afghan forces are mostly self-sufficient they will likely require international financial support for many years. The United States provides the bulk of the foreign aid, including $67 billion since 2005 just to buildup the Afghan securityforce. It currently has350,000 members, including the police and army.

The local forces are taking heavy casualties in the war against the Taliban. Mohib said theysuffered 29,000 deaths and injurieslastyear.

Hamdullah Mohib, the Afghan ambassador to the United States, speaks to the USA TODAY Editorial Board in McLean, Va., on April 11, 2017.(Photo: Jarrad Henderson, USA TODAY NETWORK)

Army Gen. John Nicholson, the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, told Congress earlier this year that he needed a few thousand additional troops to help Afghanistans military turn the tide in the war. No decision has been made.

There are currently 8,400 U.S. forces in Afghanistan, down from a peak of nearly 100,000 in 2011.They are not engaged in direct combat but are advising and assisting Afghanistans military. The U.S. military also provideslimited air support to Afghan forces.

More than 2,200 U.S. troops have died in Afghanistan since the invasion. The latest U.S. combat death, the first this year, occurred Saturday, when a U.S. soldier was killed duringan operation against an Islamic State offshoot.

Nicholson described the war against the Taliban as a stalemate. The Taliban havent been able to take over any major cities, but have made gains in remote parts of the country.

Mohib said the Afghan government would like to double the number of its special operations commandos, an elite U.S.-trained force that has made significant headway in fighting the Taliban.The Afghan special operations command currently has about 11,700 personnel, according to the Pentagon.

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U.S. troops may not be needed in Afghanistan by 2020, ambassador ... - USA TODAY