Ailan Evans, DCNF

The mother of a Marine killed in an explosion in Kabul during the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan slammed President Joe Biden for failing to mention the 13 Marines who died in the attack in his State of the Union address Tuesday.

Shana Chappell, mother of Kareem Nikoui, one of the 13 Marines killed in the suicide bombing at the Kabul airport in August 2021, accused Biden of indifference toward the lives of the soldiers, writing that the fallen Marines’ blood was “on your hands.”

“You don’t even care! All you care about is continuing to destroy our country from within!” Chappell wrote in an Instagram post.

“You are why my son is dead! You are why all 13 are dead! Their blood is on your hands and you know it, that’s why you refuse to say their names!” she wrote.

Biden was also criticized by Republican Colorado Rep. Lauren Boebert during his speech, who stood and heckled the president when he mentioned coffins draped with flags containing the bodies of dead service members.

“You put them in, 13 of them,” Boebert said.

Chappell’s Instagram and Facebook accounts were previously deleted in August 2021 after she posted criticism of Biden following the Kabul suicide bombing. Meta later said her account was “incorrectly deleted.”

Chappell went on to rip Biden for his perceived callousness, alleging he checked his watch during his meeting with her and other Gold Star family members following the attack.

“I had to watch my son be taken off a plane while my heart felt like it was being ripped from my chest and you stood there checking your watch over and over again like being there was taking up to much of your precious time!” she said.

Comment

We have no tolerance for comments containing violence, racism, profanity, vulgarity, doxing, or discourteous behavior. If a comment is spam, instead of replying to it please click the ∨ icon below and to the right of that comment. Thank you for partnering with us to maintain fruitful conversation.