Taliban Blame Pakistan Following Capture of Key IS Fighters

Afghanistan-Taliban authorities have apprehended “key members” of the Islamic State group responsible for recent deadly attacks across Afghanistan, a spokesman announced on Monday, accusing Pakistan of sheltering the organization.

Since the Taliban reclaimed power after their 2021 insurgency victory, Afghanistan’s security has largely improved. However, the regional affiliate of the Islamic State, known as Islamic State Khorasan (IS-K), has emerged as a major threat to their governance.

A comprehensive security crackdown had significantly reduced the number of domestic attacks, but IS-K was behind a series of shootings and bombings during the summer.

Taliban government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid stated that “special forces” captured “key members of the insurgent group” responsible for a Kabul suicide bombing earlier this month, which claimed six lives.

He claimed that the suicide bomber “entered Afghanistan from a training camp in Pakistan,” and other individuals arrested in multiple raids had also “recently returned” from there.

Mujahid added that the crackdown has expelled IS-K from Afghanistan, but the group has “set up new operational bases and training camps” in Pakistan.

“From these bases, they continue to organize attacks, both inside Afghanistan and in other countries,” he said.

These remarks are likely to further strain relations between Kabul and Islamabad, which have been tense since the Taliban’s return to power.

Islamabad has accused Afghanistan of allowing increased attacks on its soil, asserting that the Taliban government is not effectively addressing the threat posed by Pakistani Taliban insurgents based in Afghanistan.

Pakistan’s foreign ministry has not yet responded to Mujahid’s statements.

Last week, Pakistan, China, Iran, and Russia issued a joint statement during the UN General Assembly, expressing “deep concern” over the terrorism-related security situation in Afghanistan. The statement identified several militant groups, including the Islamic State, as being “based in Afghanistan” and posing a significant threat to regional and global security.

Founded in 2015, IS-K gained international attention with a bombing during the chaotic U.S. evacuation from Kabul airport in August 2021, which killed around 170 Afghans and 13 U.S. soldiers.

8 Afghan Taliban Militants Killed in Pakistani Counterattack

Akram Claims Influence over Taliban’s TTP Policy

Gilgit-Baltistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Join Hands for Tourism Boost”

Analysts suggest that the group is shifting its focus toward more international attacks, including the killing of over 140 people at a concert hall in Moscow and more than 90 in dual bombings in Iran.

Recruitment in Central Asian countries along Afghanistan’s northern border is reportedly on the rise. Mujahid noted that a Tajik national was among those detained in the recent raids.

IS-K also took responsibility for a May attack in central Bamiyan that claimed the lives of three Spanish tourists and three Afghans, as well as two attacks this month that left a total of 20 people dead.

Follow us on our social media platforms here: Twitter  WHATSAPP CHANNEL FACEBOOK PAGE