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The Taliban have linked recent attacks claimed by Islamic State to “terror centers” in Pakistan. Terrorists opened fire at a Moscow concert hall on Friday night, killing more than 130 people in the deadliest attack Russia has faced in years. The Islamic State claimed responsibility for the incident, with U.S. intelligence identifying the group as an affiliate of the Islamic State in Khorasan province.
A report by Al-Mirsad English quoted sources as saying that the recent attack in the Afghan city of Kandahar was carried out by a man named Madiyarov Asadbek. After joining the Khorasan chapter of the terrorist organization, he underwent two months of intellectual and religious training in Balochistan. IS-K is also believed to be responsible for the Moscow attack.
“Sources said that Balochistan is currently an important stronghold of the Khorasan branch of the Islamic State, with hideouts, training facilities and bomb-making workshops. In addition, it was revealed that the leader of the Khorasan branch, Shihab Shihab Al-Muhajir and his close associates live in Balochistan and plan attacks not only in Afghanistan but across the globe.”
It called Balochistan “one of the main centers of the Islamic State’s Khorasan branch” and cited the Islamic State threat from neighboring Tajikistan. It is worth noting that Russian news reports also confirmed that the concert hall gunman was a citizen of Tajikistan. MP Alexander Khinshtein said a pistol, an assault rifle magazine and passports from Tajikistan were found in their getaway car.
What is ISIS-K?
The group takes its name from the province of Khorasan, which covered much of Afghanistan, Iran, and Central Asia in the Middle Ages. The branch originally consisted of hundreds of Pakistani Taliban militants who took refuge in Afghanistan after military operations in Pakistan drove them from their homeland. Since the Taliban seized power in 2021, its militants have launched multiple attacks in Afghanistan.
With thousands of members, IS-K is the Taliban’s biggest enemy and greatest military threat. Since the Taliban took over, the group has continued to launch attacks in Afghanistan and elsewhere. They were behind the August 2021 suicide bombing at Kabul Airport that killed 13 U.S. troops and about 170 Afghans during the chaotic U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan. IS-K also claimed responsibility for a bomb attack that killed 95 people during a march commemorating General Qassem Soleimani in Kerman, Iran, in January. General Qassem Soleimani was an Iranian general who was killed in a 2020 U.S. drone strike.
(Based on input from each agency)
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