A senior IS-K official from Orakzai said the body of the militant commander will be shifted to his hometown by Tuesday….reports Asian Lite News
The former chief of militant outfit Islamic State-Khurasan (IS-K), Aslam Farooqi, was killed during a shootout in northern Afghanistan, Express Tribune reported.
There are conflicting reports about the death of the militant commander on Sunday.
Reportedly, the militant leader, who hailed from Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa’s Orakzai district, was killed during an investigation against organised kidnappers and criminal mafia. The investigation resulted in a clash and Farooqi, along with his aides, was killed as a result, the report said.
However, sources suggest that the IS-K leader was killed as a result of an internal dispute within the militant organisation also known as Daesh.
A senior IS-K official from Orakzai said the body of the militant commander will be shifted to his hometown by Tuesday.
Farooqi had made a deal with the Afghan forces during the government of then President Ashraf Ghani after the fall of the IS-K in Nangarhar in 2020. He was later replaced as the head of IS-K and Shahab Mahajer took over the militant faction.
This is the second high-profile militant commander getting killed during this month.
A week earlier, Muhammad Khurassani, the operational commander and spokesperson for the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), was killed in Nangarhar province.
Aged between 48 and 50, Khorasani’s real name was Khalid Balti. At the time of his killing, he was not just the TTP’s operational commander, but also its spokesperson.
Hailing from Gilgit-Baltistan, Khurassani received his initial education from his native town. In 2007, he joined the Tehreek Nifaze Shariat Muhammadi in Swat.
More troops to Sar-e-Pul for security
Amid rising threats from the Islamic State (ISIS), the Taliban deployed more than 2,500 troops to the northern province of Sar-e-Pul to provide security on Monday.
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“Over 1,500 Mujahedeen are settled in Squadron-3 and over 1,000 others stationed in Squadron-4. Now, also 200 Mujahedeen have graduated after taking six weeks of training,” said Mufti Mohammad Muqtasid, a senior commander of the Islamic Emirate in the province, reported Tolo News.
The commander of the Al-Fatha corps in northern Afghanistan, Ataullah Omari, said that the newly deployed forces are professionally trained.
The commander denied reports about the presence of Daesh or ISIS fighters in the province and warned that they would prevent any attacks, reported Tolo News.
The Al-Fatha corpse is in charge of ensuring security in Faryab, Sar-e-Pul, Jawzjan, Balkh and Samangan provinces.
Previously, the chief of staff of the Islamic Emirate forces announced that efforts were underway to form a unit of 100,000 troops, reported Tolo News.
The Taliban-ISIS standoff has been ongoing in Afghanistan since 2015, when ISIS began forming terrorist cells in the country and recruiting fighters, compromising the Taliban influence.
Fierce clashes had erupted between the Taliban and the IS in Nangarhar, Logar and Farah provinces, reported Sputnik.
Since the Taliban return to power in Afghanistan in mid-August, ISIS has carried out several terrorist attacks across the country, including the blast at Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul in August that killed more than 180 people, and an attack at a Shiite mosque in Kunduz city in October that resulted in over 150 deaths.
The Taliban have repeatedly expressed their commitment to eliminate the IS faction in Afghanistan and pledged to stop the attacks. (ANI)
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