The leader of Islamic State’s branch in Afghanistan and Pakistan was killed in a USA drone strike on July 26, a Pentagon spokesman said on Friday after the Afghan ambassador to Pakistan announced the news to Reuters.
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The U.S. drone strike that killed Islamic State’s commander for Afghanistan and Pakistan was the latest blow to the Middle East-led movement’s ambitions to expand into a region where the long-established Taliban remain the dominant Islamist force.
Another defense official said the Pentagon believes that Khan died in the strike.
But claims on his death were never confirmed.
Khan was known as the Emir of ISIS-Khorasan, the name of the ISIS affiliate in Afghanistan that has operated mainly in remote areas of eastern Afghanistan along the border with Pakistan.
Nangarhar has been a hotbed for IS presence since last summer.
US officials estimate there are about 1,000 to 1,500 ISIS fighters in Afghanistan, down from 3,000 in January.
The death of Saeed, the second prominent militant to be killed in a US regional strike in recent months, is a setback to the group’s efforts to expand beyond its heartland of Syria and Iraq into Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Local tribal leaders say that these insecurities are rising due to the Taliban, which is a stronger group than IS, having made an alliance with the jihadists after the deadly year, for the goal of fighting off the government forces.
The death of the senior ISIS leader will interrupt the Islamic State’s operations.
It was also the second reported death of a high-profile extremist in the region in four months.
“Khan was known to directly participate in attacks against USA and coalition forces, and the actions of his network terrorized Afghans, especially in Nanarhar”, the statement read.
“Once government forces leave, we fear Daesh will return and resume their operations”, he added.
Besides a number of other terrorist attacks, ISIS had recently claimed responsibility for the July 23 attack in Kabul in which more than 80 people were killed.
On Friday, the U.S. said he had been killed in a new drone attack in Nangarhar’s Achin district on 26 July.
Some Afghan Taliban members have defected to the group, with insurgents apparently adopting the black ISIL flag to rebrand themselves as a more lethal force.
In May, Afghan Taliban leader Mullah Akhtar Mansour was killed in a U.S. drone strike in Pakistan.
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In January, President Barack Obama authorized new measures allowing USA forces in Afghanistan to target Islamic State fighters in the country under counterterrorism rules of engagements usually reserved for al-Qaida.
