Senior IS Leader Killed In Afghanistan

In 2014, the TTP sacked Shahid after his defection to IS.

Islamabad, Jul 9: A senior leader of Islamic State (IS) militant group and ex- Pakistani Taliban spokesman was among 24 terrorists killed today in a USA drone attack in Afghanistan along its border with Pakistan.

Shahid, born Sheikh Maqbool, was ousted from his Taliban post in October after he and five other members pledged allegiance to ISIS. Outside Nangarhar, Islamic State has also gained footholds in Helmand and Farah provinces Sediqi told reporters last month in Kabul.

The strike in Nangarhar Province – which the USA military said took place Tuesday – killed more than two dozen Islamic State militants including Shahidullah Shahid, the one-time Pakistani Taliban commander, according to local media reports. Previously, he served as spokesman of the TTP under Hakimullah Mehsud and current chief Mullah Fazlullah.

Gul Zaman a militant commander of IS from Aurakzai was killed in a similar USA drone attack on Thursday in Afghanistan.

The USA military has begun a string of air strikes against Daesh fighters in Nangarhar after the group announced its presence in the province previous year.

In a statement earlier this week, RSF said that while some countries – including the US, Iran and Qatar – were “normalizing” relations with the Taliban, the militants were intensifying attacks on civilians and “openly threatening freedom of information”.