USA air strike kills top Islamic State leader in Af-Pak

Afghan officials Saturday confirmed that Hafiz Sayed Khan, leader of Islamic State’s Afghanistan branch, was killed in a us drone strike.

“Khan was known to directly participate in attacks against USA and coalition forces, and the actions of his network terrorized Afghans, especially in Nangarhar”, mentioned Gordon Trowbridge, Deputy Press Secretary of Pentagon, in the official written statement.

Khan was ISIL’s emir of Khorasan, according to the statement, which said ISIL-Khorasan, or ISIL-K, is the group’s Afghanistan branch operating in Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Trowbridge said Nangarhar has been a “hotbed” for ISIL-Khorasan activity since 2015.

“During this time, U.S. forces conducted an air strike targeting Hafiz Saeed Khan, the Islamic State in the Levant-Khorasan emir, in Achin district, Nangarhar province July 26, resulting in his death”, Trowbridge said.

Khan had been reported dead previous year when Afghan intelligence agents claimed he was killed.

On August 6, Pakistan’s Prime Minister, Nawaz Sharif, sought the return of the passengers from the terror group after a Taliban commander claimed that they were “in safe hands”. The airstrike was carried out with Khan as the target, according to the Pentagon. The U.S. military statement does not include say others were killed.

Afghan forces, backed by the American military, killed an estimated 300 Islamic State fighters in an operation mounted two weeks ago, the top USA and North Atlantic Treaty Organisation commander in Afghanistan said on Wednesday, calling it a severe blow to the group. Khan had previously been a Tehrik-e Taliban commander, but past year pledged loyalty to IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.

“The killing of IS leader Hafiz Saeed in a USA airstrike is a major blow to the group, which will struggle to make gains without a strong leadership”, Kabul-based political analyst Haroun Mir told AFP.

There has also been evidence that IS is trying to recruit Taliban fighters, with several Taliban commanders declaring allegiance to IS.

The Taliban’s various factions in Afghanistan and Pakistan as well as their al Qaeda allies are bitter rivals of Islamic State’s al-Baghdadi. The crew members included five Pakistanis and one Russian technician, who were all presumed to have been taken hostage by the Taliban. Recent estimates indicate around only half the number of IS militants to exist in the region, thanks to the air and ground operations from security forces.

Obama authorizes drone strike in January.