Rise in Islamic State Khorasan deadly attacks could be sign of group’s growing strength in Afghanistan

Published

4 years ago

October 26, 2021

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Attacks by Islamic State Khorasan (ISIS-K) in Afghanistan have become more deadly since the withdrawal of NATO forces, with at least 346 civilians killed by the group since late August.

The insurgents carried out bombings in areas where previously they had little presence. A security expert told Sky News this could be a sign of the group’s growing strength.

Earlier this week, US Pentagon officials suggested ISIS-K intended to carry out attacks against the West and could have the ability to do so within six months.

The group is an affiliate of Islamic State based in South and Central Asia and are ideologically opposed to the Taliban’s nationalist view of Afghanistan, instead seeking to establish an Islamic State across the region.

During and after the US withdrawal, Islamic State Khorasan (ISIS-K) have carried out a suspected 21 attacks in Afghanistan.

The deadliest of these was on 26 August when a suicide bomb at Kabul’s main airport killed 170 civilians and 13 US marines.

Since then, there have been several ISIS-K attacks across Afghanistan, including seven between 18 September – 6 October that killed 18 people.

On 8 October an ISIS-K suicide bomber targeted a Hazara mosque in the northern city of Kunduz, killing at least 43 people.

The picture below shows the damage caused by the bomb inside the mosque.

Shortly after, between 8-12 October, five attacks in four days around Jalalabad, an ISIS-K stronghold, targeted both the Taliban and civil society activists.

A few days later on 15 October, CCTV captured two men attacking a Shia mosque in Kandahar, in the south of the country.

At least 47 people were killed in the suicide attack carried out when prayers were underway in the courtyard of the mosque.

The footage shows the attackers entering the mosque and detonating a device.

At least five further attacks have occurred since the 15 October mosque attack in Kandahar, meaning around 408 people have been killed by ISIS-K in Afghanistan since August 26, including 346 civilians.

This level of ISIS-K attacks is not unprecedented. In 2018 they were responsible for more deaths globally than all but three other terrorist groups that year. Operations by the Afghan government and NATO forces helped reduce the threat throughout 2019 and 2020.

But now the number of attacks is rising again, with civilian casualties in October 2021 alone higher than in the first nine months of 2020.

Many of these attacks have taken place in the east of the country in Nangarhar province, where ISIS-K has a strong presence.

The Taliban has retaliated, with reports of people being dragged from their homes and killed in Jalalabad, the capital of Nangarhar, for allegedly being ISIS-K members or supporters.

The worsening situation is only exacerbating the existing humanitarian crisis within Afghanistan. The UN has warned that without urgent humanitarian relief the country is on a “countdown to catastrophe”.

It already has one of the largest populations internationally facing acute hunger and it is estimated that up to a million children are at risk of starvation.

Who are ISIS-K?

They were formed in 2015 by disaffected members of the Afghan Taliban, Pakistani Taliban, and Uzbek Islamists and have a “cadre of a few thousand” fighters according to the US Department of Defence.

They want to establish an Islamic caliphate across the region and have targeted ethnic minorities such as Hazara Muslims as well as civil society activists, aid agencies, and the former Afghan government.

Yet many of their actions have been against the Taliban, with 11 of 20 of their fatal attacks carried out in Afghanistan since NATO’s withdrawal being aimed at the new governing group.

What has changed since the withdrawal?

The flurry of attacks highlight the challenge facing the Taliban, who are now expected to provide security across the country despite lacking the manpower, skills, and finance of the previous Afghan government.

Dr Antionio Giustozzi, a senior research fellow at the defence think tank the Royal United Services Institute, said: “ISIS-K’s main enemy has always been the Taliban – there were relatively few incidents between them and the Americans previously.

“What’s different now is the spread of their activity across Afghanistan – Charikar, Kunduz, and Kandahar – these are places ISIS-K didn’t have overt activity before.

“The Islamic State sees the Taliban as being in a weak position right now as they are stretched very thin financially and militarily. Their manpower is taken up controlling the cities, so ISIS-K see now as the right time to strike.”

This week, a US Department of Defence official said that ISIS-K also intends to attack Western countries but that they don’t currently have the means to do so.

Analysis by Deborah Haynes, Security and Defence Editor

The big fear among western security chiefs is that Afghanistan again becomes a haven for terrorist groups to launch attacks against the United States, the UK and other allies.

Al-Qaeda was allowed to plan and direct the 2001 terror attacks on the United States from the country under the previous Taliban regime.

It prompted the US-led invasion to destroy the group’s training camps and hunt down and kill or capture its leaders.

But 20 years on, al-Qaeda militants are regrouping and still enjoy close links with the Taliban. At the same time, a new threat in the form of the Islamic State offshoot Islamic State Khorasan (ISIS-K) has taken root.

Unlike al-Qaeda, ISIS-K is an enemy of the Taliban. Taliban leaders will also know that if the group is able to conduct attacks on the West from their soil they will face the possibility of US-led airstrikes and possibly even special forces raids inside Afghanistan once more.

It is not just the US that will be monitoring developments with ISIS-K closely.

For the threat to be controlled, the support of other external powers will likely be needed. According to Dr Guistozzi: “The Taliban can only consolidate with support of the regional powers, notably China and Russia. Both of these countries are against the Islamic State – ISIS-K fear Russia in particular and their ruthless airstrikes, like they carried out in Syria.”

Reporting: Jack Taylor and Kieran Devine

Maps and Digital Production: Ganesh Rao

Satellite imagery: Google Earth
Data: The Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED)

The Data and Forensics team is a multi-skilled unit dedicated to providing transparent journalism from Sky News. We gather, analyse and visualise data to tell data-driven stories. We combine traditional reporting skills with advanced analysis of satellite images, social media and other open source information. Through multimedia storytelling we aim to better explain the world while also showing how our journalism is done.

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World

Fierce battle for frontline towns where Ukraine’s soldiers are surrounded

Published

29 mins ago

November 23, 2025

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Fierce battle for frontline towns where Ukraine's soldiers are surrounded

Footage geolocated by Sky News showed Russian soldiers walking through the Shakhtarskyi neighbourhood on the outskirts of Pokrovsk on Thursday.

The video sheds light on the situation in this key frontline area, as Russian forces slowly encroach on Myrnohrad, the satellite town to Pokrovsk, and one of its last remaining outposts.

Videos geolocated by Sky News show fighting intensifying in recent weeks, as Russian forces attempt to gain control of the towns and their network of road and rail intersections.

Gaining control here would give Russia a base from which to access key cities further north that form part of Ukraine’s “fortress belt”.

Russian forces are advancing from all directions, according to the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), with only one small opening to the northwest of Myrnohrad remaining.

Estimated to be only 3km wide by military experts, this withdrawal corridor is patrolled by Russian drone units which monitor the area for moving vehicles and those who may attempt to leave on foot.

Russian forces have been advancing on Myrnohrad since late October.

Video from a Ukrainian unit in Myrnohad, posted on 29 October, shows a Russian vehicle attempting to enter the town from the northeast. The tank is attacked and soldiers attempting to enter on foot are targeted.

Video posted on 3 November shows Russian forces on the ground in the south of the town.

By 8 November, Russian strikes begin to pummel the northeast of Myrnohrad, the location of many of the town’s high-rise buildings, at that time, held by Ukrainian forces.

George Barros, Russia Team & Geospatial Intelligence Team Lead at ISW, told Sky News that Russian strategy in Pokrovsk has been to erode Ukrainian logistical capacity using drones and artillery over the course of several months.

“After denying supply lines and degrading the frontline forces by essentially cutting them off from behind and starving them out in their positions, then the Russians move forward with their infantry and frontal assaults,” Barros explained.

Capture the flag

For a brief period, it looked as though Russian forces had captured Myrnohrad.

Videos posted on 13 November appeared to show a Russian flag flying over the Myrnohrad mine.

However, video posted the following day showed a Ukrainian drone shooting it down.

Both Russian and Ukrainian forces continue to fight for control of Myrnohrad, with videos posted on the 19 and 20 November showing Russian airstrikes on Ukrainian positions in the town, and Ukrainian drone strikes targeting Russian forces on foot.

While the exact numbers of Russian and Ukrainian forces in the area remains unclear, reports indicate that three key Russian units are active in Pokrovsk and Myrnohrad, and are advancing on the towns from the north and south.

A number of Ukrainian units remain inside the towns, including the 145th Assault regiment and the 32nd, 35th, 38th and 155th Brigades. Reports indicate that more Ukrainian units have been moved into surrounding areas to hold the withdrawal corridor open.

Sky News reached out to the Ukrainian brigades still in Myrnohrad, but they declined to comment, citing military regulations.

Strategic significance

Natia Seskuria, associate international security fellow at the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI), explained that the area is important for the Ukrainians to keep and the Russians to take because of its strategic position.

“Situated at a major road and rail intersection in Donetsk Oblast, Pokrovsk has functioned as a central artery for moving troops, equipment, and supplies to Ukrainian units deployed along the surrounding front.”

Russia “would gain a platform to redirect its offensive efforts toward Ukraine’s principal defensive urban centres… including Kramatorsk and Slovyansk,” Seskuria said.

Ukrainian and Russian soldiers in Pokrovsk have fought intensely and at close quarters over the last month.

In late October US-made Black Hawk helicopters containing specialist troops directed by Ukrainian military intelligence entered Pokrovsk to try to keep the town.

But as Russian troops advance, Myrnohrad is becoming the last stronghold of Ukrainian forces in the area.

Uncertain future

At least up until 12 November, there were still civilians living in Pokrovsk and Myrnohrad, despite strikes on buildings in both cities.

A post made on that day by the Donetsk state regional administration estimated 1,200 people remain living in Pokrovsk and 900 in Myrnohrad.

Evacuation is only possible with the help of the military or police, and it is not clear how many have evacuated in the 11 days since.

Barros of ISW says gaining Pokrovsk would increase Russia’s leverage at the negotiating table.

“If the Russians can successfully convince enough international leaders that, okay, the Russians took Pokrovsk, they’re going to take the next thing, and they’re going take the thing, so now let’s negotiate, then that is a strategic victory for the Russians.”

Production by Michelle Inez Simon, Visual Investigations Producer.

The Data x Forensics team is a multi-skilled unit dedicated to providing transparent journalism from Sky News. We gather, analyse and visualise data to tell data-driven stories. We combine traditional reporting skills with advanced analysis of satellite images, social media and other open source information. Through multimedia storytelling we aim to better explain the world while also showing how our journalism is done.

World

Torrential rain triggers deadly flooding and landslides in Vietnam

Published

29 mins ago

November 23, 2025

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Torrential rain triggers deadly flooding and landslides in Vietnam

Torrential rain, flooding and landslides has left more than 100 people dead or missing in Vietnam.

Rainfall has exceeded 74.8in (1.9 metres) in some parts of central Vietnam over the past week.

The region is a major coffee production belt and home to popular beaches, but it is also prone to storms and floods.

Fatalities have been reported in Dak Lak province and the neighbouring Khanh Hoa province.

Footage has been released by local police of a dramatic rescue, involving a drone which airlifted a stranded man to safety from an island in the middle of the Serepok River, Dak Lak province.

The government estimates the flooding has cost the economy around 8.98 trillion dong (£260m).

More than 235,000 houses were flooded and nearly 80,000 hectares of crops were damaged, Vietnam’s disaster agency said.

On Thursday, VietnamNet newspaper said that a suspension bridge on Da Nhim River in Lam Dong province had been swept away.

Video footage posted online showed the bridge being swallowed by the river in just a few seconds.

Naval forces have been deployed to help stranded citizens in Khanh Hoa, the Vietnam News Agency reported, adding that floodwaters had reached record highs in many areas.

Photos shared in state media reports showed residents, including children, sitting on the roofs of flooded houses in Khanh Hoa, Gia Lai and Dak Lak provinces.

A seven-year-old girl was rescued late on Wednesday in Da Lat, the capital of Lam Dong province, after being buried by a landslide, the Nhan Dan newspaper reported.

The landslide, triggered by heavy rain, knocked down and buried part of the house where the girl was staying.

She was pulled out after an hour and a half and was taken to hospital with a broken leg, according to the report.

World

Several airlines cancel Venezuela flights after ‘hazardous situation’ warning

Published

29 mins ago

November 23, 2025

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Several airlines cancel Venezuela flights after 'hazardous situation' warning

Three international airlines have cancelled flights departing from Venezuela after a “potentially hazardous situation” warning.

The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) on Saturday issued an alert to airlines flying over the country, citing the “worsening security situation and heightened military activity in or around Venezuela“.

The US is poised to launch a new phase of operations related to the South American nation in the coming days, four US officials said.

The exact timing or scope of the operations, as well as whether President Donald Trump has made the final decision to act, have not yet been established.

Brazil’s Gol, Colombia’s Avianca and TAP Air Portugal cancelled their flights from the capital, Caracas, in north Venezuela, on Saturday, according to Flightradar24 and the official website of Simon Bolivar Maiquetia International Airport.

TAP Air Portugal confirmed it cancelled flights scheduled for Saturday and next Tuesday.

“This decision follows information issued by the United States aviation authorities, which indicates that safety conditions in Venezuelan airspace are not guaranteed,” the airline said.

The Trump administration has been considering Venezuela-related options to tackle what it has portrayed as President Nicolas Maduro’s role in supplying illegal drugs that have killed Americans.

Venezuela’s president has denied having any links to the illegal drug trade.

Mr Maduro, who is celebrating his 63rd birthday on Sunday and has been in power since 2013, has claimed Mr Trump is looking to oust him and that Venezuelan citizens and the military will rally against any such attempt.

Aeronautica Civil de Colombia said in a statement there were “potential risks” of flying in the Maiquetia area “due to the deterioration of security conditions and increased military activity in the region”.

Spain’s Iberia also said it was cancelling its flights to Caracas from Monday until further notice.

Reports of looming action have been growing in recent weeks as the US military has deployed forces to the Caribbean, amid heightened tensions with Venezuela. The Pentagon referred questions to the White House and the CIA declined to comment.

There has been a huge US military build-up in the region, including the US Navy’s largest aircraft carrier, USS Gerald R Ford, at least eight other warships, and F-35 aircraft.

The build-up in the Caribbean has been rumbling on for months, and Mr Trump has authorised covert CIA operations in Venezuela.

The US plans on Monday to designate the Cartel de los Soles, a Venezuela-based alleged criminal group, a foreign terrorist organisation for what the US sees as its role in importing illegal drugs into America, officials said.