KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – The UN Security Council raised alarm on Monday over the increasing threat posed by Islamic State-Khorasan (IS-K), a regional affiliate of the Islamic State group, warning of its potential to destabilize the region and launch attacks beyond Afghanistan’s borders.
During a Security Council meeting on counterterrorism, Vladimir Voronkov, the UN undersecretary-general for counterterrorism, described IS-K as one of the “most dangerous branches” of the transnational terrorist organization. He warned that IS-K supporters had plotted attacks in Europe and were actively recruiting from Central Asian countries.
“There were also reports of small numbers of foreign terrorist fighters continuing to travel to Afghanistan,” Voronkov stated, calling for global cooperation to prevent the country from becoming a hub for terrorist activities.
U.S. Ambassador Dorothy Shea echoed these concerns, stating that Washington remains deeply worried about IS-K’s ability to orchestrate attacks and sustain recruitment campaigns, particularly in Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Meanwhile, China’s representative, Fu Cong, claimed that IS-K operatives were working in coordination with Al-Qaida and the East Turkestan Islamic Movement, urging Afghanistan’s Taliban rulers to take decisive action against terrorist groups operating in the country.
Russia’s envoy, Vassily Nebenzia, attributed the growing IS-K threat to the hasty withdrawal of U.S.-led NATO forces from Afghanistan in 2021, arguing that the militants had gained access to weapons left behind.
Pakistan’s UN representative, Munir Akram, rejected U.S. claims that IS-K was recruiting inside Pakistan, insisting that Afghanistan remains the group’s primary base of operations.
The Taliban’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs dismissed Pakistan’s remarks at the UN Security Council meeting, calling them “baseless.”
Despite these claims, IS-K has continued to carry out deadly attacks, particularly targeting civilians, including the Shia-Hazara and Sufi communities, as well as Taliban officials.
