ISIS leader in Afghanistan and Pakistan killed by US drone

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - An Islamic State (ISIS) leader in Afghanistan and Pakistan was killed by a US drone strike last month but his death was only confirmed in a Defense Department statement released today.

 

“U.S. and Afghan special operations forces conducted operations against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant [ISIL, ISIS] in Afghanistan’s southern Nangarhar province between approximately July 1-30, 2016,” the statement reads. 

 

In the airstrike “Hafiz Sayed Khan, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant-Khorasan emir, in Achin district, Nangarhar province,” was killed. 

 

“Khan was known to directly participate in attacks against U.S. and coalition forces,” Pentagon spokesperson Gordon Trowbridge said, adding, “the actions of his network terrorized Afghans, especially in Nangarhar.”

 

Khan's death will affect recruiting efforts of ISIS-Khorasan and will disrupt its operations in Afghanistan and the region, Trowbridge said.

 

Khan is the second prominent jihadist to be killed in the region in the last three months. Afghan Taliban leader Mullah Akhtar Mansour was killed by a US airstrike strike in Pakistan in May.

 

Nangarhar province has been a hotbed for ISIS-Khorasan activity since the summer of 2015, Trowbridge said. The group uses the area to train and equip fighters. The Pentagon spokesperson said that a continuous stream of fighters from this province was being sent out to ISIS-Khorasan commanders across Afghanistan.

 

According to officials there are between 1,000 and 1,500 ISIS militants believed to be in eastern Afghanistan.