The militant Islamic State (IS) group, also known by its Arabic acronym Daesh, is receiving Nato-caliber weapons from the outlawed Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and other groups linked to the Taliban and Al Qaeda, according to a UN report discussed at a Security Council meeting in New York.
Two UN counterterrorism officers briefed the Security Council that IS and its allies, such the TTP, who are now armed with weapons of NATO caliber, continue to constitute a severe threat in conflict areas and surrounding nations.
The violent Islamic State-Khorasan (IS-K) organization has also lately carried out assaults inside Pakistan, including at a JUI-F conference in July, which resulted in the deaths of 40 people and the injuries of over 100. The TTP, which has been outlawed, has a history of striking targets inside Pakistan.
Taliban leader Zabihullah Mujahid, a spokesman, dismissed the allegations as “unfounded.” He responded by asserting that following the Taliban’s takeover, “Daesh group activities in Afghanistan have been reduced to zero” on his X (formerly Twitter) account.
People who were “spreading such unsupported and negative propaganda” about terrorist actions in Afghanistan, he claimed, “either lack knowledge or want to use this propaganda to give a morale boost to Daesh and its cause.”
After presenting the 17th report of the secretary general on the threat posed by Daesh to international peace and security, Vladimir Voronkov, head of the UN Counter-Terrorism Office (UNOCT), and Natalia Gherman, executive director of the Counter-Terrorism Committee, briefed the 15 members of the UN Security Council on Friday.
According to the study, IS-K was receiving NATO-caliber weapons that were generally used by the old Afghan National Defence and Security Forces (ANDSF), including TTP and the Eastern Turkistan Islamic Movement (ETIM).
The UN Counter-Terrorism Committee issued a dire warning, stating that “the presence and activity of some 20 different terrorist groups in Afghanistan, combined with the repressive measures put in place by the Taliban de facto authorities, the absence of sustainable development, and a dire humanitarian situation, pose significant challenges for the region and beyond.” However, Mr. Voronkov warned the Security Council that by successfully pursuing IS’s money, the international community had weakened it.
