ISIS-K spreading extremist propaganda in Europe

HERAT -- The "Islamic State of Iraq and Syria" Khorasan branch (ISIS-K) has been able to spread its extremist ideology across the globe via an extensive online propaganda campaign targeting youth, research shows.

Through an expanded multilingual online campaign, ISIS-K has stepped up its threats outside Afghanistan, particularly in Europe, according to a report by Afghan Witness and the UK-based Centre for Information Resilience (CIR).

Key activities attributed to ISIS-K outside Afghanistan in 2024 include the mass-casualty March attack on a concert in Moscow and targeted attacks in Iran in January per the report, updated September 18.

In July, authorities in Austria foiled an attempt to carry out a mass-casualty attack at three concerts by US singer Taylor Swift.

German and Swiss police have disrupted several ISIS-K terrorist plots, some involving teenagers, and French authorities announced multiple arrests in connection with a plot against the Olympic Games in Paris.

Global threat

ISIS-K is now regarded as the greatest foreign terrorist threat to Europe, United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism director Vladimir Voronkov said in August.

The group's propaganda effort celebrates its terror attacks in Arabic, English, Pashtu, Persian, Russian, Tajik, Turkish, Urdu and Uzbek, among other languages, in a campaign that targets teenagers, according to the CIR.

"A recent academic study found that nearly two-thirds of [ISIS]-linked arrests in Europe in the last nine months have been of teenagers," it said.

In foiling the attacks on the Taylor Swift concerts, for example, Austrian authorities arrested two suspects aged 17 and 19.

"Taylor Swift's arguably the most recognizable and famous pop star in the world," Soufan Group research director Colin Clarke told Sky News in September.

"If they were successful in attacking that concert ... ISIS would have enjoyed weeks, if not months of unfettered propaganda, which helps buoy the group and give them momentum," he said.

'Enemy of humanity'

With its ongoing attacks targeting civilians, ISIS-K is committing crimes against humanity, said military analyst Hamza Baloch, who is based in Nimroz province.

"ISIS-K killed civilians in Moscow just as it did in Kerman, Iran," he told Salaam Times. "It has murdered Afghans in Kabul, Herat, Balkh and Daikundi in the same manner."

"As a common enemy of humanity, ISIS-K must be fought collectively," Baloch added. "All countries around the world should actively participate in the suppression of this terrorist group."

ISIS-K's actions completely contravene Islamic values, Herat religious scholar Imamuddin Mohammadi told Salaam Times.

"Killing innocent people, whether they are Muslims or followers of other religions, is not permissible from the perspective of Islam," he said.