![Thousands of Afghans protest against ISIS-K following a mosque attack that killed 33 people in Herat on August 2, 2017. [Hoshang Hashimi/AFP]](/cnmi_st/images/2024/11/15/48167-Anti-ISISK-protest-739_416.webp)
An "Islamic State of Iraq and Syria" Khorasan branch (ISIS-K) resurgence, amid Afghanistan's mounting security challenges, underscores an urgent need for coordinated action to prevent it from exploiting regional instability, analysts say.
Since emerging in Afghanistan in 2015 as an offshoot of the Iraq and Syria-based group, ISIS-K has pursued an ambitious agenda.
The name "Khorasan" strategically references a historical region encompassing parts of modern-day Afghanistan, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Iran.
Through this name, ISIS-K has sought to legitimize its campaign for a "caliphate" across this territory and rally supporters around an expansive ideological and territorial narrative.
While the previous Afghan government and coalition forces had significantly weakened ISIS-K through military operations, the group has gained new strength since August 2021 by exploiting the resulting power vacuum.
Fueling instability
ISIS-K has consistently targeted minority religious communities, including Afghan Sikhs, Hindus and Shia Hazaras, to deepen sectarian divides and fuel internal instability.
It draws its members from regional terrorist networks, including former affiliates of the Haqqani Network, Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), Lashkar-e-Taiba, Jaish-e-Muhammad, Sipah-e-Sahaba and the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan.
Fighters from these groups and others often join ISIS-K after becoming disillusioned with their own factions, or in pursuit of greater power and resources.
Many of these groups have a history of violence in Afghanistan, having fought Afghan security forces and foreign troops over the past two decades, claiming some of the most devastating attacks on Afghan civilians and security personnel.
Their attacks have claimed thousands of Afghan lives, with civilians -- particularly Shia Muslims -- accounting for more than 90% of casualties.
"ISIS-K fighters are the most dangerous terrorists in the region, united from different countries," said Afghan military expert Mohammad Naim Ghayur, who is based in Italy.
"They have managed to turn ISIS-K into one of the world's most dangerous terrorist organizations," he told Salaam Times.
Deadliest attacks
ISIS-K's deadliest attacks in Afghanistan include a 2015 suicide bombing in the Nangarhar provincial capital of Jalalabad, which left 33 dead; and a 2016 attack on Canadian Embassy guards in Kabul with 14 fatalities and dozens injured.
They include a 2016 attack by two suicide bombers on an Enlightenment Movement gathering in Kabul that left more than 80 dead; and a 2017 attack on Jawadia Mosque attack in Herat, with 40 fatalities.
A double suicide attack carried out by ISIS-K in Kabul's Shash Darak area in 2018 left 26 dead, including nine journalists; and a 2020 attack on the Kabul University campus killed 22 and wounded dozens.
Also in 2020, an attack on a Dasht-e-Barchi maternity hospital killed 16 mothers, a midwife and two young children, per Doctors Without Borders (MSF).
The maternity hospital served women from the Hazara minority.
According to this agreement, Mousavi Bakhati said, "The Hashd al-Shaabi forces are being sent to Tehran University as 'students' for education." The announcement of this news sparked protests from several students. A group of students from Tehran University considered the acceptance of Hashd al-Shaabi members as students to be a "military invasion of the university."
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Mousavi Bekhati stated that, under the agreement, members of Hashd al-Shaabi are enrolled as "students" at Tehran University for education. The announcement sparked protests among some students. A group of Tehran University students described the admission of Hashd al-Shaabi members as a "military invasion" of the university. The Polytechnic Freedom Society of Tehran issued a statement condemning the move as "a new war aimed at suppressing dissent." Additionally, some individuals referred to as "Iraqi students" are reportedly religious scholars affiliated with Jamiat Al-Mustafa Al-Alamiya, an organization established in 2008 under the directive of Ali Khamenei through the merger of "The Organization of Foreign Educational Seminaries and Seminaries" and "The Center of International Islamic Sciences." This institution is considered a key organization by Iran for Shia propaganda. This issue is concerning because, historically, the Soviet Union destabilized Afghanistan through the training of Afghan students, Pakistan through the training of Afghan militants, and now the Iranian regime is doing so through the training of both students and militants. It is feared that the same game may be repeated again.
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You are concerned about ISIS, and your concern is valid. However, I am worried about Iran's sinister politics in the region. This is because, in the past, the country fueled civil war in Afghanistan through its support of the brutal group known as Hizb-e Wahdat. You should take a look at what scheme they have now devised to destabilize Afghanistan once again. Iranian media reports that 33,000 Afghan students are currently studying in the country. However, Tasnim News Agency has not clarified how many individuals are enrolled in universities versus madrassas or seminaries. According to the agency, 95% of international students in Iran are Iraqi or Afghan, while approximately 5,000 students come from other nations. On October 26, Tasnim News Agency reported that, to date, "56,000 Iraqi" and "33,000 Afghan" students have been enrolled in educational programs in Iran. This comes despite data from the Higher Education Research and Planning Institute for 2021 indicating that only “around 9,000 Afghan students” were enrolled in universities. Tasnim’s report does not clarify how many of the “33,000 Afghan students” are currently studying in universities. Similarly, it is not clear how many of the “56,000 Iraqi students” are members of Hashd al-Shaabi or religious seminary students. Hussein Mousavi Bakhati, the deputy head of education and training for Hashd al-Shaabi, announced an "agreement and cooperation" with Tehran University during his visit to Tehran on June 9 last year, follow
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