Danger of UK attack
WHEN it comes to waging terror, the Taliban are namby-pambies in the eyes of the fanatical fighters of IS-K.
And experts fear it is that which could inspire and radicalise a new generation of terrorists in the UK. It is unlikely IS-K have any active cells here, but their high profile from Thursday’s Kabul bomb attacks could embolden British supporters to attempt copycat atrocities.
Former senior military intelligence officer Philip Ingram told the Sunday People: “This is a regionally focused group. But ISIS is a franchise so no one signs up to it. All you have to do is swear allegiance. The real danger is groups and individuals could do that here.”
And ex-tory MP Rupert Allason, who uses the alias Nigel West as Britain’s top spy expert, added: “Home-grown selfradicalised jihadis are always the greatest challenge. But there could be a heightened danger from infiltrators posing as refugees or asylum seekers.”
Rampage
It was a breakaway group from the Pakistan Taliban swearing allegiance in January 2015 to ISIS in Iraq and Syria which brought IS-K into being.
The K is from the Khorasan region straddling the Afghanistan-pakistan border where they first began operating.
They are now mostly based in the eastern province of Nangarhar, but have sleeper cells in all main Afghan towns.
They went on a rampage of violence targeting girls’ schools, hospitals and even a maternity ward where they shot dead a pregnant women and nurses.
IS-K’S ambition is to create an Islamist caliphate across Central and South Asia.
IS-K expert Dr Amira Jadoon, of the US Military Academy West Point, said: “Its immediate goals are to replenish its ranks and signal its resolve through high-profile attacks.”