On August 26, the Islamic State Khurasan Province (ISKP) released the 13th issue of their magazine, Voice of Khurasan, produced by Al-Azaim Foundation. In this issue, they include an article titled “After a Year the US is still Licking its Wounds”.
They begin the article by explaining that the Taliban did not fall into apostasy at once, rather it was a slow process. They blame the Pakistani ISI, Qatar, Russia, Iran, and other countries for leading them into “kufr” while testing the Taliban’s loyalties to these state sponsors. They then talk of these states handing the Taliban power after it passed those tests. The Islamic State describes the one-year-old Taliban regime as the “US boots on the ground” that fights against ISKP.
The article also mentions that the Taliban takeover of Kabul was a staged drama, in which the fighters entered the capital in US vehicles facing no resistance, while the leaders landed in Kandahar in a US plane. The Islamic State accuses the Taliban of “replacing the former puppets,” being themselves the “new puppets with beards and turbans”. A noteworthy point is that ISKP forecasts a new fight against the US in Afghanistan, mentioning that the former “murtad” personnel, like government officials, prosecutors, judges, lawyers, soldiers, and spies were taken to Western countries. For them, the West did this to “[use] them in a near future”.
ISKP notes the heavily flawed US evacuation and recalls how exactly a year ago, they carried out their suicide attack at the Kabul airport. The Islamic State describes how on that day, Abdul Rahman al-Logari, a former Bagram prisoner released during the August 2021 takeover, crossed all security corridors, and blew himself up, causing hundreds of casualties and killing 13 US servicemen. ISKP then mocks US President Joe Biden for crying after the incident.
The group boasts that this action showed the US that the Caliphate was far from being defeated. It also mentions that the failure to destroy ISKP was the reason the US left Afghanistan, handing the new insurgency over to the Taliban to counter. ISKP further describes how, days after the Kabul airport attack and subsequent US withdrawal, they went into hiding in order to fool the Taliban into thinking it was the end of the Islamic State in Afghanistan. They add that they were successful in achieving this since the Taliban spokesman went on TV to “laugh with women”, gloating that ISKP was only a project of the fallen Afghan government.
ISKP then proceeds to discuss their days in Afghanistan following the withdrawal. They mention ambushing Taliban fighters in Nangarhar and the Kunar Valley; carrying out a suicide attack at the funeral of the mother of Zabiullah Mujahid, the spokesman for the Taliban; and attacking Shias and Sikhs; they mention that Uyghur fighters took part in anti-Shia attacks. Voice of Khurasan adds that all these attacks gave the Taliban a pretext for “looting,” under excuses they were house searching. The group even boasts that they have managed to target the Taliban “in their safe haven in Kandahar”.
ISKP emphasizes that their attacks are not limited to a “nationalistic border,” adding that they have countries like Iran, Tajikistan, Pakistan, China, and Uzbekistan in their sights. The Islamic State revels in having already targeted these countries, noting that the Taliban has continually given these countries fake security assurances. They also mention their rocket attacks against Uzbek and Tajik territory, showing “the world that the jihad of the Khilafah is not limited to a particular land, as is the case of murtad Taliban nationalist movement.” They also claim to have targeted Shias and policemen in Pakistan.
The Islamic State says it is carrying out economic warfare against the Taliban by sabotaging electrical towers and additional activities.
They state that the US is “still licking its wounds,” since they threatened the Taliban with cutting financial aid if they do not fight against the Islamic State. Calling US President Joe Biden “old and frailed,” ISKP says he is disappointed with the Taliban despite strengthening them in order to fight against the Khorasan Province. They add that the US is planning a future attack against Afghan territory.
The article closes with a threat to Biden, the Taliban, and regional states, which they describe as the “masters of the nationalistic Taliban militia.” ISKP writes that it will be the Taliban’s last effort, and the latter will be defeated. The “flames of war have not been fully lit yet”, and ISKP warns “of a great bloody war”.
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Islamists against the Talibans - oh the irony!