The Taliban have launched a crackdown on hideouts of militant Islamic State group in southern Afghanistan, officials said on Monday, following an increase in bloody attacks by the group in recent weeks. The operation against Islamic State-Khorasan — the local chapter of the group — started around midnight in at least four districts of Kandahar province and continued through Monday morning, Taliban provincial police chief Abdul Ghafar Mohammadi told AFP. A member of the Taliban intelligence agency who declined to be named told AFP at least three civilians were killed in the operation. In the three months since the Taliban came to power, IS-K has been active in Jalalabad, Kunduz, Kandahar and Kabul. That attack came a week after another deadly mosque blast claimed by IS-K in northern Kunduz province killed more than 60 people.

Source: Pakistan Today November 15, 2021 13:15 UTC