Taliban Official Killed in Attack Claimed by IS

A Taliban official has been killed in an attack claimed by the Islamic State (IS) group in northeastern Afghanistan.

Jabihullah Ameeri, the head of the information and culture department in Badakhshan, was shot dead while traveling to the provincial capital, Faizabad, the group said.

The attack, which took place on Wednesday, was claimed by IS’s Afghanistan and Pakistan branch.

According to a statement by the monitoring group ‘Intelligence Group’, fighters from the caliphate shot and killed a Taliban commander, along with one of his guards.

Ameeri was the nephew of Amanuddin Mansur, the governor of southern Helmand province.

Afghanistan’s Ministry of Information and Culture said one attacker was killed and another was arrested in the ‘cowardly attack’.

The ministry added that such cowardly acts would not weaken the resolve of the Islamic government’s enemies.

Continued Attacks

Despite the Taliban’s promise to restore security in Afghanistan, sporadic attacks have continued since they returned to power in 2021.

IS’s regional branch has claimed responsibility for several attacks, including a bombing at a Chinese restaurant in central Kabul in January, which killed at least seven people.

The jihadist group also claimed responsibility for a December 2024 suicide bombing in Kabul that killed the Minister for Refugees, Khalil ur-Rahman Haqqani.