In a tragic incident, the acting governor of northern Badakhshan province, Nisar Ahmad Ahmadi, was killed by a suicide bomber on Tuesday.
This horrifying attack occurred just months after the region’s police chief fell victim to a similar assault, claimed by the Islamic State (IS) group.
While security has made significant strides since the Taliban’s resurgence in August 2021, which resulted in the removal of the US-backed government and the end of their two-decade insurgency, the threat posed by IS remains.
The assailant, driving a car laden with explosives, deliberately targeted the vehicle carrying Ahmadi in the provincial capital of Faizabad.
Muazuddin Ahmadi, the head of culture and information in the province, affirmed, “The intended target of this attack was Nisar Ahmad Ahmadi’s vehicle.”
Tragically, the driver was also killed in the explosion, and six others sustained injuries. As of now, no individual or group has claimed responsibility for the attack.
This heinous act follows the suicide bombing last December that claimed the life of the province’s police force leader, an incident that IS took credit for. Furthermore, in April of the previous year, the head of the mining department also fell victim to a bomb attack.
Although the Taliban and IS share an austere Sunni Islamist ideology, the latter group’s objective extends beyond the Taliban’s domestic focus on ruling an independent Afghanistan.
IS aspires to establish a global caliphate, making its motivations and methods distinct from those of the Taliban.
Since the return of the Taliban government, IS has been responsible for numerous attacks resulting in the death and injury of hundreds of people.
Their targets have included foreigners, as they seek to undermine the newly formed Taliban administration. The current incident serves as a stark reminder that despite recent security advancements, Afghanistan still grapples with the persistent threat of extremist violence.
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