Kabul [Afghanistan]: Head of Islamic State (IS) in Afghanistan Abdul Hasib has been killed in a raid led by US Special Forces in eastern Nangarhar, said Afghanistan government in a statement.
Confirming the death of dreaded terrorist, the statement said, “Sheikh Abdul Hasib, the Emir of Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant – Khorasan Province (ISIS-K) in Afghanistan was killed in a combined Afghan/U.S. raid in Nangarhar on April 27.”
The raid also resulted in the deaths of several other high ranking ISIS-K leaders and 35 ISIS-K fighters, added the statement.
“This successful joint operation is another important step in our relentless campaign to defeat ISIS-K in 2017,” said General John Nicholson, Commander U.S. Forces – Afghanistan, adding that “this is the second ISIS-K emir we have killed in nine months, along with dozens of their leaders and hundreds of their fighters”.
For more than two years, ISIS-K has waged a barbaric campaign of death, torture and violence against the Afghan people, especially those in southern Nangarhar.
Abdul Hasib directed the March 8 attack against Kabul National Military Hospital, which resulted in the deaths and injury of over one-hundred innocent Afghans. Hasib also directed fighters to behead local elders in front of their families and ordered the kidnapping of women and girls to force them to marry ISIS-K fighters.
Afghan and U.S. Forces launched a counter ISIS-K offensive in early March 2017 to drive ISISK from Nangarha.
On April 29, the US Special Forces and Afghan Commandoes had claimed that Hasib was probably killed in their attack.
The raid in Nangarhar province, targeted Abdul Hasib, whom the Pentagon called the IS leader in Afghanistan.
“The thought is we got him, but we are not certain,” Pentagon spokesman Captain Jeff Davis had said. (ANI)