Daesh-K Commander Told CNN Before Kabul Blasts That Group Was 'Waiting For Time to Strike'
21:31 GMT 28.08.2021 (Updated: 19:56 GMT 18.10.2022)
© REUTERS / SPAIN MINISTRY OF DEFENSE
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The suicide bombings in Kabul took place on Thursday, occurring in the area of the Hamid Karzai international airport and killing 13 US soldiers and over a hundred Afghan civilians, including many Taliban members.
CNN correspondent Clarissa Ward spoke to a Daesh* commander two days before the Thursday attacks at the Kabul airport, with him telling her that the terrorist group was "laying low" and "waiting for a time to strike".
“When the foreigners and people of the world leave Afghanistan, we can restart our operations,” said the anonymous commander, also sharing with Ward that the terrorist group was recruiting members and waiting for the foreigners to leave Afghanistan.
Coming up on @AC360, we interviewed a senior commander with ISIS-K two days before Kabul fell to the Taliban. He said the group had been lying low but would “restart operations when the foreigners leave Afghanistan.” US intel was already tracking the threat.
— Clarissa Ward (@clarissaward) August 27, 2021
The unnamed commander also revealed to Ward that he has led groups of up to 600 people, which included Indians and Pakistanis.
The anonymous militiaman also claimed that he used to work with the Taliban, but became critical of the group because it had moderated its stance on Western influence.
“We were operating in Taliban’s ranks. However, these people were not aligned with us in terms of belief, so we went to ISIS,” he told Ward. "If anyone gets along with us on this, he is our brother. Otherwise, we declare war with him whether he is Talib or anyone else.”
The source confirmed that members of Daesh-K had carried out suicide attacks and executions, while also saying that the group has "faced" US troops "on many occasions", including in "close combat". When asked whether his group is interested "ultimately in carrying out international attacks", the purported Daesh leader claimed that he could only comment on Afghanistan operations.
The interview was aired two days after several deadly blasts hit the airport in Kabul, killing 13 US soldiers and over one hundred Afghan civilians, as well as an unknown number of Taliban members. Responsibility for the attacks was claimed by Daesh, and the United States conducted an airstrike targeting a group planner on Friday, saying that the target was killed.
US President Joe Biden did not rule out the possibility of more attacks in Kabul airport over the next 24-36 hours, vowing that the Friday US airstrike was not the last.
*Daesh (also known as ISIS/ISIL/IS) is a terrorist organization banned in Russia and many other states
