As of: March 28, 2024, 7:53 a.m
By: Philipp Bräuner
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After the attack on a concert hall near Moscow, many people want to know who is behind the name ISIS-K. We have put together some background information.
Moscow – A group called the “Islamic State Khorasan Province” has claimed responsibility for the devastating terrorist attack in a concert hall near Moscow. But who is this offshoot of the “Islamic State,” which is also called ISIS-K or ISPK and has recently been repeatedly linked to planned and carried out attacks?
Background on the terrorist militia ISIS-K, which claims responsibility for the Moscow attack
ISIS-K was founded in 2014. As an offshoot of the self-proclaimed “Islamic State,” which at the time still exercised territorial power in Iraq and Syria, Khorasan refers to a different geographical region. The name refers to a historical region in Central Asia, in an area that is now the states of Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Iran, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan.
The ruins of Crocus City Hall near Moscow, which was the target of a terrorist attack. But who is the group “Islamic State Khorasan Province” that claims responsibility for the attack? © dpa
When the self-proclaimed “Islamic State” was completely destroyed in Iraq in 2017 and then in 2019, its status changed again to a purely underground terrorist militia. Among the groups acting on its behalf, ISIS-K has been considered the most dangerous and influential group for some time.
According to analyst Ashley Jackson, ISIS-K enjoys the greatest possible freedom of action compared to the umbrella organization and is correspondingly independent. The fact that there is often no clear differentiation between IS and ISIS-K in the letters of responsibility is a media strategy of the terrorists, she writes in the political magazine
Politico
. This increases the reach for both groups.
What danger does the terrorist militia ISIS-K pose for Europe and Germany?
In Germany, experts largely agree that there has been increased activity by this terrorist group in the early 2020s. Thuringia's Office for the Protection of the Constitution Stephan Kramer speaks to
ARD
of a "high, abstract threat situation" that has developed over the past two to three years.
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The first signs of ISIS-K activities in Germany were already in 2019, when a terrorist cell was busted in North Rhine-Westphalia, which had apparently planned an assassination attempt on an Islam critic in Germany. The men who have now been convicted apparently all came from Tajikistan, just like the suspected attackers near Moscow. They are said to have received their instructions from Afghanistan.
The group is also said to be responsible for the plan for an attack on Cologne Cathedral in December 2023. In addition, the two suspected terrorists arrested in Gera last week are said to belong to ISIS-K. They had apparently planned an attack on the Swedish parliament.
ISIS-K has strong roots in Central Asia but is active globally
As the name suggests, ISIS-K is a group with strong local roots whose activities have long been focused on Afghanistan and Pakistan. Especially in Afghanistan, this leads to direct competition with the Taliban, who came back to power in 2021, whose views ISIS-K apparently rejects as too moderate.
One of the group's most sensational attacks must also be seen in this context, in which 170 Afghans and 13 US employees were killed in a suicide attack at Kabul airport in 2021 during the US withdrawal from Afghanistan. A subsequent Taliban offensive was initially able to push back ISIS-K.
However, due to its regional roots, there are also personnel differences between the core operating area in Central Asia and Europe. While former Taliban and conservative men in particular are carefully tested and indoctrinated locally, the group in the West is particularly dependent on contact and propaganda via social media, writes analyst Jackson. As for approximate membership numbers, a UN report puts the number of ISIS-K fighters at 6,000. (
pkb
)