RASC News Agency: Shanti Marit DeSouza, a member of the Washington Institute for Middle East Studies, asserts that Sanaullah Ghafari, also known as Shahab al-Muhajir, the leader of the Khorasan branch of ISIS, is alive. DeSouza made this assertion on Thursday, Mar 28, in an article published in “The Diplomat” magazine.
She added that contrary to the Taliban’s claim of his death, Ghafari is alive and residing in Balochistan, Pakistan. Pakistani authorities and the Taliban had previously stated that Ghafari was killed in June last year in the Kunar province. Shanti Marit DeSouza emphasized the need for a greater focus on the primary centers of ISIS’s Khorasan branch in Afghanistan and Pakistan.
According to her, this focus should also encompass the Central Asian borders, as ISIS aims to expand its regional activities. This member of the Washington Institute for Middle East Studies further added that although the recent ISIS Khorasan attack on the outskirts of Moscow does not indicate a significant presence of the group in the region, infiltration into Central Asia is anticipated.
The deadly ISIS Khorasan branch attack on a concert on the outskirts of Moscow has raised serious concerns worldwide. Earlier, the Australian Strategic Policy Institute stated that the ISIS attack in Russia demonstrates that the Taliban’s claim of suppressing ISIS is unfounded.
However, the Taliban have consistently claimed to have suppressed ISIS in the country and that there is no threat to regional countries, especially neighboring countries, from Afghanistan.
