Taliban Eliminates ISIS Leader Behind Kabul Airport Attack

The Taliban has claimed responsibility for killing the senior ISIL leader behind the deadly suicide bombing outside the Kabul airport in August 2021, which killed about 170 Afghans and 13 US service members. The identity of the ISIL leader has not yet been released. The news was shared with the families of the fallen service members in a private group messaging chat. The Afghanistan-based offshoot of ISIL, with up to 4,000 members, is the Taliban’s most bitter enemy and top threat militarily. The August 2021 pullout of US troops led to the swift collapse of the Afghan government and military, which the US had supported for nearly two decades, and the return to power of the Taliban.