12 Afghanistan remains a top destination for foreign terrorist fighters (FTFs) in the region, as well as for fighters leaving battlefields in the Levant. 11 Additionally, a recent United Nations publication commented that вЂњ core continues to facilitate the relocation of some of its key operatives to Afghanistan,вЂќ including Abu Qutaiba, the Islamic StateвЂ™s former leader in IraqвЂ™s Salah al-Din province. 10 To that end, the Islamic State has invested some financial resources in its Khorasan province-as much as several hundred thousand dollars-to improve its networks and organization in Central Asia. 9 Following IS-KвЂ™s official pledge of allegiance to the Islamic StateвЂ™s global вЂњummah,вЂќ Islamic State wilayats (or provinces) in Iraq and Syria publicly announced their congratulations for the movementвЂ™s expansion into Central Asia through media statements and videos. As the Islamic State loses territory, it has increasingly turned to Afghanistan as a base for its global caliphate. IS-K has received support from the Islamic StateвЂ™s core leadership in Iraq and Syria since its founding in 2015. 7 According to the Combatting Terrorism Center at West Point, as of 2017, some members of Lashkar-e-Taiba, Jamaat-ud-Dawa, the Haqqani Network, and the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU) had also defected to IS-K. 6 The appointment of Khan as IS-KвЂ™s first emir, and former Taliban commander Abdul Rauf Khadim as his deputy, further facilitated the groupвЂ™s growth, utilizing long established recruitment networks in Afghanistan and Pakistan. 5 Many of these militants were estranged members of TTP and Lashkar-e Islam, who had fled Pakistan to escape pressure from security forces. IS-KвЂ™s early membership included a contingent of Pakistani militants who emerged in AfghanistanвЂ™s Nangarhar province around 2010, just across the border from the former Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) of Pakistan. Many of these individuals were included in the first Khorasan Shura or leadership council. 3 Khan, a veteran Tehrik-e Taliban Pakistan (TTP) commander, brought along other prominent TTP members-including the groupвЂ™s spokesman Sheikh Maqbool and many district chiefs-when he initially pledged allegiance to al-Baghdadi in October 2014. In 2014, Pakistani national Hafiz Saeed Khan was chosen to spearhead IS-K province as its first emir. This backgrounder is an overview of the history, leadership, and current strategic goals of IS-K.ДЇormation and Relationship with ISIS Core and allied interests in South and Central Asia. homeland, the group represents an enduring threat to U.S. 2 Though IS-K has yet to conduct attacks against the U.S. 1 Despite initial skepticism about the groupвЂ™s existence from analysts and government officials alike, IS-K has been responsible for nearly 100 attacks against civilians in Afghanistan and Pakistan, as well as roughly 250 clashes with the U.S., Afghan, and Pakistani security forces since January 2017. The Islamic State announced its expansion to the Khorasan region in 2015, which historically encompasses parts of modern day Iran, Central Asia, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. Islamic State Khorasan (IS-K) is the Islamic StateвЂ™s Central Asian province and remains active three years after its inception.

Responding to Egregious Human Rights AbusesДЇigure 1: Afghan security forces patrol during ongoing clashes between security forces and Islamic State militants in Nangarhar province, Afghanistan.

Building Sustainable and Inclusive Democracy.Family Planning, Maternal and Child Health, and Immunizations.

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Empire of the dawn strike the blood