The barbaric killing squad behind the brutal massacre of 137 people at a concert in
Moscow are known as ISIS-K. 's capital was rocked on Friday when harrowing footage appeared to show camouflaged gunmen
shooting civilians at point-blank range inside Crocus City Hall. Thousands of fans had gathered there to see rock band Picnic before the bloodbath ensued. The Afghan branch of ISIS, called ISIS-K, claimed responsibility moments after the building was set alight. This has since been confirmed by US intelligence, despite despot Putin pointing the blame at . Below we take a closer look inside the bloody history of the splinter cell group to see what their motives were for targeting Russia.
ISIS Khorasan (ISIS-K) was formed in 2014 and it is named after a region that made up parts of
Iran, Turkmenistan and Afghanistan. The leader is former al-Qaeda fighter Shahab al-Muhajir and even the
Taliban are said to fear the militant cult which according to Reuters, had its membership peak in 2018. It is regarded as one of the most dangerous ISIS affiliates – and a US
MILITARY official warned about an attack on the West this time last year. US Central Command’s General Michael Kurilla told congress: “They can do external operations against US or Western interests abroad in under six months with little to no warning.” The group suffered serious damage by Taliban fighters and
American air strikes over the years – but they seized more of a foothold in 2021 when the country collapsed. They went on to produce sickening videos where they beheaded victims on camera. You don’t need to look back far for examples of ISIS-K bloodshed – because just last week a suicide bomber killed 21 people at a bank in the city of Kandaher. They said they were targeting their major rivals the Taliban in what was the biggest blast in
Afghanistan this year. They also pounced in 2021 when members killed 13 US troops at Kabul’s international airport during America’s evacuation following the Taliban’s takeover of the country. Disturbingly, in the same year, they also reportedly bombed the Sayed al-Shuhada girl’s school where 90 people, mostly made up of young girls, were killed. Afterwards, an Afghan official said: “The first blast was powerful and happened so close to the children that some of them could not be found.” A year later one of its gunmen took out 22 people after going on a killing spree inside
Kabul University. But they also carry out tragedies outside Afghanistan – and earlier this year they claimed the lives of nearly 100 people in twin bombings in Iran. Another ISIS-K onslaught came in September 2022 when the group boasted about sending a suicide bomber to the
Russian embassy in Kabul. But as for why they target Putin's country, Colin Clarke of Soutfan Centre, a research group, said: “ISIS-K has been fixated on
Russia for the past two years, frequently criticising Putin in its propaganda.” And Michael Kugelsman of the Wilson Centre added that they see “Russia as being complicit in activities that regularly oppress Muslims”. Four suspected gunmen have appeared at a Moscow district court while seven others are being quizzed over the
terror attack. Chancellor Jermey Hunt said
Britain and European countries needed to be wary of similar threats. He said: “We have to remain vigilant. If it is Islamic State… they’re prepared to murder in the most horrific way.” And despite Putin trying to pin blame on
Ukraine, the US National Security Council’s Adrienne Watson said: “ISIS bears sole responsibility for this attack. There was no Ukrainian involvement whatsoever.” She also said America shared intelligence with Russia about fears over an ISIS-K assault on Moscow in the days before it happened - but at the time paranoid Putin said it was a bid to destabilise the country.